America's electric grid is beginning to feel the strain of the artificial intelligence boom. Federal regulators are working to prevent the costs tied to rapidly growing electricity use from data centers and cryptomining sites from being shifted onto ordinary households.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued sweeping new orders targeting large power users' access to the grid. FERC has directed the country's six biggest grid operators to either justify their current connection rules or suggest revisions for data centers and other exceptionally large customers within 60 days. Grid operators that oversee wholesale electricity markets for about 200 million people must also submit 30-day reports explaining how they would maintain sufficient generation to serve both current users and new large loads.

The directive comes as power demand is climbing in some regions, particularly due to AI-related facilities and cryptocurrency operations. FERC's order specifically directs grid operators to examine co-location agreements that place data centers at or next to power plants, as well as "behind-the-meter" setups where facilities develop their own generation.

According to FERC Commissioner David Rosner, the commission wants safeguards around new infrastructure built for data centers so that if a project falls through "and that data center doesn't show up, other customers, especially regular consumers, will not be on the hook for those costs."

Consumer advocates warn that households could wind up subsidizing power plants or transmission built for big new customers if utilities rush to construct projects residents never asked for. The danger grows if utilities add more natural gas infrastructure than they ultimately need. Should the expected demand fail to materialize, consumers could spend decades paying off those stranded assets. Expanded fossil fuel infrastructure also creates additional air pollution and planet-warming emissions.

Grid reliability presents another concern. In Virginia, a lightning strike on a high-voltage transmission line led 60 data centers to disconnect at once and switch to backup power, abruptly reducing demand by 1,500 megawatts. In Texas, ERCOT logged five events in which demand losses exceeded 100 megawatts over a 12-month period. Abrupt changes like these make the grid harder to manage and raise the risk of instability.

FERC Chairman Laura Swett stressed that states still control retail electricity decisions but emphasized: "We make clear that we act today to guard against cost-shifting among transmission customers, but the states have the responsibility to ensure that there is no cost-shifting among retail customers."

While stakeholders offered cautious support for the order, some noted it falls short. Nick Guidi, a senior attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said it is "an important step, though not a complete one," and that it is "not as ambitious as what Secretary Wright asked them to do." The Sierra Club also expressed measured support, saying FERC's action is "responsive to Sierra Club's requests on several fronts, including protecting consumers from costs incurred by large loads."