Consultants for Hydro-Québec defend proposal to double energy costs for data centres

Two consultants retained by Hydro-Québec anticipate a more than doubling of demand for energy from data centres between 2024 and 2030, according to a recent public hearing reviewing the utility's proposal to significantly raise rates for data centres. The analysts from Dunsky, an energy and climate consulting firm, presented their findings on energy consumption trends in North America.

Alexis Renaud-Bezot, one of the Dunsky analysts, projected that energy usage from data centres in North America could surge by 133% during the specified period. He noted that other regions have increased rates for data centres to mitigate the impact on residential customers. Hydro-Québec's proposed rate hike would raise the average cost for data centres to 13 cents per kilowatt-hour, roughly double the current rates for large-power customers.

The utility claims the proposed rate increase is necessary to manage the substantial rise in energy demand from data centres.