Utilities and Big Tech lost trust. What will earn it back?

Across America, people are screaming “no” — no to data centers, and no to the energy projects that serve them. So what gets people to a “yes”? Perhaps an enthusiastic yes?

Every utility and tech company is scrambling to answer that question. And so far, they haven’t been able to find one.

Our guest this week, Sparkfund CEO Pier LaFarge, has thought a lot about this problem. And he’s trying to prove that you can get local buy-in through better energy development models.  

First, we’ll talk about the state of grid utilization. At a moment when there's a deep fear of overbuilding and anger over rising electricity rates, the idea of getting more out of our existing infrastructure is taking off. Pier argues that utilization is the first step toward restoring trust in growth of the grid. 

Then we’ll talk about Sparkfund’s partnership with Xcel, backed by Google, to deploy distributed batteries around Minnesota. While only a small part of the answer, Pier sees it as a way to create local buy-in to data center infrastructure. 

We’ll end with a deeper look at what’s driving the backlash. Pier shares a playbook for local abundance that he developed with local leaders in Alabama. When promises of jobs and taxes stop working, what comes next?

Credits: Produced and edited by Stephen Lacey, Sean Marquand, and Anne Bailey.

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