(Reuters) – Grid operator PJM Interconnection responded on Tuesday to Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s complaint about electricity market rules, citing concerns about potential power shortages due to the rapid expansion of data centers.
Shapiro filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday, arguing that America’s largest electric grid operator needs to change its market rules to avoid a potential rise in electricity costs.
“For more than two years, we’ve been warning about the prospect that parts of our country could be without power during periods of high demand,” PJM said in a statement.
“This possibility is on the rise, primarily as a result of state and federal policy decisions that are pushing manufacturers into early retirement, and also due to unprecedented and rapidly growing data center construction,” the network operator added.
The company has sought permission from federal regulators to lower the market price cap and has proposed faster integration of new generation projects to ease problems such as power shortages during periods of high demand.
PJM, which serves nearly 65 million people across the U.S., has faced heightened public scrutiny since July when it said its auction of annual capacity would lead to record payments to power plants within its system.
