{"id":2312445,"date":"2024-06-17T04:58:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-17T09:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/?p=2312445"},"modified":"2024-06-15T11:49:34","modified_gmt":"2024-06-15T16:49:34","slug":"data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","title":{"rendered":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Southeastern Wisconsin and the Chicago area are emerging as major players in the national data center explosion, most notably with Microsoft\u2019s $3.3 billion planned data complex near Racine, Wisconsin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clean energy advocates in the region say data centers pose both a risk and an opportunity, as they can put major stress on the grid, prolong the lives of coal plants and spark new natural gas plants, but also facilitate significant renewable energy investment. Wisconsin utility We Energies, for example, cited demand from data centers in its recent requests to the Public Service Commission for 1,300 MW of new gas generation. Microsoft, meanwhile, has promised to build renewables in the state while also likely creating demand for new or continued fossil fuel energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The organization Data Center Map<\/a> shows more than a hundred data centers in the Chicago area and a handful in Southeastern Wisconsin<\/a>, often located on the site of former coal plants or industrial operations. A data center is underway on the site of the shuttered State Line coal plant<\/a> just across the border from Chicago in Indiana. The data center developer T5 recently announced plans<\/a> for four to six data centers totaling 480 MW of capacity and costing as much as $6 billion in the Illinois town of Grayslake near the Wisconsin border, adding to data centers it already runs in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Virginia has long been known as \u201cData Center Alley<\/a>,\u201d with about 70% of global internet traffic passing through its servers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Dominion Energy said that because of data centers, its electricity demand in Virginia could quadruple and represent 40% of total demand in the state over the next 15 years. Georgia and Tennessee have also seen much data center construction and speculation. Utilities like TVA, Duke and Dominion have announced plans to build more gas plants and keep coal plants open longer in that region<\/a>, along with building renewables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, some experts say the Great Lakes region is an increasingly promising spot for data centers because of its cooler climate that reduces energy demand and the availability of water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is no better place\u201d for data centers than the Upper Midwest, said Josh Riedy, who helped design North Dakota\u2019s first tier-three data center, referring to a data center with high reliability \u2014 on a scale of one to four tiers \u2014 that includes multiple power sources. Riedy also founded Thread, a grid maintenance software company that he\u2019s marketing as especially helpful to serve data center demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Upper Midwest can export data around the globe,\u201d Riedy said. We\u2019re starting to see the tide turn, it\u2019s just natural.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Growing load<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Projections abound regarding the way data centers \u2014 including those processing cryptocurrency and running AI applications \u2014 will increase energy demand nationally and end an era of stagnant load growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission predicted 4.7% load growth over the next five years, up from 2.6% previously estimated for five-year growth. Data centers \u201csupercharged by the rise of artificial intelligence\u201d will require between 9 and 13 more GW of electricity over the next five years, according to seven case studies analyzed in a December 2023 report by the Clean Grid Initiative<\/a>, which does not include data center estimates for MISO or CAISO (California) regional transmission organizations. A McKinsey & Company report predicted 35 GW of total demand from data centers by 2030. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Load growth sparked by data centers comes on top of a shift from fossil fuels to electric heating, cooling and transportation. A 2022 report commissioned by Clean Wisconsin and RENEW Wisconsin found load growth could increase to 166% of 2022 levels with building and vehicle electrification needed to meet the state\u2019s goals of net-zero emissions by 2050.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEverything from data centers to manufacturing to AI to cryptocurrency,\u201d said Sam Dunaiski, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin. \u201cThese all could be triggers for new load, and it all could be coming to Wisconsin, though it\u2019s not unique to Wisconsin. Things like solar and battery manufacturing are coming online that ironically need new load growth too. We think the best way to meet that new load both environmentally and economically is through renewables and transmission to go along with it. This is a great opportunity for a low-cost renewable energy boom in the state.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along with the generation demand, Riedy noted, come needs for grid updates and resiliency, which can ultimately help the grid as a whole.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you\u2019ve built and designed a data center, you know the nature of them is in many ways fundamentally different than most energized structures,\u201d Riedy said. \u201cWalmart, for example, is going to consume power, but it will have peaks, and constant power is important but not in the way it is to a data center. With crypto mining or AI model training, you see machines running at near peak performance around the clock. That\u2019s producing a type of strain on the grid that has few comparisons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microsoft and more<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Microsoft\u2019s energy plans \u2014 like many details about the massive data project \u2014 are not yet clear, and the company\u2019s ambitious climate goals give advocates hope that the company will finance much new renewable generation either on-site or through power purchase agreements. The company has announced it will build a 250 MW solar array<\/a> in Wisconsin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Microsoft will likely also purchase power from We Energies, fueling advocates\u2019 worries about new natural gas generation and rate increases for regular customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The data center will be located on the sprawling site between Milwaukee and Chicago that was previously slated for an enormous LCD screen factory by the company Foxconn. That plan was repeatedly scaled back and then scrapped in the face of economic issues and local opposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Citizens Utility Board executive director Tom Content noted that \u201cunder state law passed for Foxconn, Microsoft is eligible for discounted market-based electricity rates. They would pay basically for the transmission and distribution, but a portion of their rates would just be set at wholesale market rate,\u201d rather than the retail amount customers usually pay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February, a subsidiary of We Energies filed a plan with the Wisconsin Public Service Commission for an estimated $304 million in grid upgrades related to the Microsoft project. Public auditors filed a letter<\/a> with the commission noting exemptions that allow less oversight because the project is in a special technology zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Microsoft plan was touted by President Joe Biden as an example of reinvigorated Midwestern investment, but it has faced concerns about its energy and water use. Meanwhile Microsoft has faced setbacks<\/a> globally in reaching its climate goals, in part because of the massive energy demand of artificial intelligence applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cost concerns<\/strong> <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Advocates said utilities may use data centers to justify more investment that earns them a rate of return, even when it is not necessarily needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are concerned that there could be an overinflation of expected demand in order to capitalize on this trend and build more gas as a last-ditch effort,\u201d said Ciaran Gallagher, energy and air manager for Clean Wisconsin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a little bit of a sky-is-falling scenario here,\u201d Dunaiski agreed. \u201cIn the early 2000s we saw this with load growth [projections] particularly around the internet. People thought the internet would cause our electricity generation needs to explode. They increased, but there were improvements that came with it \u2014 infrastructure getting more efficient, and software.