QTS Data Centers is building a data center campus in Cedar Rapids that is the biggest economic development project in the state of Iowa. In this episode, Alliant Energy Chief Strategy Officer Raja Sundararajan and QTS Executive Vice President of Government Relations Todd Malan join EEI Chief Legal Officer Rachael Marsh to discuss how electric companies and developers are collaborating to drive economic growth, protect existing customers, and accelerate digital infrastructure buildout.

Alliant Energy and QTS: Powering Growth for Every Customer

Electric Perspectives

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**Podcast:** Electric Perspectives

## Transcript

Welcome to Electric Perspectives, a podcast that explores the innovations and policies shaping the electric power industry and how America's electric companies are delivering the resilient energy we need to strengthen America's energy security and power our daily lives. This show is brought to you by EEI, the Edison Electric Institute, which represents all US investor and electric companies. I'm your host, Brian Riel.

QTS Data Centers is building a data center campus in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which is the biggest economic development project in the city's history. In this episode, Alliant Energy Chief Strategy Officer, Raja Sundarararajan, and QTS Executive Vice President of Government Relations, Todd Mallon, will join EEI Chief Legal Officer, Rachel Marsh, to discuss the project. They'll also discuss how electric companies and developers are collaborating to deliver economic growth, protect existing customers, and protect existing customers.

QTS Data Centers and accelerate the build-out of digital infrastructure. Here's Rachel. Raja, Todd, it is awesome to have you both here. Thank you so much for being with us. So, Raja, let's kick it off with you. Can you tell us more about Alliant's partnership with QTS for this project and why this was the right fit for your company and for the communities you serve? Raja Sundararajan, Absolutely. Thanks a lot, Rachel, and thanks for inviting me to be part of this conversation.

Raja Sundararajan, Alliant Energy is a utility that serves both in Wisconsin and Iowa. We probably serve around a million customers, electric customers, and a half a million gas customers. And Alliant Energy has taken always a philosophy of bringing large load that addresses the win-win-win for our customers. When I say win-win-win, it's for existing customers, new customers, and the community that the large load serves.

Raja Sundararajan, Alliant Energy took a proactive step of investing in land and near areas of significant transmission capacity, which we call Big Cedar Industrial Park, which is where the Cedar Rapids Data Center that QTS is building. And this is probably our largest economic development project in the history of Iowa, and I'll pause that there.

While we have an obligation to serve, what makes it successful is QTS, DNA, and culture, where they lead with community first and are flexible with respect to the timing and issues that require us to serve large load that QTS has. And QTS relationship has always been making that growth happens in a way that respects the community and is responsive.

Think about having the largest economic development project right now in Iowa, and we have not faced any significant issues with respect to communities. And that's how they do business, is effectively investing in large projects while addressing community issues. And that speaks volume to QTS culture and how they serve the communities. And that's probably the...

Alliant Energy and QTS: Powering Growth for Every Customer

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Alliant Energy and QTS: Powering Growth for Every Customer

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are findingedge in conversations you're not hearing.

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.