Virginia county tells schools, businesses to 'conserve electricity' as AI
data center demand hits grid, raises energy prices

Date:
Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:15:00 +0000

Description:
Henrico County in Virginia is facing electricity and water supply
constraints, with electricity bills rising 25% this month.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter County manager asks public sector workers to reduce consumption amid 25% price hikes Hundreds of data centers in Virginia are putting major strain on the grid The region is also facing temporary drought from low rainfall Virginia's Henrico County is
asking public sector employees to reduce electricity consumption after a recent spike in power costs.

Under the new demands set out by county manager John Vithoulkas, employees
are being asked to turn off lights in unoccupied rooms, shut down computers
at the end of every day, close blinds to reduce heat (and thus, air-con requirements), unplug unused appliances and avoid the use of portable space heaters. These measures aim to counter to estimated $5 million rise in the country's annual electricity bill, caused by the near-25% increase in rates. Latest Videos From Watch full video here: Virginia county warns of eye-watering electricity bills Vithoulkas also warned employees on June 26 2026 that electricity rates for all county government buildings and schools would be rising by 24.9% from July 1.

The county manager also worries that additional electricity price increases could occur in future years, with Virginia now one of the fastest-growing
data center hubs in the US. You may like Data centers could hike power costs in some states over 50% by 2030 Major US data center project found to be sucking up 29 million gallons of water over 15 months AI boom triggers new battles over electricity infrastructure costs

Henrico County alone hosts 37 data centers, with a further 17 on the cards already. The state itself counts more than 400 active data centers within its borders, with Northern Virginia often referred to as 'Data Center Alley'.

Land availability, strong fiber and subsea cable connectivity and the proximity to Washington DC are among the attractions of locating new projects in Virginia, but a high concentration of data centers in the region has put serious strain on local grids. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news
and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

But it's not just electricity that residents are being asked to ration. On July 1, Vithoulkas also asked residents to conserve water by taking shorter showers, running only full loads of dishes and laundry and disabling
automatic lawn sprinklers due to temporary drought conditions following a period of below-average rainfall. Data center cooling requirements likely account for some of the county's water consumption.

Via 404Media Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



======================================================================
Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/virginia-county-tells-schools-businesses-to-cons erve-electricity-as-ai-data-center-demand-hits-grid-raises-energy-prices


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A49 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)