Bitcoin Mining and Data Centers Could Nearly Double Energy Demand in Texas by 2030

A new Texas Electric Reliability Council forecast says the state’s energy demand will nearly double by 2030, with most of the new demand coming from Bitcoin mining It is data centers.

ERCOT predicts that energy demand will increase to 150 gigawatts by 2030, up from 85 GW today, KVUE reported.

Sixty percent of projected demand — 40 GW more than previously forecast — comes from crypto mining and data centers, including some managed by artificial intelligenceLori Cobos of the Public Utility Commission of Texas told the Texas Senate Business and Commerce Committee this week.

This surprised politicians on both sides of the aisle, raising questions about the accuracy of the forecast model, why they weren’t informed sooner, and what power they have to limit AI business in Texas.

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick said the state needs to take a close look at crypto miners and data centers as Texans will end up paying the price for their energy demand.

“They produce very few jobs compared to the incredible demands they place on our network,” wrote Patrick on social media platform. “Crypto mining can actually make more money selling electricity back to the grid than it can from its crypto mining operations.”

There will only be three legislative sessions until 2030. The state government was already preparing for what it thought would be an energy demand of 110 GW.

The new forecast used a different, less conservative methodology, ERCOT Chief Operating Officer Woody Rickerson said, according to KVUE.

Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, questioned whether the projection could increase again.

“AI has just arrived on the scene, but who knows what comes next, even after that, it will be even more consuming?” Campbell said, according to KVUE. “Can we just say, ‘No, you can’t come’?”

The remaining 40% of the increase in energy demand will come from hydrogen production facilities and the expansion and electrification of existing industries, including oil and gas, Cobos said. Texas is also expected to reach a population of 50 million by 2050, up from 30 million.

While rooftop solar panels and smart meters are recommended, increasing supply will not be enough to ensure energy reliability, said Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance Executive Director Matthew Boms.

“From our perspective, it is not possible to solve this problem without working on the demand side of the solution,” Boms told KVUE. “How can we address energy efficiency, demand response and distributed energy resources in Texas in a state that really needs every megawatt it can get?”

Texans still watch ERCOT news closely more than three years later your network failed during a winter stormleaving millions of people without power for days in freezing temperatures and contributing to hundreds of deaths.

Houstonians were reminded of the delicacy of their power system last month when a derecho tore the city apart, cutting power to almost a million people. These outages were not caused by a grid failure, but it took more than a week for power to be restored to some homes, businesses and customers. will help pay the bill for more than $100 million in repairs.

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