ELKHART, Ind. (WOWO) — Indiana Governor Mike Braun discussed data centers at the RV Industry Power Breakfast in Elkhart on Thursday.
“So whether they’re good or bad, I know China wants to get to it before we do. I’ve never had anything as an entrepreneur always looking for that new horizon, the new way to tweak your business. I’ve never seen a new industry come in and say, federal government, please regulate us,” said Braun.
He said it appeared that previously, the United States had about a year and a half lead, but now it’s down to about six months.
“I can tell you they are going to be doing it to leapfrog into a stronger economy and win that geopolitical tug-of-war in probably not an altruistic way,” said Braun.
Braun says the most recent numbers show that the United States makes up about one-fourth of the world’s gross domestic product while China is just under 20%.
“But that gap, that tug-of-war is going to make a difference in terms of what the next 50 years look like. When it comes to data centers, it’s hard to believe that one of them could use up to 5 percent of the electricity we currently generate as a state for our current businesses and households. That’s unbelievable. That’s a gigawatt, because we only produce 20 gigs currently. It takes a while to stand up new generation. That’s normally going to be natural gas,” said Braun.
He says a lot of the companies that want to put in data centers are the richest companies in the world, such as Google and Amazon. They want tax abatements.
“Don’t give them any abatements. They don’t need it. They were putting smaller operations on the grid. That was starting to drive up. I mean, when you’re talking about a half a gig, 500 megawatts or a gig, they’ve got to build it, and they’re going to pay for every penny of it and put more electrons onto the grid and prove how we can lower our electricity rates, because property taxes, cost of health care, cost of owning a home all plays into what’s important in our industry, and that’s going to be my focus, and that’s my view on data centers,” said Braun.
He says half of the U.S.’s growth is being driven by data centers, which means Indiana’s growth is being half-driven by data centers.
“If we stick our head in the sand, China will get ahead of us, and we will not be seeing the economic growth that we’re currently seeing,” said Braun.
Currently, there are four operating data centers in Indiana and 36 are planned for the future.
Those who oppose data centers have cited concerns over environmental impact, resource consumption, rising utility costs, noise, and quality of life. Those who support data centers say they are the backbone of modern digital life by powering things like AI, economic infrastructure, and innovation.
