Bitcoin, AI and the Texas grid: Lawmakers consider action

Ryan Chandler and Lizzie Jensen

2 hours ago

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The Senate Committee on Business and Commerce convened Wednesday morning to evaluate the state of the electric grid, examine the impact of last year’s investments into generating power, and hear striking statistics on the energy demands of the Bitcoin and artificial intelligence sectors.

ERCOT CEO Pablo Vegas told lawmakers that one graphics processing unit, a core technology for Artificial Intelligence (AI), uses as much power as an average home uses in an entire year. He compared one AI company’s energy demand to bringing half a million homes onto the grid in an instant.

Bitcoin mining facilities — stacked with thousands of computers to generate the cryptocurrency — similarly demand the power equivalent of hundreds of thousands of homes.

The information elicited a telling admonishment of the growing industries from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who alluded to possible regulation and limitations.

“We need to take a close look at those two industries. They produce very few jobs compared to the incredible demands they place on our grid,” he wrote on social media. “Texans will ultimately pay the price. I’m more interested in building the grid to service customers in their homes, apartments, and normal businesses and keeping costs as low as possible for them instead of for very niche industries that have massive power demands and produce few jobs.”

Patrick tasked the committee with analyzing demands on the grid and future supply opportunities, as well as evaluating the implementation of laws passed last year to improve the grid. Last session, lawmakers approved the “Texas Energy Fund” to incentivize oil and gas producers to build more capacity. By the end of May, the Public Utilities Commission reported 125 projects have applied for a loan, equaling nearly $40 billion that would bring almost 56,000 megawatts onto the grid.

“This is a monumental step forward. And I believe it is the beginning of… new steel in the ground over the next three to four years,” Business and Commerce Chairman Charles Schwertner said.

The committee also plans to study the future of electricity needs and focus on reducing barriers to new power and infrastructure projects. Members will likely explore ways to streamline this process for future legislation and monitor the progress of ongoing projects and how they will affect electricity prices for consumers.  

Interim charges are assignments given to House and Senate committees by the Speaker of the House and the Lieutenant Governor when the legislature is not in session. These tasks involve studying specific issues and suggesting solutions for the next session. This period also allows advocates and stakeholders to influence the policy decisions with the hope that they will be addressed in upcoming sessions.