People do not believe big companies when they say "I'll deal with the externalities a little later."

So then does the data center compensate local residents for their higher power bills today? Until the new capacity comes online?

> Your requirements is like demanding nobody can buy a house unless they have pay they entire amount upfront.

No it's like demanding your new neighbors aren't forced to lend you money for your purchase - which is entirely reasonable. If you need money, get it from the bank.

The top-level comment explains it already:

"When you drop a data center into an area, energy prices will spike. Additionally, without that green energy capacity they will cause much more air pollution."

It typically takes 11-12 years for a nuclear plant to get built including planning and construction [1].

Is the idea that we'd build the data centers now, and finish the nuclear plants to power them 11-12 years from now?

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Typical-timeline-of-a-nu...