St. Charles has shot down a developer’s plans to build a massive data center, and blocked any new proposals for the next year, but Ameren has fielded at least 37 requests for similar projects seeking to plug into the local power grid.
Ameren Missouri’s “economic development pipeline†lists contained 99 projects overall as of May, including 40 large manufacturing facilities interested in opening in the St. Louis region.
The potential projects could dwarf the biggest power users now in the St. Louis area — requiring many times as much electricity as Ameren’s current largest customer, based on average requests.
Now, utility executives and state officials are scrambling to put new rules and rates in place to pay for and handle such “large-load†project proposals — those requesting more than 100 megawatts. That’s equal to the electricity needs of about 18,000 homes.
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St. Louis-based Ameren and Kansas City’s Evergy are worried that if they don’t lock in long-term guarantees from data center developers, they and their customers could be on the hook for expensive electricity build-outs needed to attract and serve the massive projects.
State officials say they want to protect existing customers from unfair charges. And potential data center users, like Google, are trying to shape the requirements that companies like them would be held to, while touting benefits they say such large projects can offer.
Officials are facing a “balancing act†as they aim to attract new business from data centers, while ensuring that big users are paying their fair share over the long haul, says Steve Wills, Ameren Missouri’s director of regulatory affairs.
It’s not certain how many of the 99 projects will ultimately be built. But Ameren said that “traditionally, the state wins 10-15% of new business attraction opportunities,†in written testimony.
Whatever happens, officials want to be ready. Both Ameren and Evergy have submitted proposals for how to handle such “large-load†projects to state regulators.
Remember the internet
But some warn there’s a potential cost of being, in essence, too ready.
A primary risk that accompanies any boom in large, energy-intensive projects is that of a costly “overbuild,†in which utility customers could pay for significant upgrades to the electric grid — or new power generation — for future users that don’t materialize, go out of business or become outdated, said Geoff Marke, the chief economist for the Office of Public Counsel, in written testimony. The OPC advocates for monopoly utility customers in matters before state regulators.
Marke draws a comparison to the proliferation of the internet, around 2000, and points to similar concerns from the time about a corresponding boom of new energy demand. But those worries ultimately proved to be unfounded, thanks to leaps in technology.
“The industry got a lot more efficient and the electric grid and accompanying investments reverted back to a largely flat growth line,†said Marke, in written testimony.
“Much of the same rhetoric heard during the early stages of the internet are now being repeated with the discussion regarding AI. And like the early aughts, efficiency gains are being found,†he said, noting the implications from the recent emergence of DeepSeek, the Chinese AI platform that has shown “staggering†energy efficiency and dramatically lower costs than competitors.
But risks can be minimized, Marke said, in comments about Evergy’s case. Rebuttals to Ameren’s proposal have not yet been submitted.
For example, the OPC wants to ensure that prospective large-load customers pay Evergy’s proposed deposit of $200,000 to cover study costs related to power grid interconnection.
Evergy’s proposal, however, says that those costs can be waived if a project meets certain criteria, including if the utility is competing against others or if the project will create 250 permanent, full-time jobs, said Marke, in testimony.
“Because of the volume and speculative nature of (large-load) applicants, I think it is more than appropriate for customers to have ‘skin in the game’ to indicate their seriousness,†he said.
Ameren’s proposed plan for the new class of large-load customers would include requirements that they “contractually commit to a term of service of at least 15 years,†and provide two years of notice to terminate service, which would trigger “substantial termination payments.â€
Marke also wants to have the facilities subjected to required pre- and post-construction studies that track their energy and water usage and efficiency.
“I am not recommending that we bury our heads in the sand and ignore progress,†he said. “But it could be tragically naïve to believe there is no risk here.â€
Tech giants weigh in
Some prominent companies behind large data centers, such as Google and Amazon, have gotten involved in the ongoing regulatory debates, including the one about Ameren’s proposed plan for big power customers.
Neither Google nor Amazon responded to requests for comment. But Google has publicly advocated for conditions and positions in the Evergy case, so far, through a consultant working on the company’s behalf.
For example, Google wants a shortened contract period for the facilities, dropped to eight to 10 years, instead of 15, based on written testimony from Carolyn Berry, a partner with Bates White Economic Consulting.
The company is also pushing to reduce or eliminate certain charges proposed by Evergy, and wants large-load customers to be “allowed to reduce capacity by up to 20% without a penalty,†Berry wrote.
Google is pushing for a higher limit on the number of projects that can be considered together in a single advanced study about connecting to the grid, to potentially allow for “greater efficiency and project flow.â€
Berry said that large power users offer “operational and economic advantages†to the electric grid, while their consistent energy usage “helps to distribute fixed costs,†contributing to lower electricity costs for all customers.
The tide of big projects has recently caused ripples across the state.
Although last week featured the collapse of the vision for the St. Charles data center, it also saw Meta — which is the parent of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp — open its own data center in Kansas City.
Meta said it plans to publish information about the facility’s energy and water usage in upcoming company reports.
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