Key developments
ERCOT moves to batch-screen data-center requests
ERCOT is voting on a new batch process to sort through the surge of large-load requests from data centers and other users in Texas. In the first quarter alone, nearly 200 proposed projects sought grid access, and combined requests across data centers, crypto miners and industrial users now total 438 gigawatts. The first study would start with "Batch Zero," and stakeholders say the criteria may require land, financing and ordered equipment before a project gets studied; if ERCOT approves the process, the Public Utility Commission would vote in July.
Why it matters
Texas is trying to separate real projects from speculative ones before the grid commits scarce transmission capacity.
Sources & driving stories
HOUSTON PUBLIC MEDIA
Houston Public Media coverageOhio suspends data-center tax break amid hearings
Ohio lawmakers opened hearings last week for a new data-center committee as the state moves toward tighter scrutiny of the sector's power and water impacts. In parallel, Ohio is suspending a data-center sales tax exemption that had been projected at $136 million in fiscal 2025 and $142 million in fiscal 2026 but was reported to have cost $554 million in 2024 and nearly $1.6 billion in 2025. The pushback comes as more than 200 data centers already operate in Ohio and 77 more are planned by 2030.
Why it matters
Ohio is shifting from incentives to oversight in one of the nation's biggest data-center markets.
Sources & driving stories
NEWS AND SENTINEL
News and Sentinel coverageSLASHDOT
Slashdot coverageIllinois POWER Act stalls until fall session
Illinois lawmakers said the POWER Act will not pass this spring, pushing negotiations into summer and possibly the October veto session. The bill would require water-use reporting, water-management plans, community benefits agreements and renewable energy sourcing, while Gov. JB Pritzker is separately seeking to suspend existing data-center tax credits. State records cited in the story say at least 27 data centers have received about $983 million in estimated lifetime tax benefits.
Why it matters
Illinois is delaying new rules even as pressure builds to curb incentives and resource impacts.
Sources & driving stories
WIFR
WIFR coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
New Jersey outlines four-part data-center rules
Governor Mikie Sherrill's May 27 plan would shift infrastructure costs to data centers, require twice-yearly energy and water reporting, support community benefits agreements and push local job creation.
WORTH NOTING
Kentucky sees 29 projects in pipeline
LG&E and KU say 29 potential projects could eventually require about 12 gigawatts, while TeraWulf just announced a more than 1-gigawatt Greenup County site plus another large build in Hancock County.
WORTH NOTING
Arizona rooftop solar pitched for grid relief
Rewiring America says rooftop solar, batteries and efficiency could free grid capacity for more data centers, but Arizona Public Service reportedly already has about 30 gigawatts of data-center requests against roughly 10 gigawatts of supply capacity.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
Which projects qualify for ERCOT's first batch?
The new screening rules will determine whether speculative data-center requests are delayed, studied or dropped.
OPEN QUESTION
Will Ohio's tax-break suspension become durable?
Ohio is moving from incentives to scrutiny, but it is still unclear whether lawmakers will lock in a lasting cost-allocation framework.