Tag

Grid Reliability

All articles tagged with #grid reliability

energy-policy9 days ago•19 min saved

FERC Halts PJM Data Center Auction Over Cost Allocation Flaws

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has partially rejected PJM Interconnection’s plan for a backstop power auction, delaying the process intended to address capacity shortfalls driven by data center demand. FERC Chairman Laura Swett criticized the proposal as a 'mess' filed at the last minute, citing issues with cost allocation and collateral requirements. PJM has suspended its planned September 30 start date to revise the plan, while states face pressure to implement local rules for large loads.

via Utility Dive|

#data-centers #energy-policy #energy-regulation

energy-and-infrastructure13 days ago•18 min saved

DOE Awards $1.9B to 31 Projects for Rapid Grid Upgrades

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded $1.9 billion in funding to 31 utility projects under its SPARK program, aiming to add 23 GW of transmission capacity without new construction. By upgrading existing lines with advanced technologies, the initiative seeks to reduce congestion and lower consumer electricity bills within record timeframes.

via Utility Dive|

#advanced-transmission-tech #doe-spark-program #energy-and-infrastructure

energy26 days ago•15 min saved

Smallest U.S. reactor restart draws the biggest federal check

DOE approved up to $1.9 billion in loans for restarting Duane Arnold, a 615 MW boiling-water reactor near Palo, Iowa—the smallest restart yet the most expensive per kilowatt due to the cooling towers, transformer, and transmission lines being removed—highlighting the complexities and potential bill for grid reliability and ratepayers, with licensing actions due by 2028 and a target to be back on the grid by early 2029.

via Autonocion.com|

#cost-per-kilowatt #doe-loan #duane-arnold

energy-policy1 month ago•20 min saved

Trump grid order could stall US battery storage projects, BloombergNEF warns

BloombergNEF says President Trump’s Aug. 26 executive order blocking certain foreign-made bulk power equipment—batteries, inverters, transformers—from the grid could delay or cancel many grid-scale storage deployments as developers seek alternatives and await guidance. The order, plus Treasury FEOC rules, heightens supply-chain risk and underscores the need for contract risk assessment, asset mapping, and supplier diversification, with some projects potentially scrapped while domestic manufacturing capacity expands in the coming years.

via Utility Dive|

#bloombergnef #energy-policy #energy-storage

energy1 month ago•19 min saved

PJM eyes ride-through rules for data centers after 3.8 GW outage

After roughly 3,800 MW of data-center load tripped offline in northern Virginia on July 22—the largest PJM event—PJM is weighing ride-through standards and other reliability rules for 'computational loads' like data centers and crypto-mining facilities. The disturbance caused voltage and frequency swings; PJM recovered the balancing error in nine minutes (versus the 30-minute NERC target) and deployed reactive power. Similar 1,500 MW transfers occurred in Dominion's zone in 2024 and 2025. With NERC moving to set standards for computational loads and FERC directing finalization of criteria by year-end and a plan by March, PJM says these requirements should be in place before new loads come online.

via Utility Dive|

#crypto-mining #data-centers #energy

energy2 months ago•20 min saved

Heat Waves and AI Data Centers Push U.S. Power Grids Toward a Tipping Point

Heat waves across the US are straining electricity grids as households crank up AC and a data-center boom maintains around‑the‑clock power demand. Regional operators like PJM, MISO, and SPP have issued emergency alerts amid record July demand (about 168 GW) and aging transmission gear, with humidity and climate change extending peak loads into the evening. While Texas adds renewables and avoids an energy emergency, capacity auctions have fallen short and major investments in generation and transmission—potentially in the trillions—are needed to shore up reliability for the next decade and beyond.

via Yahoo Finance|

#data-centers #energy #grid-reliability

energy3 months ago•185 min saved

DOE taps backup generators to ease grid strain during heat wave

As a brutal heat wave drives air-conditioning use, Energy Secretary directs mid-Atlantic data centers served by PJM to run on backup generators instead of drawing power from the grid, freeing capacity for residents. DOE estimates more than 35 GW of available backup generation nationwide; New York City is not part of PJM. While this can relieve grid stress, it raises emissions and air-quality concerns, and the PJM region has fewer large batteries to store peak energy.

