Why Texas Is Pausing Data Center Grid Approvals and What Comes Next

Texas grid operator ERCOT saw its large-load interconnection queue grow from 63 GW at the end of 2024 to 474 GW by June, about 90% from data centers, and then the state paused new approvals.

The author argues the pause reflects low-quality speculative requests, cost-allocation disputes, and reliability limits on a grid that is largely isolated.

He suggests flexibility, on-site power bridging to the grid, and better cost rules could help data centers connect.