The US government will ask data centers how much energy they use

American federalism Central government Energy Information Agency Plans to implement a mandatory survey at the national level Data centers Focus on their energy use, according to a letter seen by WIRED. This survey will be the first effort of its kind to collect basic information about data centers.

The letter was sent to Senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley on April 9 by the head of the EIA, Tristan Abbe, and comes in response to an earlier inquiry from the senators about plans for an environmental impact assessment to obtain more information about data centers. Wired I mentioned On Hawley and Warren’s letter last month.

“Americans deserve to know how much energy data centers are consuming and what impact it will have on their utility bills,” Warren told WIRED in a statement. “Mandatory EIA scanning is an important first step toward holding data centers accountable, but people are hurting now. I’m pushing EIA to collect this data and share it as soon as possible.”

The EIA told WIRED that it did not have any details to share beyond what was in the letter to the senators.

An explosion of data centers across the United States caused a data outpouring General anxiety and Proposed legislation To curb the use of its resources, as well as impose a ban on its construction. But surprisingly, there is little official data collected about the industry.

Most details about data center energy use — a particular concern for many voters faced with rising utility bills — are considered proprietary commercial information, and typically not made public. In response to Encouragement from the Trump administration to protect taxpayersMany data center developers are now turning to building their own power supplies, known as behind-the-meter power. These amenities – a lot of them Gas operated– Raising new concerns about air pollution and climate change. (On Tuesday, NAACP I filed a lawsuit v. XAI, which alleges it was operating behind-the-meter gas turbines at a data center in Mississippi without a permit and polluting the surrounding community. xAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

EIA conducts mandatory surveys for providers of various types of energy generation, including oil and gas production, electricity generation, and renewable energy, as well as their industrial customers. In late March, the day before the senators sent their letter, the EIA announced that it would conduct a pilot survey in three regions of the country experiencing significant data center development: Texas, Washington state, and the Northern Virginia/D.C. metro area.

In an April 9 letter, Abe said the agency would announce a second tranche of pilot surveys “covering at least three more states.” Both surveys will be completed by late September. These two pilot studies are “a necessary step in the methodological development of a mandatory nationwide survey,” Abe wrote.

The information collected by the EIA from data centers in these pilot projects, according to the letter, includes not only information on annual electricity use, but also information on behind-the-meter power generation. The surveys will also include questions about categorizing different types of data centers, Abe wrote; Cooling systems Facility characteristics, such as square footage; and IT specifications, including metrics related to how efficiently the data center uses energy.

The letter still leaves many unanswered questions about the structure of the pilots.

According to the letter, the pilot will not ask each respondent for a full set of metrics, but will tailor questions “matched to the specific location of each data center facility.” the Current pilot The 196 companies identified in the three regions are also required to choose only one location to report the metrics. The EIA did not answer questions about how it determined which sites should receive which questions, or if it made any requirements for survey participants about how to choose a data center site to provide information about.

The EIA also did not answer WIRED’s questions about when it plans to launch the second set of pilot surveys, which states will be included, or the potential timing of a national mandatory survey.