As pieces of critical infrastructure, data centres are zero-downtime, always-on facilities with an insatiable appetite for energy.
They consume power at a fixed, relentless rate, and grid planners have long designed their systems around that assumption.
However, a recent study published by Duke University has found that dozens of gigawatts of new load could be brought onto the US grid if large users were amenable to even modest curtailment.
Lately, Google has been making a determined case that its facilities can be exactly that kind of flexible customer. The company has now integrated a total of 1GW of demand response capacity into its long-term energy contracts with multiple utilities across the US.
The announcement, made by Michael Terrell, Google's Head of Advanced Energy, represents the most recent step in what has become a notable shift in the tech giant's position in the energy markets.