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That precedent raises questions about the rush to build out gas power to accommodate projected demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGas isn\u2019t coal, but we shouldn\u2019t be striving for the second worst option, for the environment or for our pocket books,\u201d Dunaiski continued. \u201cIf we build these gas plants, customers will be paying for them for the next 20, 30 years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gallagher <\/strong>noted that the EPA\u2019s new rules for gas plants<\/a> make new gas investments even more questionable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll the gas plants proposed in Wisconsin and across the country in relation to this demand from data centers will have to comply with these standards, and by 2032 either run not very often or reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90% through carbon capture and sequestration or low-carbon hydrogen,\u201d Gallagher said. \u201cThat prompts the question: Is it worth the price tag to build these gas plants that could become stranded assets or have to spend additional money to comply with these rules?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using existing renewables or zero-emissions nuclear energy to power data centers can impact customers too. Content noted that this strategy \u201caccomplishes the decarbonization goals for the tech companies and the reliability needs for the data center. But then you\u2019re taking the fully depreciated, mostly paid-off asset on utilities\u2019 books and having it serve one or two customers, and then the utilities will have to backfill that with a combination of natural gas, solar, storage, wind or future nuclear to serve the rest of the customers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s on everybody\u2019s mind how we\u2019re going to tackle this in a way that ensures we don\u2019t say no to economic development, but don\u2019t make energy costs unaffordable,\u201d said Content, noting that data centers have been a major topic of discussion among the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates \u2013 including at the organization\u2019s conference in Madison in June. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDifferent states are trying different approaches,\u201d Content said. \u201cThere\u2019s talk of changing the way utility costs are divided up \u2014 currently among residential, industrial and commercial \u2014 and dividing it up four ways, with data centers becoming their own entity. Tech companies are pouring a lot of money into the development of these things. They have the wherewithal to contribute mightily to these projects.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Renewable opportunities<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gallagher emphasized that renewable advocates are not opposed to data centers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe think data centers and the economic development that they can bring are not at odds with environmental protection and climate mitigation,\u201d she said. \u201cThis can be a low-carbon industry but only if new additional renewables are built to supply all or most of their demands. We think that\u2019s viable if renewables are cost-competitive with gas, and pairing renewables with storage can provide the type of reliability these data centers need.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Riedy sees renewables and gas as a necessary mix to fuel data centers. While renewables\u2019 intermittency might be seen as a barrier, he said renewables actually could have a unique role to play in energizing data centers \u2013 especially in the Midwest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the heat of the day you\u2019re delivering, so having alternate [energy] sources to peak-shave and normalize the cost of energizing that equipment is very important,\u201d Riedy said. \u201cIt\u2019s leading to a change in thinking around where to place data centers, that speaks to Wisconsin, the Dakotas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe old way of doing things was generate power in one place, and transmit it for thousands of miles. What data centers are understanding with their insatiable and constant need for power is they are more logically placed by power generation so you can buy that off-peak power, to maintain that load consistently. Since solar and wind overproduce [at certain times], if you can harness that imbalance it\u2019s somewhat of a win-win.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5619856,"featured_media":2312447,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2024-06-17T22:55:28Z","apple_news_api_id":"8acabf29-0ff2-451f-98ad-bf6689309156","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2024-06-17T22:55:28Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/Aisq_KQ_yRR-Yrb9miTCRVg","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21139,20110,21136],"tags":[21322,20246,23161,21557,23169,22013],"coauthors":[21967],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nData centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Data centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Vxartnews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Vxartnews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1364\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kari Lydersen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@vxartnews_us\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@vxartnews_us\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kari Lydersen\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kari Lydersen\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/875ee8eaa233094f629a452228beed6b\"},\"headline\":\"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\"},\"wordCount\":1856,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"data centers\",\"grid\",\"grid reliability\",\"Midwest\",\"power demand\",\"syndication\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Midwest\",\"News\",\"syndication\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\",\"name\":\"Data centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00\",\"description\":\"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1364,\"caption\":\"A Wisconsin site slated for Foxconn factory is now set to house a Microsoft data center.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/\",\"name\":\"Vxartnews\",\"description\":\"Covering the transition to a clean energy economy\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Vxartnews\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/MAR21-Vxartnews-Social-Sharing-1.png?fit=3333%2C1744&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/MAR21-Vxartnews-Social-Sharing-1.png?fit=3333%2C1744&ssl=1\",\"width\":3333,\"height\":1744,\"caption\":\"Vxartnews\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Vxartnews\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/vxartnews_us\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/energy-news-network\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/875ee8eaa233094f629a452228beed6b\",\"name\":\"Kari Lydersen\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/9a56227b375d5a14027b259ea64466e1\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/kari-96x96.