Utilities & Big Tech Pay Lip Service, “Pledge” to Keep Costs Down

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Washington, D.C. — According to reporting, more utility and technology companies will sign onto a nonbinding pledge to keep electricity costs down and protect ratepayers from skyrocketing bills driven by data centers’ energy demands.

Despite what is written in the pledge, there has been minimal tangible progress made to address the impact on ratepayers from artificial intelligence data centers. Duke Energy—one of the companies that signed the pledge—scored an ‘F’ on Sierra Club’s Dirty Truth Report for keeping costly coal online and building more expensive gas plants on the dime of everyday ratepayers.

Sierra Club’s national gas tracker also shows a staggering increase in planned gas plants—nearly 50 percent more than what is currently online—largely driven by unfettered data center demand and lacking regulatory protections to ensure energy costs aren’t being shifted from Big Tech companies to families and small businesses. Despite evidence that clean energy is the lowest cost, lowest risk pathway for meeting responsible data center demand, the Trump administration has slashed billions of dollars in funding for clean energy projects.

In response, Sierra Club Climate Policy Director Patrick Drupp issued the following statement: 

“The American people don’t care about the weak pledges and empty promises; they need relief from soaring energy bills month after month and real action from these companies to pay their fair share and bring down high costs.

“Today’s pledge is a paper-thin commitment to families who are struggling to keep the lights on as bills soar . The companies signing on have done nothing to show their work on how they will lower costs. The Sierra Club will continue to push for real actions from utility and technology companies to effectively address the strain data centers have put on the grid, the environment, and the wallets of millions of families.”

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person’s right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.