The Georgia Public Service Commission voted unanimously to approve a new rule allowing Georgia Power to charge new data centers to protect ratepayers from higher costs.
The new rule stems from the Public Service Commission’s unanimous approval of the interim Integrated Resource Plan in April 2024. That docket added extra capacity to Georgia’s power grid.
Metro Atlanta is a popular location for data centers. The new Georgia Power rule states that new customers using more than 100 megawatts of energy can be billed using terms and conditions beyond those used for standard customers to address risks associated with these large-load users.
In addition to site-specific costs, the data centers would pay for upstream generation, transmission and distribution costs to these large-load power users as construction progresses. This would protect Georgia Power’s residential and other commercial/industrial customers.
The new rule also allows for longer contract lengths (from five to 15 years) and minimum billing requirements for high-load customers. This helps ensure that new high-usage customers do not shut down and leave the state before paying for new infrastructure built specifically to handle their businesses’ needs.
The rule also stipulates that any new Georgia Power contract with a company that fits the 100 MW usage category must be submitted to the PSC for review.
“The amount of energy these new industries consume is staggering,” PSC Chairman Jason Shaw said in a release. “By approving this new rule, the PSC is helping ensure that existing Georgia Power customers will be spared additional costs associated with adding these large-load customers to the grid.”
Georgia law requires the Public Service Commissioners to approve all of Georgia Power’s new or amended rules.
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