On February 25, Reuters reported that U.S. President Trump said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday that his administration has told large technology companies that they must build power plants for their own data centers, a move aimed at protecting consumers from rising electricity bills.
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Opposition to power-hungry data center projects is growing across the U.S., which is blamed for causing soaring electricity costs for residents.
"Tonight, I'm happy to announce that I've negotiated a new payer protection pledge. You know what that is? We're telling the big tech companies that they have an obligation to provide for their own power needs," he said. "Our grid is old and can't handle the amount of electricity it's using. So I'm telling them they can build their own power plants. They're going to generate their own power. Not only does that protect your business's ability to get power, it also lowers your bills."
He did not name the companies involved or provide details on how the plan would be implemented or executed. The White House is expected to convene relevant companies in early March to formalize the move, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The Trump administration supports the development of AI, but the impact of the rapid expansion of AI data centers on electricity prices has become a potential weakness for the Republican Party before the November midterm elections.
PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. grid operator, unveiled a plan last month that would require new large power users to either build their own generation for the grid or limit their use when the grid is strained.
In addition, companies such as Anthropic and Microsoft have voluntarily announced measures to limit the impact of data centers on residential energy prices.