Growing data center development is putting new pressure on Texas’ power grid, as lawmakers confront how to meet rising demand without pushing costs onto consumers or risking reliability.
At a policy panel this week in Austin, lawmakers and industry officials said the scale and speed of new projects—many tied to artificial intelligence—are already reshaping how power is generated and delivered in Texas.
The facilities now being built require a level of reliability that traditional grid connections don’t always provide, Brandon Seale, an energy entrepreneur and former president of West Texas Gas Utility, said. That shift is pushing some developers to ...