Electricity consumption in Texas is rising faster than any other state, driven largely by computing facilities and cryptocurrency mining, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages 90% of the state’s grid, is registering large flexible loads (LFL) — facilities with power demands exceeding 75MW that can adjust consumption rapidly — to prevent wholesale power prices from spiking.
By 2025, LFL demand is expected to reach 54 billion kilowatt-hours, representing 10% of the total electricity consumption on the ERCOT grid, a 60% increase from 2024. Cryptocurrency mining and data centres have signed voluntary agreements with ERCOT to reduce consumption during periods of high demand.
Despite an influx of applications for 26.5GW of LFL capacity, the EIA predicts only 9.5GW will be operational by 2025 due to approval delays. To meet growing demand, Texas is expanding its oil and gas output and increasing battery energy storage projects from companies like TotalEnergies and Jupiter Power.