via CNN|

#backup-generators #data-centers #energy

energy-and-climate3 months ago•8 min saved

Heat wave pressures grid as Virginia data centers lean on diesel backups

Extreme heat pushes electric demand on the mid-Atlantic grid, forcing Virginia’s data-center boom to rely on backup diesel generators and prompting emissions and health concerns as regulators weigh using standby power to prevent outages.

via Politico|

#data-centers #diesel-generators #energy-and-climate

energy3 months ago•1 min saved

DOE Names Kavulla to Lead the Bonneville Power Administration

The U.S. Department of Energy announced Travis Kavulla as Administrator and CEO of the Bonneville Power Administration, tasking him with delivering affordable, reliable, and secure power to the Pacific Northwest; Under Secretary Kyle Haustveit will swear him in at BPA's Portland, Oregon headquarters on June 29.

via Department of Energy (.gov)|

#bonneville-power-administration #doe #energy

technology4 months ago•33 min saved

Texas Data-Center Boom Tests Grid, Water and Local Attitudes

Texas is seeing a surge of planned data centers that could demand massive electricity and water, prompting ERCOT to batch-review proposals and locals to push for protections against higher bills, noise, and water stress as the state aims to become a leading AI infrastructure hub.

via The Texas Tribune|

#data-centers #ercot #grid-reliability

energy4 months ago•15 min saved

FERC Chair Warns PJM’s Size Could Threaten Grid Reliability

FERC Chair Laura Swett warned at PJM’s annual meeting that the PJM Interconnection may be ‘too big to function’ due to an unacceptable governance structure and a sprawling footprint amid rising capacity needs driven by data centers, prompting a plan for a July conference to address governance fixes while PJM continues to add generation to meet demand.

via Utility Dive|

#data-centers #energy #ferc

energy5 months ago•15 min saved

PJM maps three pathways to reshape its capacity market

PJM Interconnection proposed three broad frameworks to reform its markets to ensure adequate future power supplies: Path A would stabilize the capacity market with long-term contracts, Path B would formalize reliability differentiation across customer classes or regions, and Path C would pivot toward an energy-and-ancillary-services market with capacity acting as a backstop. Stakeholders will discuss these options through 2026 to build regional consensus, with a multi-track rollout possible (A in 2026–2029, B 2027–2030, C 2028+). Analysts expect reforms before the May 2027 capacity auction, amid pressures from rising load (notably data centers) and regulatory price caps.

via Utility Dive|

#capacity-market #data-centers #energy

grid-reliability5 months ago•15 min saved

NERC Elevates Alert, Demands Seven Measures to Stabilize Data-Center Loads

NERC has issued a rare Level 3 alert warning that data centers can cause abrupt load losses and oscillations that threaten the power grid, ordering seven concrete actions for transmission planners/operators and balancing authorities. Required steps include collecting and sharing detailed computational-load data, updating facility interconnection requirements, revising protection and stability studies, establishing a commissioning/testing process, and installing dynamic fault recorders, with entities due to acknowledge by May 11 and respond by Aug 3. The move highlights growing data-center demand as a key reliability risk amid rising summer peak loads."

via Utility Dive|

#computational-loads #data-centers #grid-reliability

politics7 months ago•4 min saved

Trump Unveils Ratepayer Protection Pledge to Curb Data-Center Power Costs

President Trump announced the Ratepayer Protection Pledge, drawing major AI and hyperscale companies (Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, xAI) to commit to building or funding new generation resources and necessary power-delivery upgrades for data centers, with separate rate structures so American households aren’t on the hook for those costs or for electricity they don’t use. The pledge also calls for coordination with grid operators to improve reliability, workforce development in host communities, and broader steps to lower energy prices while expanding domestic energy capacity and grid resilience as part of a wider energy agenda.

via The White House (.gov)|

#data-centers #energy-affordability #grid-reliability

policy8 months ago•10 min saved

White House seeks voluntary AI data-center pact to blunt rising power bills

The White House is circulating a draft voluntary compact with major AI data-center developers to curb energy, water and grid impacts from rapid AI infrastructure growth, requiring funding for new power generation and transmission, long-term electricity contracts, and regulatory cooperation to prevent higher household electricity prices; the pact is not final and participants are unclear, but it follows similar commitments from Microsoft and others as the administration seeks to shape data-center expansion without new regulation ahead of the midterms.

via Politico|

#ai #data-centers #energy-prices