"These regions were selected to ease grid pressure, we're told. Scotland's wind generation, for example, often exceeds transmission capacity. "There are sometimes mismatches between the amount of electricity generated in a certain region and the electricity grid's ability to transmit that electricity from that region to another," the document explains. "When datacenters locate in Scotland and the north of England, they can harness this generation, and reduce the overall cost of our electricity system.""
"The scheme will impose no additional cost on other electricity billpayers, the document claims, however, if discounts were to be covered by the government, that would still equate to ordinary people subsidizing energy bills for datacenters via their taxes. We asked DSIT for comment, but it declined to give us an official statement. American consumers already face rising electricity bills as AI datacenter demand strains regional grids, leading to higher wholesale prices."
DSIT outlined targeted electricity pricing support for datacenters in designated AI Growth Zones, offering discounts up to £24/MWh in Scotland, £16/MWh in Cumbria and £14/MWh in the North East. The policy aims to accelerate AI infrastructure and rebalance investment toward regions with available clean energy. Regional placement intends to ease grid pressure by harnessing excess renewable generation, particularly wind in Scotland. The scheme is presented as not imposing additional costs on other electricity billpayers, though government-funded discounts would effectively shift costs to taxpayers. Rising datacenter demand risks higher wholesale prices unless new energy supply matches increased load.
Read at Theregister
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]