PJM data center colocation plan takes fire from Vistra, data center group, others

“Even a customer that brings sufficient co-located generation to meet its load cannot avoid curtailment risk,” the Data Center Coalition told the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. “It is unclear why a customer would pursue this pathway at all.”

By Ethan Howland • March 27, 2026

Winter Storm Fern highlighted need for expanded interregional transmission, Senate hears

Some regions saw prices of hundreds of dollars per megawatt-hour, while neighboring areas experienced negative power prices. “There was power not being used at all because the transmission was not available,” said Liza Reed of the Niskanen Center think tank.

By Robert Walton • March 27, 2026

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 Stories from Utility Dive

Power demand is rising amid dramatic shifts in federal energy policy, but technology and markets continue to push the grid toward cleaner, more distributed resources. 

By Utility Dive staff

50 GW of data centers online at end of 2025, with MISO seeing strongest growth: FERC

ERCOT, the Southwest Power Pool and the Southeast also saw rapid growth, but not as much as the 43% annual growth in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator region since 2020, FERC said.

By Ethan Howland • March 26, 2026

Pepco Holdings CEO talks rising demand, affordability and PJM market reforms

Adding power supplies in PJM — including utility-owned generation — is one way to address affordability challenges, says Pepco Holdings CEO Tyler Anthony.

By Ethan Howland • March 25, 2026

DOE extends emergency operations at 2 Indiana coal plants

Since December the plants “have proven critical” to operations in the Midcontinent ISO region, DOE said. Sierra Club says they cost consumers almost $200,000 per day.

By Robert Walton • March 24, 2026

NextEra to develop 9.5 GW of gas in Texas, Pennsylvania

The projects are part of a $550 billion deal with Japan that also includes 3 GW of nuclear in Tennessee and Alabama and 9.2 GW of gas generation in Ohio, federal officials say.

By Diana DiGangi • March 24, 2026

5-year waits and rising costs: How demand is redefining the gas turbine market

Lengthy lead times are likely to continue for now, and reliability in that environment depends on early, informed decisions, writes Electric Power Research Institute Senior Program Manager Bobby Noble.

By Bobby Noble • March 23, 2026

‘Emergencies’ requiring coal plants to stay open need not be imminent, DOE tells court

States, environmental groups and others have sued the U.S. Department of Energy over its repeated emergency orders to run the J.H. Campbell plant in West Olive, Michigan, saying it failed to show the emergency need.

By Ethan Howland • March 23, 2026

DOE taps SoftBank arm to develop 9.2 GW of gas generation in Ohio

SB Energy, a subsidiary of Japan’s SoftBank Group, is also investing $4.2 billion with AEP Ohio to upgrade and build new transmission lines in Southern Ohio.

By Robert Walton • March 20, 2026

Electric sector gas use fell 3% in 2025, partly on solar, battery rise: EIA

Consumption rose for all other sectors, however, making 2025 a record year for U.S. gas consumption.

By Diana DiGangi • March 19, 2026

DOE emergency orders for fossil plants complicate utility planning, experts say

Lawyers and officials are divided on whether the “stay-open” orders threaten states’ ability to regulate their own energy systems. Environmental groups put the cost to ratepayers in the hundreds of millions, and growing.

By Brian Martucci • March 19, 2026

LS Power strikes deal to buy 4.4 GW in PJM from Constellation

The transaction is the latest in a series of gas-fired power plant sales in the PJM Interconnection market, where growing demand for electricity is cutting into available supply.

By Ethan Howland • March 19, 2026

To strengthen power reliability in extreme weather, diversify grid resources

More expensive, less reliable power need not be our unavoidable fate, writes NextGen Energy CEO Kimberly Johnston.

By Kimberly Johnston • March 18, 2026

Democratic House bill aims to overturn Trump electricity policies

The bill, backed by 122 House members, would reinstate clean energy tax credits and grants while aiming to speed grid interconnection to an expanded transmission system.

By Ethan Howland • March 18, 2026

13 DOE emergency orders have cost Americans $235M, Sierra Club says

The Energy Department's 90-day orders to keep six retiring fossil-fueled power plants online are adding millions to customer utility bills, according to the Sierra Club.

By Robert Walton • March 18, 2026

FERC approves SPP merger of interconnection, transmission planning

“This proposal will get transmission built smarter and connect new generation faster,” said David Rosner, a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

By Ethan Howland • March 17, 2026

Mass. governor orders state to pursue 15 GW of resources, including storage, VPPs

The executive order also calls for a review of existing gas and oil storage capacity and utilization, including how the Everett LNG import terminal helps meet the region’s energy needs.

By Robert Walton • March 17, 2026

What technology, policy and energy-finance leaders all agree on

Risk, return and credible deployment pathways are key factors that infrastructure investors evaluate. Solar and storage meet these requirements, writes Brendan Bell of Aligned Climate Capital. 

By Brendan Bell • March 16, 2026

Data center demand spike could drive 79% ERCOT price hike in 2027: EIA

In a high-demand scenario, data centers could drive 2025-2027 annual load growth 15% higher in Texas and 4.7% higher in PJM Interconnection, the Energy Information Administration said.

By Robert Walton • March 16, 2026

Atlas Energy to buy $840M in power assets from Caterpillar

The company is seeking to build out private grid infrastructure to meet surging electrical demand from data centers and manufacturers’ reshoring efforts.

By Nathan Owens • March 13, 2026

IOUs work to interconnect 39 GW of data center, manufacturing load: EEI

Duke Energy, Northern Indiana Public Service and Xcel Energy are among the utilities with major data center projects in their service territories, the Edison Electric Institute told federal regulators.

By Ethan Howland • March 13, 2026

‘Clear warning signs’ as PJM wholesale power costs jump 54% in one year

Also, PJM’s last two base capacity auctions show a growing shortfall compared to its reserve margin targets, according to the grid operator’s market monitor. Prices will continue rising until large data center loads are addressed, it said.

By Ethan Howland • Updated March 14, 2026

America’s power shortage is a market failure

Early buildout of the U.S. rail system was fragmented, with local projects often failing to connect regions. Grid developers today should pay heed, writes Maria Martinez of the Clean Economy Project.

By Maria Martinez • March 12, 2026

Germany’s RWE plans nearly $20B US investment, including gas peakers

RWE had put U.S. investment decisions on hold, in part due to tariff uncertainty, but officials credit the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year with jump-starting its plans to build fossil plants.

By Robert Walton • March 12, 2026

NERC overstates reliability risks in long-term assessment: Grid Strategies

The North American Electric Reliability Corp.’s analysis uses low generation and interregional power flow assumptions but a high demand forecast, including from data centers, the consulting firm said.

By Ethan Howland • Updated March 11, 2026