electricity

Soaring bills during summer heat and a pending rate case fueled a petition circulating online.

Energy regulators and industry experts warn that the state’s delays to major projects amid backlash from residents could create rolling blackouts and strangle growth of other industries that need power.

The state's power grid operator had already planned on auditing several data center proposals, but Abbott's directive reworks the timeline and adds new requirements.

Oklahomans are reporting sticker shock at the mailbox when opening their electric bills this summer. While artificial intelligence and the data centers needed to support them have become major subjects of public discourse, state lawmakers and regulators say they are only one part of a much larger explanation.

To help meet growing electricity demand, Oklahoma's largest utilities are investing in battery energy storage systems. The facilities store extra energy and discharge it when the grid needs it.

Oklahoma passed a law last year allowing energy-hungry facilities to build their own power. But as data center announcements sprout up across Oklahoma, most include plans to work with local utilities.

Critics say the governor must call legislators to Austin to pass state laws regulating data centers.

As more and more data center developers submit proposals to build in Texas, questions about how they will impact Texas' grid and contribute to drought conditions across the state are widespread.

A plan to build a network of 765 kV transmission lines to bolster the state's power grid has come under intense opposition from landowners in its path and others.

Data center construction is unpopular among locals, and a majority of the facilities are being proposed in red, rural counties. That puts Texas Republicans in a tough spot, as the White House has encouraged states to let the centers flourish.