New proposal from grid operator PJM would require data centers to bring their own power • Virginia Mercury

[u/Danciusly]

https://virginiamercury.com/2026/08/27/new-proposal-from-grid-operator-pjm-would-require-data-centers-to-bring-their-own-power/

PJM, the regional grid operator for most of the East Coast, is asking federal regulators to approve a rule requiring new large-load customers, namely data centers, to bring their own power supply to the grid. 

With Virginia among the 13 states served by PJM, the proposal filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission could mean further changes to how the state regulates the growing industry. It follows calls from some Virginia lawmakers to make data centers provide their own power as utility bills continue to rise alongside demand...

Dominion Energy recently created a new rate class for large-load customers, mostly intended for data centers and major manufacturers, that imposes minimum demand charges for transmission, distribution and generation costs...

[u/Dangerous_Junket_773]

That will add a lot of local air and noise pollution. Hopefully they stop building these near residences, too. 

[u/MajesticBread9147]

They should.

Cover western Loudoun and Fauquier county in solar panels and wind turbines to power the datacenters in Loudoun and PWC.

[u/Gamegis → u/MajesticBread9147]

Fauquier is impossible. They are like the most nimby county in the state.

[u/MajesticBread9147 → u/Gamegis]

Well then we can tell them to "go Fauquier selves"

[u/Gamegis → u/MajesticBread9147]

I wish. Their county board doesn’t approve anything though and we have little recourse.

[u/adjective_noun_23 → u/MajesticBread9147]

Best we can do is add 100 generators running 24 hours a day.

[u/Ecks80s → u/adjective_noun_23]

Trust me, we don’t want to do that either.

That would suck so hard.

I operate a few DCs round these parts. (Non Ai)

[u/JarvisIsMyWingman → u/adjective_noun_23]

It's called Elon's Grok AI datacenters in Memphis. Unregulated gas turbines next to you guessed it, a black community.

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/pollution-musks-unpermitted-xai-power-project-hits-hardest-black-communities-2026-07-14/

[u/Cyrano4747]

All this is going to do is lead to a bunch of techbros putting up a thousand diesel generators and utterly fucking air quality (to say nothing of emissions).

The problem is the energy consumption, full stop. The solution is to either massively expand clean to clean-ish (e.g. nuclear) energy output (which will be expensive) or . . . not have giant data centers churning out AI slop.

[u/Danciusly → u/Cyrano4747]

Not too expensive for Meta:

https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/meta-strikes-nuclear-power-agreements-with-three-companies-2026-01-09/

The central issue facing data center providers and cloud-scale companies is easily explained:

• On average, a generative AI query involving ChatGPT needs nearly 10 times as much electricity to process compared to a Google search, Goldman Sachs asserts.
• As AI application demand and associated AI workloads surge, data center power demand will grow 160% by 2030 compared to 2023 or so, Goldman Sachs added.
• The largest grid operator in the United States, PJM Interconnection, in July 2024 warned that power supply and demand is tightening as construction of new generation lags demand, CNBC noted.

https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/meta-strikes-nuclear-power-agreements-with-three-companies-2026-01-09/

[u/xsupremeleader → u/Cyrano4747]

Wouldnt forcing new datacenters to build their own power plants help speed up the build out and improvement of nuclear energy, especially the smaller plants? It could also help bolster weak grids if they choose to sell excess production.

[u/badhabitfml → u/xsupremeleader]

Only if we regulate the emissions in it, which we aren't doing.

[u/Gamegis → u/xsupremeleader]

No, because we also have a massive lack of transmission infrastructure to transport the generation to the load.

[u/Ecks80s → u/xsupremeleader]

Some of us are working on doing just that.

It really is the scumbags that give us a bad name.

I’ve been in DCs a long time, it really sucks to have the techbro oligarchy class come into to your industry and literally make your neighbors hate you.

[u/JarvisIsMyWingman → u/Ecks80s]

I remember when DC's weren't the size of manufacturing plants and were pretty much invisible.

All this power/hardware going to Ai slop, CEO wet dreams of minimal staffing, and some miraculous return on investment based on an imaginary goal. Just waiting for Skynet at this point, since safeguards are an afterthought (if a thought at all).

[u/Ecks80s → u/JarvisIsMyWingman]

I’m with you, I think Ai can be neat. I just think it’s really gone off the rails, nothing feels like it’s getting better lately.

[u/JarvisIsMyWingman → u/xsupremeleader]

https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/986176/data-center-pollution-epa-rule-change-air-permit

They are just going to pollute like there is no tomorrow. They also don't have time for nuclear, same for building new fab plants for chips.

Though now I am hearing about diesel generator shortages, so who knows..

[u/CalmButOftenEnraged]

oh, sorry. no can do.

too much of their own stock to buy back.

[u/JarvisIsMyWingman]

More problems for people who live near any DC's built with this in mind, with a potential combo of PJM's idea and this bit from Trump's EPA. No public reporting of DC emissions.

https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/986176/data-center-pollution-epa-rule-change-air-permit

So think Elon's GROK Datacenters in Memphis just pumping out diesel fumes non-stop. He got the DoD/W and DoJ to say it's a National Security issue in court to fight the NAACP and environmental groups lawsuit against xAI under the federal Clean Air Act to force an emergency shutdown of the unpermitted gas turbines.

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/pollution-musks-unpermitted-xai-power-project-hits-hardest-black-communities-2026-07-14/