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PJM delays data center backstop power auction after FERC partly rejects the plan

Utility Dive reports PJM delayed its planned backstop procurement for data center load after FERC on September 29, 2026 only partly approved it, citing cost allocation, transmission owner exit rules and collateral requirements. PJM had planned to accept offers from September 30 through October 21.

By Greener Numbers Editorial Team · Published October 3, 2026 · Updated 10/3/2026

Utility Dive reported on September 30, 2026 that PJM Interconnection is delaying its planned reliability backstop procurement for data center load. The auction was set to start on Wednesday, September 30, a day after the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission only partly approved the proposal on September 29. A PJM spokesman said a new timeline is yet to be determined and that PJM intends to work quickly to address FERC's remaining concerns.

PJM had planned to accept offers from September 30 through October 21, with selection from October 22 through December 2. The proposal aims to cover a capacity shortfall that Utility Dive says is largely driven by data center demand forecasts. PJM did not acquire enough capacity in its last two base capacity auctions to meet its reserve margin targets, and it intends to acquire 6.8 GW of new capacity to cover the shortfall for the 2028/29 delivery year, though it may lower that target for new supply.

According to the report, FERC found that PJM's proposals on cost allocation, transmission owner exit rules and load-serving entity collateral may be unjust and unreasonable. It suggested allocating costs using updated load forecasts, assigning costs of an exiting transmission owner to load-serving entities in its zone, and it rejected PJM's plan to let qualifying cooperatives and municipal utilities opt out. FERC accepted the proposed offer cap of $555/MW-day and the collateral plan for power suppliers. Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative said it would have to post roughly $2 billion in collateral under the proposal, per the decision.

FERC Chairman Laura Swett wrote that the commission would not be forced into accepting "a deeply flawed, eleventh-hour procurement mechanism with billion-dollar implications for consumers."

This brief relies on one trade-press report; it does not cite the FERC order itself.

Official source: Utility Dive ↗