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Google data center announcement in Midlothian

MIDLOTHIAN, Texas – Silicon Valley tech giant Google is making its footprint bigger in Texas with a new $40 billion investment in data centers and artificial intelligence.

Google announced their future plans for the Lone Star State from their data center campus in Midlothian.

Google invests $40 billion in Texas

The massive investment will make Texas the largest state in the country for AI data centers. 

Three new centers similar to their Midlothian campus are set to be built in Armstrong and Haskell counties. 

While the added jobs are welcome news, some are concerned about the amount of electricity these data centers use and the toll they will put on the power grid. 

ERCOT projections show Texas will be a major area of growing demand in coming years. Peak electricity demand in the state is projected to more than double by 2031. 

The state passed Senate Bill 6 in June, which allows ERCOT to cut data centers and other large energy users off of the grid if it is under stress.

Google said they are also dedicating funds to training skilled workers like electricians. 

Google data center in Midlothian

Added strain on Texas grid

What they’re saying:

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tried to ease some of the power grid concerns at Friday’s announcement event.

“They have already provided a net new addition, five gigawatts of power to our grid. And they are committed to ensuring that, as they continue to build out, they will be net positive to the power grid, making sure we have the reliability and the supply that Texas needs to keep the lights on for all of our fellow Texans,” Abbott said.

Joshua Rhodes, a UT Austin energy expert, says he has reservations about the projected increase in demand for the Texas grid. 

“So they’re not the only ones that have shown up to the party, but they’re at the party. And so they’re part of the reason, you know, that demand is looking to grow. Now the high-level numbers that they’re showing, I am concerned about. I mean, you’re talking about a doubling of the electricity grid in five years. And I just don’t think we can physically build that much infrastructure that fast,” Rhodes said.

Texas AI data centers

Dig deeper:

Texas is no stranger to AI data center projects, seeing rapid expansion in recent months. 

Most recently, another AI facility opened its doors in Red Oak this week. 

Wednesday, Chevron announced their intent to open a gas-fired power plant to supply energy to an AI data center in West Texas. The end user of the center has not been named. 

In October, Meta announced their plans to invest $1.5 billion in El Paso for their own center. 

The Source: Information in this story came from Google and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. 

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