Are Renewables Really Benefiting From the Data Center Boom?

This week’s conversation is a catch-up chat with Jason Kaminsky of kWh Analytics, an insurance firm that works with renewable energy developers. I reached out to Kaminsky ahead of the new year because as someone with an arms-length distance from development, I find he is able to speak more candidly about market dynamics and macro-level trends – as well as the fears many have in rural communities about energy project failures, like battery fires. Seeing as the theme this week felt like “data centers forever,” I also thought it would be good to get up to speed on what he’s most focused on in that space, too.

Okay so, Jason – is renewable energy actually benefiting from the data center boom?

Renewables are supporting our load growth boom. Data centers are about a third of the projected load growth. So it is certainly a key component of what is driving demand broadly, but not the only component. The other pieces worth considering are the electrification of transportation, the reindustrialization of America, and the electrification of residential homes. But data centers are getting enthusiasm because of how quickly people are trying to deploy them.

The unique benefit renewables have is that they’re able to deploy quickly, and you need the benefits that storage has to handle these load centers.

How rapidly is the data center buildout and its associated infrastructure buildout actually happening, and how rapidly is this demand curve actually rising?

Remember, we’re not a developer on the front line, and a developer on the front line might have a better answer to this. But I’d say most of the activity today in the data center space is still quite a ways out. It’s either linked to a new facility or the planning of a new facility. Now, granted, we’re seeing it quite late in the process because we’re the insurance company, and so from an operational perspective, we’re not seeing it in the numbers yet. But it is in the forecasts, which is what you’re seeing, as well.

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The conversation continues on Heatmap