Duke Researchers: Grid Flexibility Key to Accommodate Load Growth

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Researchers from Duke University have emphasized the importance of integrating flexibility into U.S. power grids to accommodate future load growth, particularly driven by the increasing demand from artificial intelligence and data centers. Their recent report, titled 'Rethinking Load Growth,' analyzes the capacity of 22 major balancing authorities that serve approximately 95% of the nation's peak power load. The study suggests that significant new loads could be added to the grid, provided that flexibility measures are implemented to temporarily curtail these loads when necessary, thereby preventing power delivery issues.

The findings indicate that up to 126 GW of new load could be integrated into the grid with varying curtailment rates, highlighting the potential for existing power systems to handle additional demand without extensive infrastructure expansion. The researchers advocate for regulators and utilities to adopt flexible load strategies to better manage the anticipated growth in electricity demand, particularly from data centers. They also note that while the current grid has untapped capacity, challenges such as transmission constraints must be addressed to fully realize this potential.