NextEra Buys Dominion: Get Ready to Pay More for AI That Will Replace You Anyway
Another day, another megacorp merger—this time, it's your electric bill going brrr as energy oligarchs feast on the AI boom.
So, NextEra, one of those soulless energy behemoths, is gobbling up Dominion Energy for a cool $67 billion. Because why not? We're living in the age of unchecked corporate consolidation, folks. This deal means they're gonna be the biggest regulated utility in the US, serving 10 million suckers... I mean, customers.
What's driving this power grab? You guessed it: AI. All those fancy chatbots and image generators need data centers the size of small countries, and those data centers need a LOT of juice. So, while you're struggling to pay your electric bill, Silicon Valley elites are busy building Skynet.
They're promising $2.25 billion in 'bill credits' over two years. That's like offering you a band-aid after they've already amputated your leg. It's chump change compared to the long-term price hikes you can expect once these guys have a near-monopoly on the grid.
The CEO of NextEra, John Ketchum, is crying about how 'electricity demand is rising faster than it has in decades.' Yeah, no kidding, John. Maybe you should talk to the guys building these energy-hogging AI monstrosities. Or maybe, just maybe, you're loving every minute of it, since it means even fatter profits for you and your cronies.
Speaking of fat profits, Ketchum was the third-highest-paid CEO in the US last year, raking in a sweet $24 million. That's $24 million fueled by your hard-earned cash, going straight into the pockets of a guy who's now about to make even MORE money by jacking up your rates.
And don't even get me started on the environmental impact. These data centers are sucking up groundwater and polluting the environment, and nobody seems to care. Meanwhile, you're being lectured about your carbon footprint for driving a gas-powered car.
What's the solution? Public power? Don't even think about it. The utility industry is already busy funding front groups to crush any attempts at municipalization. They'll smear you, they'll lie about you, they'll do whatever it takes to protect their precious monopoly.
This merger is just another sign that we're living in a rigged system. The rich get richer, the powerful get more powerful, and the rest of us get stuck with the bill. So, buckle up, buttercups. It's gonna be a bumpy ride.
Enjoy paying more for electricity, peasants. Your overlords need to feed the AI gods.
