DCFlex Deliverables

This report outlines the rapidly evolving permitting landscape for on-site backup and primary power at U.S. data centers, where multi-jurisdictional air, noise, water, and land-use requirements increasingly shape project feasibility and timelines. Federal emergency-use limits, state and local modeling and emissions rules, and growing community scrutiny constrain operational flexibility and drive early strategic decisions on generator classification, fleet design, siting, and fuel commitments.

This report synthesizes insights from structured EPRI interviews with three utilities—Duke Energy, Nebraska Public Power District, and Salt River Project—focused on their strategies for supporting data center growth. The interviews capture candid perspectives on demand forecasts, capacity expansion, grid impacts, policy and regulatory drivers, transmission constraints, supply-chain and workforce considerations, and decarbonization pathways.

This discussion paper introduces a practical framework to help power system planners assess how much additional load, particularly from rapidly growing data centers, can be integrated without expanding generation, storage, or transmission infrastructure.

This brief outlines the potential grid impacts of AI-DCs, their susceptibility to power quality disturbances, and touches on mitigation and monitoring strategies to ensure grid compatibility and operational resilience as computational demands continue to scale.

This report examines the emerging risks associated with subsynchronous torsional interactions (SSTI) between turbine-generator shafts and the variable, high-power loads produced by AI data centers, especially during intensive training activities. The document outlines the physical mechanisms through which fluctuating electrical demands can stimulate generator torsional modes and introduces a screening approach based on interharmonic current gains to determine when comprehensive data collection and assessment are warranted.

This white paper investigates how electric companies across Canada are planning for emerging large loads and data centres. It analyzes recently submitted Integrated Resource Plans (IRPs) and long-term energy planning outlooks to assess projected load growth, planned generation capacity additions, and provincial strategies for accommodating large-scale new loads. The report also explores opportunities for system benefits through data centre flexibility and discusses strategies to advance long-term resource planning practices to support emerging needs.

This white paper examines how ISP can guide the design of future power systems with significant DC growth, outlining the phases of ISP and showing how each phase addresses the specific planning challenges and opportunities introduced by these large, complex loads. ration potential.

This study evaluates supply-side technology pathways to meet DC demand through 2035 under varying scenarios of DC demand growth, federal policy, and carbon-free electricity (CFE) procurement targets. The analysis incorporates updated demand projections, recent changes to federal energy policy under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), and current technology cost trends.

This report introduces a two-part framework for forecasting data center load for planning timescales at higher spatial and temporal resolutions within a region. The first part analyzes the geographic drivers of development, such as land suitability, infrastructure readiness, and local market maturity. The second part focuses on temporal granularity, leveraging historical trends to anticipate short-term variability. Together, these analyses offer a foundation for planning future grid capacity and infrastructure needs.

This white paper provides insights into four DCFlex demonstration projects focused on flexibility in design, utility programs, grid planning, and energy supply. It highlights real-world demonstrations in Phoenix, AZ; Lenoir, NC; Paris, France and Chicago, IL showcasing techniques such as AI workload modulation, demand response, and backup power integration.