Data centers are Oklahoma's next infrastructure story | Opinion

Data centers are Oklahoma's next infrastructure story | Opinion

When Oklahomans stream "Stranger Things" or check their bank balances online, chances are that data is passing through RACK59, a data center right here in Oklahoma City built in 2009. We've relied on data centers for more than a decade without much thought. So why the sudden, intense concern about new ones moving in? It's a fair question, especially as the sheer size of modern AI facilities raises valid alarms about our local water and power supplies.

A history lesson is in order: In the 1920s, the Oklahoma state Capitol front yard was pierced by oil derricks pumping black gold right from the Capitol's flower beds. We were a state built by wildcatters who understood that harnessing energy was the key to a thriving economy. Those wells provided a major source of prosperity during the Great Depression. Today, data centers are the infrastructure of the 21st century. These warehouses of computers process our internet searches, power the precision agriculture that sustains our rural communities, and are the backbone of our AI researchers working tirelessly on cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer's.

It is entirely reasonable to look at the massive physical footprint of a proposed data center and worry about its appetite for our state's water and electricity. Oklahomans know the value of our natural resources, and we don't want them squandered. But just as our oil and gas industry evolved from chaotic, uncontrolled gushers into a highly precise, highly efficient sector, the data center industry has undergone a quiet but spectacular revolution in efficiency.

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For example, between 2010 and 2018, global data center computing output surged by a staggering 550%. Yet, thanks to relentless innovation, the total energy consumed by these facilities grew by only 6%. This was achieved by improving Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE). A decade ago, typical data centers wasted vast amounts of electricity trying to keep servers cool. Today, modern hyperscale facilities have slashed overhead energy use by 84% compared to the old industry average.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Oklahoma produces almost three times more energy than it consumes, and is also a net exporter of electricity, generating about 30% more than it uses. This is a strong starting position as some larger data centers today can consume well over 1 GW of electricity, roughly the output of a large power plant.

What we're seeing is a bifurcation of the electric system: the traditional grid that keeps the lights on in your kitchen, and a separate path where AI facilities generate their own power. Last year, Oklahoma was one of the first states in the nation to pass a law that allows data centers to build and operate on-site power generation, leveraging gas in addition to wind, solar, batteries, or other emerging technologies. Most hyperscalers have publicly pledged to build their own power for projects going forward. And for smaller data centers still connecting to the grid, the Data Center Consumer Ratepayer Protection Act, passed this year, protects Oklahomans from shouldering higher electricity bills due to data center infrastructure costs.

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On water, rapid advancements in technology have emerged. Early facilities relied heavily on evaporative cooling that consumed millions of gallons per day. Today, the industry is rapidly adopting closed-loop systems that recycle and reuse water, reducing freshwater consumption by up to 70%. Furthermore, cutting-edge technologies like air cooling, direct-to-chip liquid cooling, and immersion cooling prove these facilities can grow without draining local water supply. Google even pledged last month to be "water positive," and replenish more water than its data centers consume by 2030.

We have the diverse energy portfolio and the electrical grid expertise to support this new era of digital pioneers. Welcoming highly efficient data centers to our state means capturing high-paying technology, operations, security, construction, and maintenance jobs, substantial ad valorem tax revenues, and a diversified economy that will sustain us for generations.

We don't need to build data centers on the Capitol lawn to recognize their value. But by approaching them with the same visionary pragmatism our grandparents applied to the oil fields, we aren't just adapting to the future. We are doing what Oklahomans have always done: We are fueling it.

Collin Walke leads Hall Estill's Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Practice Group and served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 2016-2022. Madeline Mitchell Stacy is on faculty and an executive in residence at the University of Central Oklahoma College of Business, where she leads the AI Management MBA and the former U.S. head of Strategy and Operations for Deloitte's AI Center.

(Editor's note: The views expressed in this column are those of the writer and not necessarily those of The Oklahoman.)

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Data centers are Oklahoma's next infrastructure story | Opinion