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/kari-96x96.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Kari Lydersen\"},\"description\":\"Kari has written for the Vxartnews since January 2011. She is an author and journalist who worked for the Washington Post's Midwest bureau from 1997 through 2009. Her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Chicago News Cooperative, Chicago Reader and other publications. Based in Chicago, Kari covers Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana as well as environmental justice topics.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.karilydersen.net\/bio.html\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/author\/klydersen\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews","description":"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews","og_description":"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.","og_url":"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","og_site_name":"Vxartnews","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Vxartnews","article_published_time":"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2048,"height":1364,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kari Lydersen","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@vxartnews_us","twitter_site":"@vxartnews_us","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kari Lydersen","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/"},"author":{"name":"Kari Lydersen","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/875ee8eaa233094f629a452228beed6b"},"headline":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs","datePublished":"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/"},"wordCount":1856,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","keywords":["data centers","grid","grid reliability","Midwest","power demand","syndication"],"articleSection":["Midwest","News","syndication"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","url":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","name":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise in the Midwest | Vxartnews","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","datePublished":"2024-06-17T09:58:00+00:00","dateModified":"2024-06-15T16:49:34+00:00","description":"A massive Microsoft complex in Wisconsin hypercharges debate over data centers\u2019 impacts on energy reliability.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","width":2048,"height":1364,"caption":"A Wisconsin site slated for Foxconn factory is now set to house a Microsoft data center."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/","name":"Vxartnews","description":"Covering the transition to a clean energy economy","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#organization","name":"Vxartnews","url":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/MAR21-Vxartnews-Social-Sharing-1.png?fit=3333%2C1744&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/MAR21-Vxartnews-Social-Sharing-1.png?fit=3333%2C1744&ssl=1","width":3333,"height":1744,"caption":"Vxartnews"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Vxartnews","https:\/\/x.com\/vxartnews_us","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/energy-news-network\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/875ee8eaa233094f629a452228beed6b","name":"Kari Lydersen","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/9a56227b375d5a14027b259ea64466e1","url":"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/kari-96x96.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/kari-96x96.jpg","caption":"Kari Lydersen"},"description":"Kari has written for the Vxartnews since January 2011. She is an author and journalist who worked for the Washington Post's Midwest bureau from 1997 through 2009. Her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Chicago News Cooperative, Chicago Reader and other publications. Based in Chicago, Kari covers Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana as well as environmental justice topics.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.karilydersen.net\/bio.html"],"url":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/author\/klydersen\/"}]}},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs","url":"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/vxartnews.com\/2024\/06\/17\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?resize=280%2C140&ssl=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1"},"articleSection":"Midwest","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kari Lydersen"}],"creator":["Kari Lydersen"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Vxartnews","logo":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Vxartnews_Logo-1.png"},"keywords":["data centers","grid","grid reliability","midwest","power demand","syndication"],"dateCreated":"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z","datePublished":"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z","dateModified":"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z"},"rendered":"<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"headline\":\"Data centers offer energy peril and promise, with the Midwest increasingly in the crosshairs\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/vxartnews.com\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/17\\\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\\\/\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/vxartnews.com\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/17\\\/data-centers-offer-energy-peril-and-promise-with-the-midwest-increasingly-in-the-crosshairs\\\/\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/vxartnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?resize=280%2C140&ssl=1\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/vxartnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1\"},\"articleSection\":\"Midwest\",\"author\":[{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"name\":\"Kari Lydersen\"}],\"creator\":[\"Kari Lydersen\"],\"publisher\":{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"name\":\"Vxartnews\",\"logo\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vxartnews.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/Vxartnews_Logo-1.png\"},\"keywords\":[\"data centers\",\"grid\",\"grid reliability\",\"midwest\",\"power demand\",\"syndication\"],\"dateCreated\":\"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-06-17T09:58:00Z\"}<\/script>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/vxartnews.com\/p.js"},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?resize=600%2C600&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"Kari Lydersen","author_link":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/author\/klydersen\/"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vxartnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/53444925939_f8bf8dc101_k.jpg?fit=2048%2C1364&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312445"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5619856"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2312445"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2312448,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312445\/revisions\/2312448"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2312447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2312445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2312445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2312445"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vxartnews.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=2312445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}