IRA clean energy gains mostly on track despite OBBBA, says MIT study

74% of all new clean electricity capacity that would have been added under the Inflation Reduction Act will be preserved despite Trump administration policy changes, the report estimates, including 82% of utility-scale solar generation.

By Diana DiGangi • July 8, 2026

New Jersey increases transmission oversight in ‘affordability’ push

New Jersey’s governor signed bills that aim to cut transmission owners’ return on equity, establish data center tariffs and require state approval for “supplementary” transmission projects.

By Ethan Howland • July 8, 2026

Explore the Trendline➔

Data Centers and the US Grid

A look at how data centers are affecting the U.S. grid today and how new technologies and rate structures could affect that trajectory in the years to come.

By Utility Dive staff

Exelon, FirstEnergy utilities’ RTO adder targeted by Maryland in FERC complaint

Maryland state agencies asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to end an extra 0.5% return the transmission owners earn for being PJM Interconnection members.

By Ethan Howland • July 7, 2026

States are taking action on energy affordability as issue grows: report

U.S. regulators and lawmakers have taken more than 350 energy affordability actions so far this year, but the problem is persistent, say researchers from the North Carolina Clean Energy Technology Center.

By Robert Walton • July 7, 2026

FERC denies waiver for $2B gas-fired plant in PJM’s fast-track review

Giving Advanced Power Services a waiver from the PJM Interconnection’s rules could harm other project developers, the agency said.

By Ethan Howland • July 6, 2026

DOE wants to ‘permanently end’ appliance efficiency requirements

A proposed rule would create an “obstacle course of restrictions” bogging down the Department of Energy’s appliance efficiency program, a consumer advocate said.

By Robert Walton • Updated July 2, 2026

PJM stakeholders advance data center backstop procurement plan

The PJM Interconnection’s board expects to file a proposal for meeting its near-term power supply needs with federal regulators this month, with a goal of holding the backstop auction in September.

By Ethan Howland • July 2, 2026

Why the true cost of new gas plants is much higher than the sticker price

When reviewing gas-fired power plant proposals, regulators often fail to consider pipeline, fuel and storage costs, which can add about 30% to a project’s total cost, GridLab’s Cassady Craighill writes.

By Cassady Craighill • July 2, 2026

EPA’s tougher soot standard upheld in court

The D.C. Circuit rejected a challenge from states and industry groups, leaving the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for fine particulate matter, including from power plants, in place as litigation over implementation continues.

By Robyn Griggs Lawrence • July 1, 2026

New Jersey lawmakers send data center tariff bill to governor

The bill applies to new and existing data centers of at least 50 MW and aims to shield other ratepayers from costs associated with the AI boom.

By Meris Lutz • July 1, 2026

California delays emissions reporting deadline by 3 months

The California Air Resources Board said it will delay the compliance deadline for California’s SB 253 — the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act — and propose “limited changes.”

By Lamar Johnson • June 30, 2026

Sen. King urges FERC to reject $67B NextEra-Dominion merger

NextEra Energy’s efforts to kill the New England Clean Energy Connect transmission project is a sign of how the combined utility could stifle competition and harm consumers, the Maine senator said.

By Ethan Howland • June 30, 2026

Virginia defines agrivoltaics, expanding opportunities for solar

Agrivoltaic projects must “ensure flexibility for farmers to adapt to market conditions and support operational needs,” according to the law.

By Diana DiGangi • June 29, 2026

PJM opposes waiver for $2B gas-fired plant in fast-track interconnection review

Gas turbine backlogs prompted Advanced Power Services to seek changes to its project in PJM’s fast-track Reliability Resource Initiative interconnection review, but the grid operator said granting such a waiver would be unfair to other developers.

By Ethan Howland • Updated June 30, 2026

Data centers are ready to negotiate flexibility for speed

Hyperscalers want their data centers online and utilities want to provide interconnections, but experts say both are still looking for common operating guidelines.

By Herman K. Trabish • June 26, 2026

California to sue Trump administration over offshore wind buybacks

The lease cancellations “are causing ongoing harm” to California, which has “invested more than $100 million to support the development of wind energy,” the state’s attorney general said.

By Diana DiGangi • June 25, 2026

DOE emergency orders are incurring additional costs. What are the benefits?

Some of the generating units have operated during tight grid conditions and may have contributed to reliability. Keeping them running costs about $550 million a year, the Sierra Club says.

By Ethan Howland • June 25, 2026

A month into EDAM, the data already shows two very different grids

The new Western day-ahead market is starting to show where resource mixes, operating constraints and carbon policies create fundamentally different economic outcomes.

By Tapas Peshin • June 25, 2026

DOE offers $17.5B in loans to help build 10 large nuclear reactors

Dominion Energy, DTE Energy, WEC Energy Group, Public Service Enterprise Group and Entergy Corp. are among the utilities positioned to benefit, according to Capstone.

By Robert Walton • June 24, 2026

Grid operators making ‘significant progress’ on generator interconnection reform: AEU

However, there isn’t yet evidence that interconnection requests are being processed more quickly, according to Advanced Energy United.

By Ethan Howland • June 24, 2026

Power plants under DOE emergency orders are producing way less energy than before

The Department of Energy ordered six power plants to delay their retirements last year. Two of them produced zero electricity in the first quarter in 2026, and another one is now offline for repairs.

By Ethan Howland • June 23, 2026

GETs, demand response can ease near-term data center electricity price pressure: report

Data centers could use up to 15% of all U.S. electricity by 2030, up from 5% in 2024, Berkeley Lab researchers said in a separate analysis.

By Ethan Howland • June 23, 2026

Texas, facing 438 GW queue, approves initial large-load interconnection process

The first projects to navigate the process will be called “Batch Zero." The Electric Reliability Council of Texas says its large-load queue is almost 90% data centers.

By Robert Walton • June 22, 2026

6 takeaways from FERC’s data center interconnection decision

If RTOs fail to address large-load concerns identified by FERC, the agency will dictate the solutions, per FERC’s David LaCerte. “I say this not as a threat, but as a statement of duty,” he said.

By Ethan Howland • June 22, 2026

How AI fits in the energy development workflow

Energy's AI adoption is low. The developers pulling ahead know which workflows to automate.

By Kyle Baranko, Head of Product • June 22, 2026