Can the data centre run its own generation next to the grid connection, and on what terms?
Many AI campuses bridge to the grid with on-site gas turbines, or keep them alongside it. Under the AES Ohio tariff, any parallel generation needs an interconnection agreement first. If it is used to cut contract capacity, the site must keep equipment that sheds load instantly when the generation runs. The Solaris rental gives the equipment lessor a seven-year right of first refusal over any behind-the-meter generation at the customer’s data centre. The Helios lenders took a representation that backup generation serves the data centre only and is never sold.
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What the filed contracts say
Contract
What the filed wording says
AES Ohio data centre tariff
Any generation running in parallel with the grid needs an interconnection agreement before it is connected; emergency backup that does not run in parallel is outside the rule.
AES Ohio data centre tariff
A site that uses its own generation to reduce contract capacity must keep equipment that instantly sheds load equal to that generation.
Solaris turbine rental
The lessor has an exclusive right of first refusal over any behind-the-meter generation for the customer’s data centre, including expansions, for at least seven years.
Galaxy Helios credit agreement
Backup generation serves the data centre only; none of its output is sold or supplied to anyone else.
The filed wording
Customers shall enter into an interconnection agreement between the Company and the Customer in advance of connecting any source of power other than the delivery point specified in the Contract. Emergency or backup generation that is not designed to operate in parallel with the Company’s system is not subject to the additional requirements in this section.
AES Ohio Data Center Tariff (Sheet D23), in the 2027–2029 rate plan settlement, Sheet D23, Customer-Owned Generation and Emergency Conditions · DPL 8-K, Exhibit 10.1
Each extract is quoted from the contract as filed with the SEC, checked against the filed text when it was added; “…” marks words left out. Filers redact commercial terms, so a [***] or [*] is the filer's, not ours. The summaries describe the wording, not how a court would read it, and each contract's defined terms and other clauses can change the effect. General information drawn from public filings. It is not legal advice on any transaction, and using this page does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Views are personal.
InfraCompute Weekly
The week in compute finance, read from the filings.
Deals, terms and the clauses behind them, for the people financing data centres, GPU clouds and the power behind them. By Randeep Bubbra.
