PJM Interconnection issued a Maximum Generation Alert on Monday ahead of expected tight system conditions caused by a combination of unusually warm fall weather clashing with planned equipment outages required for maintenance.

As the largest grid operator in the U.S., PJM issued the alert to notify transmission and generation owners to defer or cancel non-essential equipment testing and maintenance. This ensures those vital transmission lines and units remain operational to serve critical demand.

While this alert also warns neighboring grid operators that electricity exports from PJM may be curtailed, it primarily serves as a proactive, pre-emergency course of action. In tandem, PJM also put a Capacity Advisory in place from Monday through Wednesday, which includes recalling generation units that were previously scheduled for maintenance outages.

Although these advisories don’t require customer action, they coincide with a U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) federal power grid emergency order designed to manage tight electricity supply conditions across 13 states and Washington, D.C. The emergency DOE Order No. 202-26-50 was issued to direct PJM on exactly which power plants (units) they must turn on or keep running.

To maintain grid reliability, PJM has the authority under the federal order to dictate how much electricity those specific power operators must produce and when to do so to prevent potential widespread blackouts during this period.

The U.S. grid is currently facing a critical moment to fast-track third-party power suppliers for data centers. At the same time, balancing paths to strengthen reliability while managing affordability has become a severe challenge.

According to the DOE order, PJM has also been authorized to use direct backup generation resources to operate as a last resort before declaring an Energy Emergency Alert (EEA) 3—the highest and most critical level of a power grid emergency, triggered when electricity supply and demand can no longer be balanced.

“This order will help ensure millions of American families and businesses across the mid-Atlantic have access to affordable, reliable and secure electricity by making additional power generation, including backup power, available to use as needed,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, in a statement.

Wright added that DOE remains committed to using “every available tool to prevent blackouts,” while noting that the administration estimates more than 35 GW of unused backup generation remains available nationwide. The federal order remains in effect Oct. 13 through Oct. 16.

FERC greenlights data center registry, blocks PJM’s broader grid framework

On Oct. 9, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved PJM’s proposal to create a registry for large electricity users like data centers. The registry was part of a broader suite of emergency filings PJM’s board submitted to address the overwhelming power challenge: securing enough generation to balance data center growth alongside the needs of everyday households and businesses.

FERC’s approval of the registry will support critical reform initiatives and data center curtailment efforts, allowing PJM to better define large loads as facilities demanding 50 MW or more. The registry will do so by compiling each facility’s location, capacity supply, ramp schedule and other key operational details.

However, FERC rejected PJM’s "Bring Your Own Capacity" rules and broader Interim Resource Adequacy Service (IRAS) framework.

Under the rejected IRAS proposal, PJM included provisions that would allow large loads to connect to the grid without matching new capacity if they agreed to be curtailed in the lead-up to grid emergencies. But ultimately, FERC determined that this curtailment proposal would “intrude on state jurisdiction over retail rates and appear to discriminate against large loads.”

“We find that several provisions of the proposed tariff appear to place obligations directly on eligible new large loads, which are, for the most part, retail customers; that certain other provisions appear to dictate which retail customers taking retail service will be curtailed; and that the proposed compensation framework appears to establish a retail rate,” FERC said in its IRAS framework rejection filing.

To address near-term capacity shortfalls, PJM also sought to facilitate bilateral matchmaking in a separate proposal filing where interested buyers and sellers structure and negotiate directly via a third-party intermediary. The objective was to use it to cure projected shortfalls and long-term needs while avoiding over-procurement.

Alongside matchmaking, PJM proposed conducting a one-time central procurement auction from Sept. 30 through Oct. 21, capping the total cost of accepted supply offers at $555/MW-day. Instead, FERC decided to suspend that specific auction timeline for five months to allow for further regulatory review despite conditionally accepting the framework originally.

PJM’s 13-state region includes residential, commercial and industrial customers across Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Michigan, North Carolina, West Virginia and six other Midwest states.