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Why did PNM, New Mexico’s largest utility, catch the eye of Blackstone, the largest private equity investor fund in the world?
Because Blackstone is the owner of multiple data center development companies, and our abundant resources and cheap land mean they can make big profits off New Mexico’s electricity customers.
In Virginia, where data center development has proceeded unchecked, these energy sucking AI processors are projected to consume 40% of the state’s electricity by 2025, and electricity rates are going up as a result. A recent report found that in parts of the country with more data center development, monthly power bills now cost 267% more than they did five years ago in regions with “significant data center activity,” according to the analysis from Bloomberg News.
In other words, if your monthly bill in 2020 was $100, it could be $267 today!!
Why are electricity customers paying to subsidize the costs of the billion-dollar corporations building these giant data centers? Because under antiquated PRC regulations, whenever investments in the grid are made, everyone shares the cost, including you and me. And utilities and data center developers often negotiate special rates outside of a rate case, so that the PRC doesn’t even get a say!
Is that the only risk? No. Private equity companies are notorious for borrowing money against their assets, downsizing, cost cutting, and then selling, or going bankrupt, leaving local communities without services and employees without jobs. We’ve seen it at Radio Shack, Kmart, Sears, and Red Lobster. We’ve seen it in housing, in hospital services, and in nursing homes.
Now they are coming for our utilities.
Sign this petition to join us in calling on the PRC to reject Blackstone and keep our electricity local and affordable!
Why did PNM, New Mexico’s largest utility, catch the eye of Blackstone, the largest private equity investor fund in the world?
Because Blackstone is the owner of multiple data center development companies, and our abundant resources and cheap land mean they can make big profits off New Mexico’s electricity customers.
In Virginia, where data center development has proceeded unchecked, these energy sucking AI processors are projected to consume 40% of the state’s electricity by 2025, and electricity rates are going up as a result. A recent report found that in parts of the country with more data center development, monthly power bills now cost 267% more than they did five years ago in regions with “significant data center activity,” according to the analysis from Bloomberg News.
In other words, if your monthly bill in 2020 was $100, it could be $267 today!!
Why are electricity customers paying to subsidize the costs of the billion-dollar corporations building these giant data centers? Because under antiquated PRC regulations, whenever investments in the grid are made, everyone shares the cost, including you and me. And utilities and data center developers often negotiate special rates outside of a rate case, so that the PRC doesn’t even get a say!
Is that the only risk? No. Private equity companies are notorious for borrowing money against their assets, downsizing, cost cutting, and then selling, or going bankrupt, leaving local communities without services and employees without jobs. We’ve seen it at Radio Shack, Kmart, Sears, and Red Lobster. We’ve seen it in housing, in hospital services, and in nursing homes.
Now they are coming for our utilities.
Sign this petition to join us in calling on the PRC to reject Blackstone and keep our electricity local and affordable!