Multiple US states and hundreds of local jurisdictions have enacted datacenter moratoriums amid concerns over electricity, water, and land use. However, analysis shows these restrictions affect only ~2.3 GW of the projected 38 GW datacenter capacity delivery in 2027, with most projects proceeding through alternative permitting paths or behind-the-meter power solutions.
Solar energy creates a grid imbalance where abundant midday supply meets evening demand peaks, a problem called the duck curve. Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology could theoretically solve this by using EV batteries to store cheap solar and sell back to the grid during peak hours, but the real barrier isn't the technology—it's the high soft costs of permitting, interconnection paperwork, installation, and overhead that inflate home battery prices to $1,000 per kWh, compared to $334 per kWh for grid-scale systems.