PG&E Builds Substation in Silicon Valley to Provide Reliable Power to Data Centers, Improve Operating Flexibility in South San Jose

By Mayra Tostado

SAN JOSE — Data is king in Silicon Valley, and a just-completed PG&E substation will ensure reliable power to high-tech data centers and surrounding customers.

PG&E's new Santa Teresa Substation in south San Jose will ensure reliable power to three high-tech data centers and surrounding customers.

Construction was recently completed of the Santa Teresa Substation, which will provide power for three data centers and improve service reliability and operating flexibility in south San Jose.

As innovation accelerates, so does the demand for resources, including energy, to fuel our evolving digital world. In Santa Clara County, the data center market continues expanding and is one of the largest and most important in the United States.

“This growing business is resulting in data centers needing bigger loads of energy, specifically in the South Bay, and we’re proud to help connect these high-tech customers with the power they need while we continue to provide reliable service to the area,” said PG&E Vice President Teresa Alvarado, South Bay & Central Coast Region.

PG&E's substation, distribution, telecom and transmission line project teams worked to complete the project on time to meet customer commitments.

The new substation has increased capacity to meet load demands and became operational on Feb. 1, 2022. It was built on PG&E property at the Edenvale Service Center in San Jose.

Substations step down high-voltage electricity from the transmission system to lower voltage electricity so it can be easily supplied to homes and businesses through PG&E's distribution lines.

“Our substation, distribution, telecom and transmission line project teams worked tirelessly to complete the project safely, within budget, an in time to meet our customer commitments,” said Mamie Yuen, substation senior project manager at PG&E. “It was a great experience to work with so many knowledgeable, creative, and persistent team members who went above and beyond to overcome multiple challenges to build the new Santa Teresa Substation.”

Project costs and risks were shared between PG&E and the data centers.  If load projections are accurate, then revenues from new purchases of electricity will help pay for the substation facilities and benefit ratepayers over time.  In turn, the data centers pre-payments will be refunded commensurate with these revenues.

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