Texas Blocks New Data Centers Pending Water Audit

The Government of Texas blocked new data centers from connecting to the ERCOT power grid after the Texas Water Development Board revealed that the state water plan lacks projections for data center water usage. The discovery occurred during a Texas House natural resources committee hearing, prompting the governor to order a comprehensive audit of all existing data centers and their water consumption.

To fill the data gap, the Texas Water Development Board will analyze power request data from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to estimate water needs. While the grid manager expects to complete the audit by December, state officials noted that previous surveys have suffered from poor response rates.

The move has triggered bipartisan resistance across rural and metropolitan regions. Political opponent Gina Hinojosa criticized the audit as insufficient and called for a special legislative session to address the issue.