Overview
- Trade adviser Peter Navarro said the administration may require data‑center developers to “internalize” electricity, resiliency and water costs tied to their facilities.
- Navarro offered no details on the mechanism or timeline for enforcing such payments, and the White House has not released a formal plan.
- In January, the White House and several states urged grid operator PJM to seek $15 billion in new generation financed by tech companies and to hold an emergency capacity auction.
- Tech firms have outlined voluntary steps: Anthropic pledged to pay 100% of grid‑upgrade costs at its U.S. sites; Microsoft said it would pay rates that cover its electricity use and replenish water; Meta said it pays full energy costs and funds local infrastructure while adding power to the grid.
- Rising demand from large data centers features in utility filings and research, with electricity prices up 6.9% year over year in 2025 and utilities seeking $31 billion in rate hikes, while President Trump has touted a Microsoft deal and a draft compact was reported by POLITICO.