US electricity demand soars due to artificial intelligence (AI), causing grid crisis - Photo: AFP
Electricity prices in many areas managed by PJM Interconnection are expected to rise more than 20% this summer.
According to Reuters, this situation occurred in the context of soaring electricity demand, especially from data centers in the "Data Center Alley" area in Virginia, where many of the world's leading artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructures are concentrated.
The crisis began with a capacity auction last year, when prices rose more than 800%, causing consumers’ electricity bills to rise. The next auction, on July 10, could push prices even higher.
Capacity auctions are a mechanism for power plants to commit to supplying electricity during the most stressful times such as hot or cold weather, to avoid widespread power outages.
But while high prices have motivated more power plants, progress has been slow, with old plants closing while new projects have been delayed by red tape, local opposition, supply chain bottlenecks and a lack of investment capital.
PJM said it has approved about 46 gigawatts of new capacity — enough to power 40 million homes — but most of it has yet to be deployed.
Demand increases, system cannot keep up
The situation will become more serious from 2023, when OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot and other AI chatbots will gradually become widely available, forcing large technology corporations to rush to find huge sources of electricity to operate data centers.
PJM forecasts that by 2030, the region will need 32 gigawatts of additional electricity, 30 of which will come from data centers.
Meanwhile, PJM’s grid has lost a net 5.6 gigawatts over the past 10 years, as more old plants have been retired than new ones have been built. By 2024, PJM will add just 5 gigawatts of capacity, less than the smaller grids in California and Texas.
Also according to Reuters, the electricity price crisis led to leadership changes.
PJM CEO Manu Asthana announces resignation, two board members voted out.
Mr. Josh Shapiro, governor of Pennsylvania - the largest electricity exporting state in the country, has repeatedly threatened to withdraw from PJM if it does not reform.
PJM has been criticized for auction delays, delaying the processing of more than 2,000 applications for new power plant connections, especially from renewable energy projects.
In addition, PJM has also been accused of lacking transparency and being slow to respond to the situation.
There is reform but not enough
In response to criticism from many quarters, PJM capped auction prices at $325 per megawatt-day, switched from annual to biannual auctions to increase flexibility, and prioritized quick connections for 51 large power projects.
However, most of these will not be operational until 2030-2031. For example, the project to restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant, funded by Microsoft Corporation, will not be operational until 2027 at the earliest.
According to energy law professor Joshua Macey from Yale University (USA), if PJM cannot handle the backlog in the connection queue, "all reforms are meaningless".
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/luoi-dien-lon-nhat-nuoc-my-qua-tai-vi-ai-nguy-co-hoa-don-dien-tang-vot-20250710161838431.htm
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