President Donald Trump said Texas's decision to pause data center approvals was a mistake. In an interview with Punchbowl News, Trump emphasized that the data center industry might surpass the oil sector in significance.
He remarked, "For Texas to say no to data centers is a mistake in the sense that it could be bigger than oil."
The pause was announced by Governor Greg Abbott on August 3, halting new data center approvals seeking to connect to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid. This measure is intended to allow state agencies to audit these projects, focusing on tax breaks, resource consumption, and community impact.
Abbott's spokesperson noted that the decision was prompted by a lack of information, with fewer than 10 percent of data centers providing necessary power and water usage data.
Currently, ERCOT is monitoring over 1,800 projects that represent more than 474 gigawatts of requested capacity, significantly exceeding the grid's peak demand. Abbott has indicated that about 90 percent of new connection requests are from data centers. Projections suggest that water usage by data centers in Texas could reach between 29 billion and 161 billion gallons annually by 2030.
No updates have been provided regarding changes to the order from either the governor's office or the White House.
