If the data is this clear, why are so many business leaders still getting energy wrong? In this episode, Dr. Joshua Rhodes, research scientist at the University of Texas at Austin, nonresident fellow at Columbia University&#x27;s Center on Global Energy Policy, and CTO of IdeaSmiths, brings the kind of clarity that only comes from building the most detailed independent models of the ERCOT grid in existence. Joshua called the data center interconnection queue a bubble in 2025, when it stood at 220 gigawatts. It&#x27;s now at 435, and 90% of it is data centers trying to connect to a grid that has never delivered more than 85.5 gigawatts at one time. Listen in as Joshua explains why that bubble is already pushing transformer costs up 200% and wire costs up 180%, why those infrastructure bills will land on ratepayers for decades, and why renewables have quietly saved Texans tens of billions in electricity costs. He also breaks down the counterintuitive relationship between oil prices, natural gas supply, and your electricity bill, and makes the case for why transmission, not generation, is the piece of the energy puzzle that most executives aren&#x27;t even asking about yet. What You’ll Learn in Today’s Episode: Why the ERCOT data center queue is a bubble. How infrastructure inflation is driving up energy rates. Why renewables act as a hedge against fuel price volatility. How oil prices can actually lower natural gas costs. The three parts of the grid and which one matters most. Why transmission is the hardest piece to build. How distributed batteries are reshaping grid dynamics. Why data centers need to become smarter energy consumers. The real cost of blocking renewables in Texas. What business leaders are missing about the energy transition. Resources in Today&#x27;s Episode: Joshua Rhodes: LinkedIn The Energy Capital Podcast IdeaSmiths Gareth Evans: LinkedIn Dan Roberts: LinkedIn VECKTA: News You can view a video of the conversation on VECKTA&#x27;s website here: https://tinyurl.com/rmwhk4p9

Ep 115: Joshua Rhodes on the ERCOT Data Center Bubble, Rate Pressure, and What Business Leaders Are Missing

Renewable Rides

# Full Transcript

**Podcast:** Renewable Rides

## Participants

- **Gareth Evans** (VECKTA)
- **Dan Roberts** (VECKTA)
- **Joshua Rhodes** (IDEASmiths (IdeaSmiths))

## Transcript

You could actually increase the local solar generation from an entire subdivision like 10 or 15% by just sometimes just rotating the whole thing before you do anything, right? Because after you put in roads, you're not tearing them up, you're not doing anything like that. But if you take that consideration all the way to the very, very big first planning stages, you can get a whole lot more energy out of the same amount of homes, the same amount of infrastructure, the same amount of everything because you're just pre-planning for that

that type of thing. Hey, Power People! Welcome to Renewable Rides. I'm Gareth Evans. And I'm Dan Roberts. We're the founding team of VECKTA, a platform and marketplace streamlining how companies buy on-site energy.

In each episode, we'll uncover the latest trends, challenges, and triumphs relating to the energy transition through the experiences of our team and our inspiring guests. Our goal is to help companies take action to create a resilient, profitable, sustainable, and thriving energy future. Let's go!

Welcome back. Today we've got a fascinating guest who has spent his career studying the Texas Grid in more detail than almost anyone outside of ERCOT itself. Dr. Joshua Rhodes is a research scientist at the University of Texas at Austin. He's a non-resident fellow at the Columbia University Center on Global Energy Policy and the CTO and co-founder of Ideasmiths.

His firm has built some of the most detailed independent models of the ERCOT grid in existence. And he also hosts his own podcast on Texas energy and sits on the city of Austin's Electric Utility Commission. He has written more than 125 publications on energy systems and is one of the few people who can tell you what the grid is actually doing, what the data says about where it is going, and what businesses should be doing about it. Joshua Rhodes, welcome to Renewable Rides.

Joshua Rhodes, welcome to Renewable Rides. Super excited to have you. Really to dig in on all things Texas energy and the dynamic world that we're all living in. Before we get into some of those details, we always love to learn a little bit about the guests that are on the show. So both personally and professionally, what are you passionate about?

Yeah, I mean, really the things that really kind of make me tick are, I just, I've always been interested in efficiency, you know, conservation, big outdoors guy. I love mountain biking, backpacking, hiking, all of those kinds of things. And, but also, you know, recognize the world runs on, the world runs on energy.

And so I want to try to get people the energy that they need to like, you know, maximize their lives without kind of messing up, you know, the reason that, you know, some of the reasons that we're alive, you know, to be out there and, you kno...

Ep 115: Joshua Rhodes on the ERCOT Data Center Bubble, Rate Pressure, and What Business Leaders Are Missing

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

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

Ep 115: Joshua Rhodes on the ERCOT Data Center Bubble, Rate Pressure, and What Business Leaders Are Missing

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.