A recently published Duke University report outlines a strategy for utilities to meet the nearly 100 GW of projected power demands of AI and data centers with existing grid capacity. The key is for utilities and data center operators to work together in a collaborative way that utilizes flexible load management, writes Matt Green (TRC Companies) in a post for Factor This.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright has directed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to standardize large load interconnections, but the advance notice of proposed rulemaking leaves open many critical questions. Former FERC Commissioner Allison Clements and Tyler Norris, lead author of a seminal Duke paper on load flexibility, talked with Latitude Media about some of those considerations.

Diesel generators are meant to be used rarely by data centers, but there is concern they could run more frequently if grid operators disconnect them during times of peak demand, reports Inside Climate News. An alternative future could include diversifying backup power options to include battery storage, renewables, natural gas or cleaner diesel products, noted a February report published by the Nicholas Institute.

A seminal white paper from Duke University researchers suggests "headroom" available for data centers to reduce their energy consumption during system peaks could unlock up to 100 GW of spare capacity to integrate these large loads. Elizabeth K. Whitney, managing principal at Meguire Whitney, writes in Latitude Media about how hyperscalers would need to curtail their energy use from the grid to tap into that headroom.

Last Thursday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright directed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to consider rulemaking to fast-track interconnection for large loads—as long as they agree to be curtailable or colocate with dispatchable generation. Former FERC Commissioner Allison Clements and Duke Ph.D. student Tyler Norris joined the Catalyst podcast to discuss what the proposal actually means for interconnection.

Before data centers come online, they need to have proactive plans to avoid drawing too much energy, said Duke University expert Tim Profeta, who co-authored a February analysis on how load flexibility could help manage rising U.S. energy demand. Regulators and utilities could require data centers to create those plans in exchange for jumping long queues to connect to the grid. “The biggest incentive is speed to interconnect to the grid,” Profeta told The Guardian.

Duke University Ph.D. student Tyler Norris presented to the North Carolina Utilities Commission on the findings of an influential Duke report analyzing how load flexibility could help meet rising electricity demand in the United States. The presentation came during a technical conference hosted by the commission to gather information and recommendations on "how to fairly and efficiently integrate large electric load additions."

Duke Energy plans to burn coal for two to four years longer than previously estimated, citing the state’s growing energy demand—driven by data centers and large manufacturers—among other factors, reports Inside Climate News. A February analysis by Duke University researchers posits that targeted, timed reductions in power demand could ease the strain on the grid without massive power-plant buildouts.

Two law professors are proposing a system called "demand side connect-and-manage" to help electricity markets cope with data center energy demands. The idea is "one of the most important contributions yet toward the re-examination of basic assumptions of U.S. electricity law that’s urgently needed as hyperscale load growth pushes our existing regulatory system beyond its limits," Duke University Ph.D. student Tyler Norris, who co-authored concept-defining work on data center flexibility, told Heatmap News.

A new proposal calls for moving away from requiring the grid to have enough power plant capacity to accommodate all users at all times, and instead treat data centers and other superusers as a separate customer class with special rules and added flexibility, reports Inside Climate News. Even a bit of flexibility could have substantial ramifications for reducing the need to build new power plants, as demonstrated by a February analysis by Duke University researchers.

"Necessity is the mother of invention. And right now we’re in a supply-constrained environment where it takes a substantial amount of time to get generation and transmission expansions," Tyler Norris, lead author of an influential Duke University study, told Energywire. "To the extent that demand response can be exchanged for an accelerated interconnection or some speed upside, that’s the holy grail for hyperscalers."

Google recently announced two new utility agreements that rely on demand response, a strategy that schedules and manages energy-intensive computing workloads to boost energy efficiency, reports The Energy Mix. The announcement cited a Duke University study that found flexibility is "a promising, near-term strategy for addressing structural transformations in the U.S. electric power system."

If data centers could commit to not requiring power at times of extremely high demand, they could essentially piggyback on existing grid infrastructure, reports Heatmap News. Widely cited research by Duke University scholars demonstrated that curtailing large loads for as little as 0.5% of their annual uptime could allow almost 100 gigawatts of new demand to connect to the grid without requiring extensive, costly upgrades.

Duke University researchers caused a stir earlier in the year with a paper on large load flexibility, the ability of data centers to reduce their power usage at times of low demand or when the grid is under strain. "Necessity is the mother of invention," lead author Tyler Norris told the Financial Times. "We have extreme supply chain constraints right now, so either [the demand] will disappear entirely or it can be more flexible."
 

Google announced that it had reached agreements with Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to use flexible demand capabilities in its data centers, enabling the company to shift or reduce energy demand during times when the electrical grid is most stressed. Google cited a recent Duke University analysis that showed how load flexibility could help bridge the gap between short-term load growth and long-term clean energy solutions.