THE DAILY MINE ⛏️

FLORIDA RATEPAYER PROTECTION BILL HEADS TO GOVERNOR
Inside Climate News

Florida's SB 484 passed unanimously and requires data centers to cover their full cost of service, bars foreign-owned facilities, and mandates reclaimed water use. DeSantis has not yet signed it.

FERC CHAIR TELLS BIG TECH: COME TALK TO US
Axios

FERC Chair Willie Phillips is inviting hyperscalers to negotiate grid connection rules directly, signaling federal jurisdiction over behind-the-meter and co-located AI loads. April 30 rulemaking deadline.

DUKE WANTS 15% RATE HIKE, BLAMES DATA CENTERS
WSOC-TV

Duke's $8.3 billion infrastructure filing attributes 80% of North Carolina's projected demand growth to data centers. The governor and attorney general are already pushing back.

DOE ORDERS INDIANA COAL PLANTS TO STAY OPEN
Utility Dive

Emergency orders require NIPSCO and CenterPoint to run two retirement-age coal plants through at least June. Secretary Wright cited the AI race as justification.

FLORIDA DCS MAY BE FORCED TO PAY OWN POWER BILL
TC Palm

Florida's SB 484 would require data centers to cover their full electricity costs — but critics say voluntary pledges and toothless enforcement make it more optics than protection.

SMALL MODULAR REACTORS MOVE TOWARD MASS DEPLOYMENT
Popular Mechanics

SMRs are finally clearing regulatory hurdles and attracting data center investment as the only firm clean power source that can be sited close to load.

AI CUTS NUCLEAR PERMITTING BY 92% IN PILOT
Tom's Hardware

Aalo Atomics used Microsoft's generative AI tools to slash permitting workload by 92%, saving an estimated $80 million. The unlock nuclear development has been waiting for.

OHIO REGULATORS: AEP INFLATED DC LOAD BY 3 GW
Scioto Post

PUCO staff confirmed AEP double-counted data center load after a tariff change. The overstatement affected grid planning and cost allocations affecting all ratepayers.

THREE MILE ISLAND STUCK IN QUEUE UNTIL 2031
Reuters

Constellation says PJM told them Three Mile Island's nuclear restart can't connect to the grid until 2031. Microsoft signed a 20-year PPA for that power. The interconnection queue problem is not hypothetical.

TEXAS DCs COULD USE 161 BILLION GALLONS BY 2030
HARC Research

Texas data centers already consume 25 billion gallons a year. HARC projects that hits 161 billion by 2030, up to 2.7% of the state's total water supply, with no statewide plan in place.

WV HOUSE SPEAKER REPRESENTS DC DEVELOPER IN COURT
West Virginia Watch

House Speaker Roger Hanshaw is personally representing a developer tied to a Mason County data center in an air permit appeal, raising direct conflict-of-interest questions from residents.

MASON COUNTY RESIDENTS SUE TO STOP DATA CENTER
WEKU

A grassroots group is filing suit against the Mason County data center project, citing air quality concerns and a botched public comment period that gave residents an incorrect deadline.

LOUISIANA NDAs MUZZLE OFFICIALS ON DC DEALS
WWNO / Louisiana Public Broadcasting

Non-disclosure agreements are preventing elected officials from discussing Louisiana's largest business developments, including major data center projects, effectively cutting the public out of the process.

GOOGLE CANNOLI: 1 GW MICHIGAN DC, GOOGLE PAYS ALL
Michigan Public

Google's Van Buren Township campus will draw 1 GW backed by 2.7 GW of new solar, storage, and demand response. Google committed to covering all electricity and infrastructure costs, protecting Michigan ratepayers.

MICHIGAN MORATORIUM WAVE: STATE BILL PLUS THREE CITIES
Planet Detroit

Bipartisan state bills would freeze all Michigan data center construction through April 2027. Ypsilanti just enacted its own emergency moratorium. East Lansing already passed one. Nineteen Michigan communities have now acted.