OG&E has proposed a new tariff that would shift data center costs off 915,000 customers and back onto big power users. The proposal, which still needs approval from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, would charge large-load users more money to connect them to the grid and require them to agree to long-term contract terms.

Protecting Residential Customers

According to Christi Woodworth, chief communications officer with OG&E, the idea is to protect residents and other smaller users from footing the bill. The proposal could even result in residential customers receiving money back, with a monthly charge that could reduce residential customer bills by $25 million to $30 million annually.

TierPoint, which operates data centers in both the Oklahoma City metro and Tulsa areas, said its power usage is below the proposal and it doesn’t plan to hike up rates anytime soon. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission previously directed OG&E to file a tariff for large-load customers by July 1 to ensure other customers aren’t covering high user costs.

Original reporting: Oklahoma City News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.