Trump calls Amazon, Google, Meta CEOs to sign power-cost pledge
President Donald Trump is set to gather technology executives at the White House next week to sign pledges that will commit their companies to cover the electricity costs for energy-intensive data centers. A White House official stated that representatives from companies such as Amazon.com Inc., Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp., and Google parent Alphabet Inc. are anticipated to participate in an event with the president on March 4. Among those invited are Elon Musk’s xAI Corp., Oracle Corp., and OpenAI Inc. Although the promises would not be legally binding and would not carry the weight of law, administration officials are of the opinion that formal, public commitments could foster accountability and provide reassurance to consumers concerned that the swift expansion of data centers essential for artificial intelligence might result in environmental harm and increased expenses. “Under this bold initiative, these massive companies will build, bring or buy their own power supply for new AI data centers, ensuring that Americans’ electricity bills will not increase as demand grows,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers stated on Wednesday. “President Trump is dedicated to securing American leadership in AI technology while also reducing expenses for working families.”
The ratepayer protection pledge represents a recent initiative in Trump’s efforts to tackle a pressing political issue — rising electricity prices — ahead of the November midterm elections. Data centers, crucial for enhancing computing power and fueling the AI advancements that Trump has advocated, are facing increasing public opposition, as Americans express concerns about potentially bearing the financial burden. The opposition is further fueled by concerns regarding the facilities’ consumption of water and land, alongside their dependence on diesel generators for backup power. During the 2024 campaign, Trump promised to cut electricity bills in half; however, power costs have risen instead, driven by heightened demand from data centers, industrial operations, and the growing electrification of home heating, cooking, and transportation. In December, the average retail price for electricity across the nation reached 17.24 cents per kilowatt-hour, marking a 6% rise compared to the previous year.
According to a poll, 64% of voters identified utility costs as the primary concern regarding data-center development. Experts indicate that leading technology companies driving the AI data center surge are willing to invest more for the energy they require. James Burnham, general counsel for xAI, stated in a social media post that the company was proud to be part of the initiative. xAI “has never caused our neighbors’ electricity bills to rise,” he stated. “When our team builds supercomputers, that includes power.” Microsoft President Brad Smith expressed gratitude towards the administration for its efforts, stating, “work to ensure that data centers don’t contribute to higher electricity prices for consumers.” Critics of Trump’s commitment dismissed the initiative as ineffective, contending that nonbinding assurances from tech companies cannot be relied upon to maintain control over retail power prices. Jesse Lee stated that instead of providing a “empty promise,” the administration ought to focus on increasing power sources to meet the impending demand surge. The Trump administration has eliminated subsidies for renewable energy and aimed to stop the construction of offshore wind farms along the US East Coast.
In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump emphasized the initiative, portraying the expansion of data centers as an opportunity to reduce power costs and enhance the country’s electric-transmission infrastructure. “We’re telling the major tech companies that they have the obligation to provide for their own power needs,” Trump stated. “They can build their own power plants as part of their factory, so that no one’s prices will go up. And in many cases, prices of electricity will go down for the community and very substantially down.” The Trump administration has urged the nation’s largest power grid to conduct an emergency auction, enabling tech companies to compete for long-term electricity supplies.
