Abstract

Previous white papers covered the basics of datacenter power consumption and the frantic pace of growth and general challenges facing utilities responsible for supplying these mass consumers. Northern Virginia is the largest datacenter market in the world, containing over one eighth of the world’s operational capacity. This concentration of demand leads to significant challenges, leading the state government to request the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) Report 598, titled “Data Centers in Virginia 2024”. The report is wide-ranging in policy recommendations and analysis; here we are going to focus on the discussion of grid-related challenges and recommendations. While the data and recommendations in the report are written for Virginia, the general principles apply to any region supporting datacenters.