If you have noticed Utility bill This summer has gone, you are not alone. On average, the cost of electricity today is 5.5% higher than a year ago, The latest federal dataAnd natural gas is 13.8%.
Around 60 utility companies are ready to increase more than $ 38 billion to increase electricity rates this year, affecting more than 57 million Americans. Analysis from US progress centerA generous think tank.
President Trump recently commented on rising prices, convicting him on renewable power. He wrote Renewable “century scam!” And he swear that he would not approve wind and solar projects.
But high rate is largely a result of high demand, and it is rapidly motivated by artificial intelligence, oil and gas drilling, electrified forms of space heating and transport – for all technologies, which require immense amounts of electricity, president of grid strategies, president of grid strategies, according to a DC -based energy consultation firm, according to “when supplied,” said.
Gramlich says that 25 years after a flat demand for energy and a dip during the epidemic, the epidemic increased once after the economic activity.
There is also an attack on Russia’s Ukraine Played a role In high costs, the US rapid growth and new electrified forms in data centers means that the nation will require 15% more capacity – or 120 gWing – to maintain speeds, to maintain the speed, to the end of the decade, the Gramlich was estimated.
Increasing demand is a big reason US Energy Information Administration The next few years are expected to increase the rate of residential electricity by 18%, which removes an annual inflation rate of about 2.7%.
The fastest way to bring down rates will be to increase supply, but there are challenges.
Fall back on transmission
Gramlich, In recent testimony before Congress, Said that there is no shortage of fuel to add to the grid – it is a lack of transmission which is a big problem.
At the end of 2023, there were more than 2,600 gigawatts of energy that were waiting for the connected to be connected, representing more than double the current established capacity of the US Power Grid, According to Lawrence Berkeley National LabAnd 95% of its solar, wind and battery were generated by storage.
To meet the rising power requirements, the US needs to expand the transmission system by 2030, and may even require triple by 2050. For 2022 report By the Department of Energy.
“If we can build a lot of transmission, I think we can meet the demands of the AI-operated data center,” said Gramlich.
AI data centers consume more power than grids than regular data centers, calling MIT’s climate and stability consortium partner Norman Bashir, where researchers are studying the impact of generic AI on the grid.
“AI data centers are too much intense,” Bashir told CBS News Boston last month“So, if you have a general data center, an AI data center will be 10 times more power intensive.”
Role of tariffs and lacket of equipment
Beyond the transmission backlog, Gramlich says that tariffs and equipment deficiency are making energy projects more expensive. An example – gas turbines are still extremely rare, and this natural gas is catching the expansion of power plants.
“The price of a real turbine is almost three times,” said Gramlich. And the waiting time for a gas turbine is about three or four years – as of May 1, also as seven Analysis By S&P Global.
Energy sources
In the last decade, the country’s energy mixture is growing rapidly like natural gas and renewable items, such as air, solar and hydropower, which has become very cheap to produce. The new nuclear plants will not be on the line before 2030, said Gramlich, and coal is financially low as maintenance and update costs are required to remove pollution concerns.
Gramlich told CBS News, “It releases air and solar and battery storage that can help in this decade.”
But Trump Administration Applied policies To curb new clean energy projects and promote more dependence on fossil fuels instead. Approving and allowing new clean energy projects has become increasingly difficult, removing a valuable property from energy providers at an important time.
“If things go on in this way, [utility bills] Gramlich said, “It is going to be high next year.
Trump energy policies estimated to increase prices
Returning to office, Mr. Trump “released”National energy emergency“Executive orders, arguing the country” requires reliable, diverse and inexpensive supply of energy to run our country’s manufacturing, transport, agriculture and defense industries and to maintain the basics of modern life and military preparations. ,
Most of the works associated with that order have reduced renewable energy production and are increasing fossil fuel growth.
The passage of Trump’s signature law makes a big beautiful bill act, more expensive to make energy more difficult to make jobs and meet the demand for rising energy, AnalysisA nonpartison energy and climate policy think tank.
The OBBBA will change the tax code, increase the cost of the generation, resulting in a decline in power generation capacity of 340 GW by 2035, Michael O’Boyal, Says Michael O’Boyal, director of the acting policy team. In that perspective, 1 gigawatt usually provides strength to 750,000 homes, so 340 gigawatts can give strength to about 255 million houses.
O’Boyal estimates that wholesale energy prices will increase by 74% by 2035, resulting in an annual increase of $ 170 in the average domestic energy bill. Some 760,000 jobs may be lost by 2030, and are expected to see the greatest effects on the increase in energy costs and the biggest impacts on job loss from OBBBA, they are South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Kentki and Northern Carolina.
The Department of Energy criticized the analysis and support of renewable items, “OBBBA ensures that taxpayers will no longer be forced to subsidize energy sources by stopping winds and solar -subsidy, which resulted in more expensive, less reliable energy as a result,” Ben Dieterrich said, Ben Dieterch said, in an email.
Biden-era end clean energy policies
Ever since he returned to the office, Mr. Trump has been eliminating the clean energy policies of Biden-era, resulting in over $ 22 billion in renewable energy projects, Analysis By environmental policy firm E2.
“Unfortunately, the fastest, the fastest, the fastest, the fastest for deploying electricity,” said E2 Executive Director Bob’sfe said, “Unfortunately, the fastest, the fastest, the fastest.”
“By slowing down the deployment of clean energy, the administration is directly increasing the cost,” said Jason Grumet, CEO of the American Clean Power Association. Grumet cited EIA data and said, “The top four clean energy states are seeing a decline in prices this year, while in 10 states at least Akshaya Shakti has to face all.”
Trump administrator. Fossil fuel production
To address the demand for rising energy, energy The department has ordered some utility companies to keep coal power plants open Beyond their retirement dates, an action that can exceed $ 3.1 billion per year by 2028, Analysis Gramlich firm, by grid strategies.
“These coal plants are originally uneven in the market. Each year, they only set up for the maintenance of millions of dollars,” said Gramlich.
According to the costs to expand the lives of coal plants, according to the darpagers, according to A decision by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Coal plants are generally planned for retirement when their operational costs exceed their expected revenue or electric grid, EIA Told. Coal -powered plants, which produce high levels of CO2 emissions, are under pressure to be phased in many states, in particular, with those with those Clean energy targetAs EIANatural gas and clean energy sources are providing the growing power of the country, while coal is wandering. By the end of 2023, the maximum potential power plant production for coal was 15.2%, below 45% in 1990.
If additional fossil fuel-based plants delay retirement dates-expected to be 28% retired By 2035 – the bill of the ratperers can be more than $ 6 billion.
Nevertheless, Energy Secretary Chris Right supports the administration’s efforts to keep fossil fuel production online.
“The United States cannot afford to continue the unstable and dangerous path of energy subtraction, which was followed by previous leaders, forcing the baselov power sources such as coal and natural gas to shut down,” He said in a statementOn issuing a report on the reliability of the US grid. “If we are going to maintain light, win the AI race, and power prices remain from skyrocketing, the United States will have to highlight American energy.”