By JOEL KIRKLAND / Politico/ 06/03/2024 06:46 PM EDT
The nation’s most prolific oil-producing region is now home to bitcoin miners and digital data centers — forcing more electricity demand onto a Texas power grid that is increasingly plagued by blackouts.
Of all places, this technology revolution is happening in the Permian Basin, the West Texas jewel of the U.S. oil and gas industry. Today’s story by Shelby Webb provides an eye-opening account of surging electricity consumption stemming from America’s technology and industrial booms. The reporting also shows just how quickly the oil industry itself is adopting electric power to meet net-zero goals.
Electric fracking rigs can use about as much electricity as a small town.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, also called ERCOT, the state’s main grid operator, estimates electricity demand from industries in the Permian region will more than double by 2030 compared with 2021. Companies will consume almost 24 gigawatts at peak demand times — more power than the entire state of Tennessee generates during similar periods.
“It’s sort of stunning how much is coming online, and not from oil and gas,” said Cyrus Reed, a member of a state committee studying electricity demand and conservation director of the Sierra Club’s Texas chapter. “It’s almost overwhelming.”
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