Good morning. Electricity bills don’t always reveal where our precious dollars and cents are going—so our own Matt Chester had AI do the explaining. He vibe-coded a nifty app that gives consumers the rundown behind each charge. Want to break down your own costs? Check out Matt’s full analysis here. (Rest assured, he already apologized for the data center capacity it took to cook up.)
P.S. We recently ran a temperature check on the NextEra-Dominion deal: What’s your POV on “gen-tailing”? 41% of Daily readers said it’s a mistake, 33% say it makes sense right now, and the rest of you had a different take. 🤔
— Molly, Alex, and the Energy Central editorial team
Disconnected network data is slowing utilities down. Learn how leading teams unify GIS, connect field to office, and improve speed and accuracy with this practical white paper—tap into the insights here
This summer, a record-breaking 58 GW of new resources will fortify the North American grid—if all goes to plan. (NERC)
That’s over 3X the growth heading into last summer. The difference this year: a “substantial influx” of solar, batteries, and new natural gas-fired generators.
Yes, but: Early summer heat, speedy large-load growth, and low renewable output could still test regional operating limits. NPCC-New England, for example, faces tighter operating reserves due to falling firm import commitments.
Another but: Ongoing data center interconnection delays make precise demand forecasting tough…prompting NERC to explicitly warn of sudden "computational load disconnects.”
PJM is fast-tracking its emergency backstop auction to September. (Utility Dive)
The context: To serve new large loads by summer 2029, PJM is rushing to close capacity gaps. The operator originally scheduled a one-time auction for next March—but the Trump admin and regional governors had demanded a September kickoff. Last month, FERC Chair Laura Swett said she was “perplexed” by PJM’s distant deadline.
The catch: PJM’s board is urging member states to quickly craft rules to protect residential ratepayers from the auction’s fallout. But it’s unclear how those procurement costs can be isolated to hyperscalers.
ISO-NE’s latest 10-year forecast has included customer-sited storage for the first time. But it’s a gamble: As the operator transitions to a winter-peaking grid in the 2030s, these aggregated behind-the-meter batteries could discharge early and “miss” daily peaks.
Meanwhile: Enbridge is mounting a second attempt to clear regional fuel bottlenecks with “Project Beacon”—a proposed 10% capacity expansion of its Algonquin Gas Transmission line by late 2030. This rerun of a failed 2023 attempt enters a friendlier, ratepayer-fatigued political landscape.
Rate cases are changing. Explore why utilities are losing time and capital — and how top teams are responding
Last quarter, PJM paid a record $1B to cash-strapped power plants. (Reuters)
The bitter cold sent fuel costs skyrocketing, but plants had to keep on running—a huge financial hit ensued. In January, spot gas prices reached “historic” levels in the Eastern US: Many hubs traded over $100/mmBtu (compared with an average of <$8 that month).
That’s why PJM’s power plant uplift payments totaled $990M last quarter. Meanwhile, these payments reached $764M for all of 2025 (a year that saw record demand and a winter polar vortex).
The big picture: PJM is increasingly susceptible to brutal cold, not to mention a whole host of grid threats. And as a capacity shortfall looms, things won’t exactly get easier.
Soaring demand has prompted over 3.3 GW of new gas projects in the Midwest and Southeast.
Up in the heartland: Duke Energy broke ground on a 470-MW gas expansion at its oldest coal-fired site in Indiana, while Evergy started construction on a 710-MW Kansas facility—the utility’s first new baseload plant in the state in over 40 years.
Down South: Rapid industrial and data center growth prompted South Carolina regulators to unanimously authorize a $5B, 2.2-GW combined-cycle gas plant (jointly built by Dominion and Santee Cooper) on a repurposed coal site.
The Dominion x Santee Cooper proposal faced fierce consumer pushback after its estimated price tag doubled over initial projections—echoing the utilities’ failed 2017 V.C. Summer nuclear expansion…which ratepayers are still paying off.
California is overhauling its grid and regulatory game plans.
CAISO’s Board of Governors approved the grid operator’s $6.7B 2025-2026 transmission plan. It will enable 45 GW of new solar PV capacity in CA, NV, and AZ. Also on the docket: co-located battery storage projects and reconductoring projects.
Meanwhile: The Golden State’s Assembly passed a ballot measure proposal to strip the governor of sole appointment power over CPUC. This would expand the regulatory body from five to nine members, handing legislative leaders four direct appointments.
Pressures like DER growth and two-way flows are pushing grids to their limits. Join the conversation to hear how Semtech uses edge intelligence, automation, and security to modernize faster—without costly system overhauls.
🔎 How do you turn inspections into action? Many utilities struggle to connect inspections to actual repair work. To close the gap, orgs can modernize inspection workflows and automate assignments—enabling teams to move from reactive response to proactive maintenance. Get the guidebook from our partners at 3-GIS.
Smarter meters are reshaping grid operations. Tune in on June 9 to find out how Sense turns real-time data into faster fixes, sharper decisions, and stronger customer programs across the grid.
Thanks for reading. Until the next email!