Big Tech is building trading desk to manage rising load from AI infrastructure

The fight for power in the US has turned into a wild race as AI development speeds up and pushes electricity demand to levels that look nothing like the past decade.

Growth is now expected to run five to ten times faster over the next ten years, and every company that relies on heavy data loads feels the pressure.

Higher demand means higher costs and tighter access, and no one in corporate America wants to get caught paying for power they cannot secure or cannot afford.

That fear is now pushing Big Tech and blue-chip firms into the world of energy trading.

Big Tech is building trading desk to manage rising load from AI infrastructure

Meta, Microsoft, and Apple all received federal approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Council to buy and sell wholesale electricity as they try to handle the massive load coming from AI systems and new data centers.

Late November brought a new twist when Disney posted a listing for an energy trader to purchase and schedule electricity for its operations.

Rob Gramlich from Grid Strategies said a company with big demand or supply faces clear market exposure, adding that a trading desk is one way to limit that exposure. His warning lands as utilities push stricter rules.

When demand was low, companies had looser deals, but now utilities want buyers to commit to fixed quantities even if their real use ends up lower.

Tech companies planning a data center might expect to use 2 gigawatts, according to Cryptopolitan’s analysis.

The utility may only agree if the firm pays for 1.5 gigawatts upfront. If actual use hits only 1 gigawatt, that firm is stuck paying for an extra 500 megawatts.

A trader inside that company can take that leftover power to the open market and sell it to another buyer to cover the loss. That move matters because electricity prices have climbed.

Government numbers show average prices in September were 7% higher than the year before. Natural gas, a key factor in power pricing, jumped more than 60% from the same period last year.

Higher prices give companies like Microsoft and Disney a reason to sign long-term power contracts to lock in predictable rates. The idea works a bit like Starbucks fixing its coffee bean costs through futures contracts.

Traders can also act fast day-to-day, selling small excess volumes or buying extra supply when needed to balance the load. Disney’s listing said the trader will handle short-term load forecasts, hourly and daily electricity purchases, and longer-term power purchase deals.

Corporate hiring expands as firms add energy market teams

This push is not new for Apple or Microsoft. Apple has been allowed to trade wholesale electricity since 2016, and Microsoft since 2021. Meta is the latest to get authorization.

Microsoft told Yahoo Finance it may need to sell part of its added grid supply as it is produced. Meta said trading lets the company deal with the market more directly and gives it more flexibility. Apple did not respond.

Hiring is growing across the industry. Google is hiring for energy market development roles. Oracle wants energy risk managers. Digital Realty, which builds data centers, added roles focused on sourcing new power deals and procurement.

Disney’s new trader will sit inside Reedy Creek Energy Services, the group that runs the electric grid for the district around Walt Disney World. Disney did not comment.

The strategy comes with real risk. A company could lock in a price only to see the market drop, leaving it stuck with a higher bill. But firms want more control, not less. Gramlich said a company already exposed to the market is not adding extra danger by trading.

He said trading could even reduce risk. Corporate America seems ready to take that gamble as AI pushes data demand higher every month.

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