Google opposes a proposed change in how Appalachian Power treats customers that use a lot of electricity, like data centers, but there may be a compromise.
Appalachian Power has told the West Virginia Public Service Commission that it has been in discussions with data-intensive companies that would bring about a huge increase in electricity demand in the state.
It wants such companies to commit to a 20-year contract and agree to purchase 90% of the maximum amount of power they’re expected to need.
Google has testified to the PSC that it opposes these requirements and urged commissioners to reject Appalachian Power’s proposal.
The PSC’s consumer advocate has offered a compromise, reducing the contract’s duration to 12 years and the power commitment to 80%.
That’s based on an agreement Google reached last year in Indiana with Indiana Michigan Power, which like Appalachian Power is a subsidiary of American Electric Power.
A data center has yet to be built in West Virginia.
In a case filed in July, Appalachian Power said large-load customers, including data centers, could add 8,000 megawatts of electricity demand to the grid. That’s more than the combined output of the three coal plants Appalachian Power currently operates in West Virginia.
Appalachian Power argues its proposed requirements help protect ratepayers, who’d have to pay for the extra capacity built for the data centers should they operate for fewer years than expected or use less power.
Google says the requirements would discourage investment in data centers in the state.
Curtis Tate / West Virginia Public Broadcasting