Getting your
Trinity Audioplayer ready...SAN JOSE — PG&E has doubled the size of one of its San Jose substations, an electricity hub that’s poised to expand even more to meet the tech industry’s hunger for energy.
The utility titan’s Santa Teresa Substation is the site of the recently completed expansion and of anticipated future growth, according to PG&E.
The total capacity of the South San Jose substation is now 80 megawatts following the expansion that added 40 megawatts of capacity, PG&E spokesperson Stephanie Magallon said. The station is at 6402 Santa Teresa Blvd.
Oakland-based PG&E has launched efforts on multiple fronts to expand its electricity grid to meet widening demand by tech companies and data center operators as computer processing needs intensify during the artificial intelligence revolution.
In addition to PG&E’s endeavors, companies such as LS Power are adding significant new energy infrastructure in San Jose and the East Bay.
The expansion capabilities of PG&E’s Santa Teresa Substation are far from bumping up against a capacity ceiling, according to the company.
“We made it scalable so we can easily add equipment to the substation to support additional load or other customers,” Magallon said.
The substation’s capacity was doubled to meet a request for an additional load of 40 megawatts requested by Equinix, a global operator of data centers and digital infrastructure hubs, according to Magallon.
“The expansion of the Santa Teresa Substation is significant because substations are the key connection points for new energy infrastructure,” said Bob Staedler, principal executive with Silicon Valley Synergy, a land-use consultancy.
The substation could do more than provide more electricity in the area, Staedler said.
“While it will support Equinix’s data center development, it should also be viewed as a valuable resource for future battery storage interconnections,” Staedler said. “PG&E has an opportunity to demonstrate continued environmental leadership by making Santa Teresa a preferred location for battery storage projects.”
As part of the just-completed PG&E project, the utility installed a new 45 mega-volt ampere transformer and two 21 kilovolt circuits at the power complex.
“There are plans to further expand the Santa Teresa substation in the next three years to help us meet San Jose’s growing energy needs,” Magallon said.
The next phase would include installing a new 75 mega-volt ampere transformer, she added.
“The Santa Teresa substation came online in 2022, making it a relatively new facility that was designed with future growth in mind,” Magallon said. “Once the third transformer is installed, it will be fully built out.”