The Data Center Backlash

What happens when a blackout hits the Florida Keys? They have to do what grid operators call a black start. I recently visited the Keys Energy Generating Facility on Stock Island to see how they do it. This video is free for all subscribers. Want to help me make more content like this? Please become a paid subscriber. You’ll get every new article, access to more than 400 pieces in the archive, and the ability to post comments. Thanks for your support. As you’ll see in this five-minute mini-documentary, they start with a 2-megawatt diesel-fired engine and gradually add more capacity until they can fire up their large gas turbines. In all, the facility has 105 MW of capacity, all of which runs on diesel fuel. The power plant is owned by the Florida Municipal Power Agency and is operated by Keys Energy Services, a municipal utility which provides electricity to Key West and the lower Florida Keys. I love seeing big iron. I particularly like visiting power plants and seeing how they work. Many thanks to my good friend at FMPA, Jacob Williams, and to Lynne Tejada and Robbie Berger at Keys Energy for coordinating my visit.Before you go:Please click that ♡ button and share. Thanks 1,000,000. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe

Vietnam has the largest trade surplus with the US of any country in the world — larger than China's and bigger than Mexico's. This 8-minute mini-documentary shows how Vietnam’s stunning growth has been fueled by soaring electricity demand, including a huge increase in coal-fired power, and why Vietnam will continue to rely on coal for years to come. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit robertbryce.substack.comSmall modular reactors may be the most crowded — and overhyped — corner of the power sector. After 18 years of reporting on SMRs, my view is simple: A brutal shakeout is coming. In the US alone, 42 companies are pushing 48 reactor designs, all chasing the same pool of capital and customers. In this paid-subscriber webinar, I use two dozen charts to map t…

As AI drives an explosion in new data centers, local communities from Texas to Ireland are saying no to Big Tech’s insatiable demands for water and electricity. This nine-and-a-half-minute documentary spotlights the grassroots backlash. It explains why local communities are raising hell and why opposition is gaining momentum. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe

Lisa Reisman has spent her entire career in the metals business. She began as an aluminum trader, and after stints at other firms, she founded MetalMiner. Her clients are primarily original equipment manufacturers, including automakers, who buy a wide range of metal products. In this episode, she explains how her firm forecasts prices and why she is a "price purist." She also explains how China became a dominant player in strategic elements like antimony, neodymium, gallium, and other metals. Please note that this episode was recorded on December 12, 2024. Reisman and I discussed the then-pending purchase of US Steel by Nippon Steel. Reisman said the US government should allow that deal to happen because Japan is a key US ally. On January 3, the Biden administration blocked that takeover. We also talked about copper, a metal that is getting lots of attention due to its critical role in the electricity sector. Reisman believes that the relatively weak copper prices over the past year are due, in part, to softer-than-expected demand for electric vehicles. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe

Five years after a fire nearly destroyed Notre Dame in Paris, the famous cathedral has reopened. In this episode, I talk to essayist Emmet Penney, who writes the Nuclear Barbarians Substack, about the cultural significance of the cathedral, nuclear plants as our industrial cathedrals, and the electric grid as our industrial commons. Please note that one of the (many) great things about Substack is that it allows you to hear this podcast on other platforms. Thus, you can hear this episode, and future episodes, here on Substack and on: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Podcasts, and Pocket Casts.Podcasts want to be free. This podcast is possible because of supporters like you. To get all new posts & comment, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.Before you go:Do me a favor and click that ♡ button. And, as always, please share and subscribe. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe

I’m back in the podcast game! And I am super pleased that the first guest on The Robert Bryce Show is one of my favorite people, Matt Ridley. Matt is a birdwatcher, essayist, and a prolific writer. He’s the author of ten books. His most recent one, which he co-wrote with Alina Chan, is Viral: The Search For the Origin of Covid-19. In this episode, we talk about Britain’s insane energy policies, the closure of the country’s last blast furnace, his investigation into Covid, why he now is convinced the pandemic was caused by a lab leak, and much more. Stay tuned. I love Substack and will be doing more podcasts on this platform. Future podcasts will be for paid subscribers only. So by all means, please subscribe. Before you go:You can do me a favor by clicking that ♡ button. To receive all new posts, podcasts, and make comments, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertbryce.substack.com/subscribe