Socrates South Shows the Benefits of Consumer-Regulated Electricity

Travis Fisher and Michael Abi-Nader

Last week, Williams—a natural gas company—hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a power plant called Socrates South that just began operating in New Albany, Ohio. Notably, this natural gas plant is fully disconnected from the public power grid, supplying the data centers of a Meta affiliate, Sidecat, without affecting anyone else’s electricity. 

Speed to Power

The New Albany site is part of a growing trend of data centers acquiring electric service more rapidly than traditional timelines of six, eight, or even ten years. The Socrates South plant came online in just 17 months, with the first filings made with the Ohio Power Siting Board in March of 2025. 

This is a big victory for the local community, the developer Williams, and their customer Sidecat, but also the Ohio lawmakers behind the legislation that made it possible: last year’s HB 15. That bill provided the regulatory certainty that a fully off-grid generation plant could avoid the long queue for grid connection and bring “speed to power” to customers who don’t want to wait. It’s aligned with a framework we’ve been advocating, called consumer-regulated electricity (CRE), which creates space for new, privately financed electric utilities to supply non-residential customers, such as data centers, without interconnecting with the existing grid.

Breaking down the 17-month timeline further exposes the benefits of this route. The Ohio Power Siting Board filings show that the construction period lasted about 14 months, leaving the remaining 3 months for permitting. Meanwhile, the typical permitting timeline for natural gas projects in grid operator PJM is 7.4 years. No natural gas-fired power plant over 100 MW that entered the queue since 2018 has come online as of early 2026. Socrates South is currently delivering 200 MW in less than two years by using a parallel path.

Benefits without Burdens

The economic growth side of the debate has pulled together an interesting coalition, and job growth is a compelling angle. The Socrates South plant created more than 6,300 construction jobs and paid $640 million in wages and benefits. It’s no wonder that many labor unions, especially the building trades, are strongly supportive of data centers. In a country filled with stagnating and declining small towns, data centers are providing the first new industry and jobs in decades. The tax revenue is especially significant, too. During construction, the plant generated $53 million in state and local tax revenue, and it, along with the data centers, will continue to generate revenue as long as they operate. Thanks to legislation including HB 15 and the off-grid route, these benefits are being enjoyed today, not a decade from now.

Another major benefit of the off-grid route is consumer protection—insulating residential and commercial consumers from electricity rate increases by nearby data centers. While evidence that data centers raise rates is mixed and inconclusive, it is undeniable that electricity demand is rising at speeds not seen before in this century, and electricity supply is struggling to keep up. Any “introduction to economics” class will teach that this trend will increase prices.

CRE allows communities to reap benefits without taking on huge risks. In the grid-connected model, data centers tap into the same grid that supplies all other customers. Some costs, such as transmission upgrades, are socialized by default and will spill over to residential ratepayers. In the off-grid model, all costs associated with generating and delivering electricity are borne by developers, investors, and data center owners such as Meta and Sidecat. Local communities receive benefits like new jobs and tax revenue from both models, but off-grid avoids potential costs and provides the benefits faster.

Optionality Is Key

Off-grid networks will not be the right solution for every new industrial customer, and it does not eliminate the need for environmental, safety, or local permitting. Its key advantage is that it aligns costs with responsibility and provides a new option. A hyperscaler that wants to expand quickly can finance the generation, fuel infrastructure, private wires, and reliability arrangements needed to serve its facilities. When private companies pay these costs themselves, communities can gain new investment and jobs without subsidizing additional electricity demand.

Socrates South demonstrates that legislation such as HB 15, which facilitates consumer-regulated electricity and off-grid generation, can enable major projects. State lawmakers around the country should consider similar legislation for their own states as a response to hyperscalers seeking to rapidly build new data centers and residents concerned about electricity rates. The American Legislative Exchange Council’s model bill provides a template for states seeking to establish this framework. In the spirit of optionality, state lawmakers can tailor this model bill to their specific needs. 

Conclusion

Socrates South is more than a new power plant. It shows that electricity customers don’t have to wait several years for a grid connection and that states can welcome economic development without shifting costs onto households. Ohio’s HB 15 gave Williams and Meta a clear path to finance and build a private, islanded system, while Ohio gained jobs, wages, and tax revenue. Consumer-regulated electricity is a policy tool that any state could use to pursue the same balance. State policymakers no longer have to choose between welcoming new industry and protecting existing ratepayers.

Source: https://www.cato.org/blog/socrates-south-shows-benefits-consumer-regulated-electricity