PJM seeks 15GW for AI data boom

PJM Interconnection is seeking about 15 gigawatts of new power supplies to keep up with a wave of electricity demand from artificial-intelligence data centers. (bloomberg.com) The grid operator said it would pair proposed data centers with new power plants in a special process running from September 2026 through March 2027. PJM runs the wholesale power market for 67 million people across 13 states and the District of Columbia. (bloomberg.com) (pjm.com) PJM’s board laid out that approach on January 16, 2026, as part of a broader plan for “large loads,” its term for data centers and other power-hungry customers. The board also called for an accelerated interconnection track for state-backed generation and a backstop procurement process for short-term reliability needs. (pjm.com) The immediate problem is timing. New data-center demand is showing up faster than new generators and transmission upgrades can be built, so PJM is looking for ways to connect big customers without pushing reliability risks onto the rest of the grid. (pjm.com) PJM said on March 26 that its latest capacity auction for the 2027-2028 delivery year cleared enough resources to serve load but still fell 5.6%, or 6,600 megawatts, short of the installed reserve margin target. The proposed backstop procurement would be paid for by large loads, according to PJM. (pjm.com) The operator is also building rules for a “connect-and-manage” system. Under that framework, new large customers could connect before all new supply and wires are in place, but they would face curtailment orders or have to bring batteries or on-site generation when the grid is tight. (pjm.com 1) (pjm.com 2) The fight over who pays is already spilling into politics and utility regulation. A March 4 White House event produced a voluntary “Ratepayer Protection Pledge” from companies including Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, and Amazon to secure their own power and cover related infrastructure costs, but the pledge does not include an enforcement mechanism. (spotlightpa.org) Consumer and environmental critics say the concern is not theoretical. Spotlight PA, citing PJM’s independent market monitor and a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas estimate, reported that data-center growth is expected to raise generation costs in PJM and could help drive wholesale power prices up sharply over the next five years. (spotlightpa.org) PJM’s own public message has been that this is not a blanket rejection of data centers. Board chair and interim chief executive David Mills said in January the goal was to create “a predictable, transparent path for growth” while “keeping the lights on” and limiting impacts on consumers. (pjm.com) What happens next is procedural but consequential: PJM and its stakeholders are supposed to finish key pieces of the large-load framework by the end of 2026, while the one-time power procurement is meant to cover the gap before slower grid upgrades catch up. (pjm.com)