474 GW of Requests on an 85 GW Grid: Reading ERCOT's Data Center Queue Without the Hype

ERCOT's update to the Texas Senate on July 29 contained a number that will be quoted for months: approximately 474 GW of large loads seeking interconnection to the grid, about 90% of them data centers, as of June 2026. For context, ERCOT's all-time peak demand record is 85,508 MW, set on August 10, 2023. The queue of proposed new load is more than five times the largest amount of electricity Texas has ever used at one moment.

In its April update to the legislature, ERCOT reported about 410 GW of large load requests as of March 26, 2026, with about 87% from data centers. Texas has long attracted cryptocurrency mining, industrial electrification and hydrogen proposals, which were prominent in earlier versions of the large load queue. As of June 30, 2026, ERCOT had 1,949 active generation interconnection requests totaling 462,785 MW. At first glance the two queues look balanced, about 463 GW of supply against 474 GW of demand.

Under the previous approach, ERCOT and the transmission service providers studied large load requests one at a time. As requests multiplied, each study was quickly made obsolete by the next, because the assumptions about what else would connect kept changing. Projects wanting to be part of Batch Zero, the first group, had to submit required technical studies and documentation by July 10, 2026. The July 29 presentation gives the first view of how much of the queue clears that initial screen.

About 205 GW of large load is eligible for inclusion in Batch Zero based on existing studies, with final determinations due by August 7. The financial security requirement is the most direct tool for narrowing the gap between requests and reality. Texas has moved faster than most states to set rules for large loads. The 474 GW figure is best understood as a measure of interest rather than a forecast.