Good morning. PJM is learning that a data center in a forecast is not the same thing as a data center on the grid.
Top Stories
PJM'S DATA CENTER FORECAST LOSES 42% OF ITS GROWTH
Forbes
PJM's independent market monitor says 4,016.9 MW of forecast data-center load has been delayed or canceled. The missing projects account for 42% of the growth PJM expected between the 2026-27 and 2028-29 delivery years, sharpening the fight over who pays when speculative demand triggers real grid investment.
FERMI AMERICA'S TEXAS REACTORS GET AN EARLY NRC NOD
Interesting Engineering
NRC staff issued a preliminary recommendation favoring four AP1000 reactor licenses for Fermi America's Project Matador in the Texas Panhandle, though the separate safety review is still pending. NRC documents describe an 11-GW campus, while Fermi now says its planned private energy system has grown to 17 GW.
INDIANA APPROVES GOOGLE'S $1.3 BILLION POWER PLAN
WFYI
Regulators approved solar, batteries and new electric lines for the 390-MW first phase of Google's Monrovia data center, the first case under Indiana's large-load cost law. AES says Google will pay for the buildout, though consumer advocates say the campus could eventually reach 1,200 MW.
TEXAS BATTERIES COULD EASE GRID CONGESTION AS DATA CENTERS ARRIVE
San Antonio Express-News
Texas added 3,440 MW of solar in the first half of 2026 and reached 33.1 GWh of utility-scale battery storage. An ERCOT study says more batteries could cut transmission constraints by as much as 10% in West Texas and the Panhandle as data-center demand grows.
DATA CENTERS BECOME A MIDTERM ATTACK LINE
WIRED
Candidates are turning data centers into a pocketbook issue in Senate races and toss-up House districts from Ohio to Wisconsin. At least 20 gubernatorial candidates have promised some form of moratorium, while voters in eight states face more than 30 local data-center measures.
Power & Grid
TOTALENERGIES AND KKR ADD $1.2 BILLION OF U.S. SOLAR
Oilprice.com
The partners are adding three Texas and Ohio projects totaling 700 MW to their joint venture, lifting the portfolio from 1.4 GW to 2.1 GW. TotalEnergies will keep operating the plants after selling KKR a 50% stake, freeing capital for more projects.
UTILITY-SCALE SOLAR CUTS BILLS. ROOFTOP SOLAR DOES NOT.
MIT CEEPR
MIT researchers found utility-scale solar slightly reduced electricity prices on average, with the largest declines in states that built the most. Rooftop solar correlated with modestly higher prices because utilities shifted grid-upgrade and compensation costs toward customers without panels.
VIRGINIA'S TRANSFORMER FACTORIES RACE AHEAD OF THE GRID
Cardinal News
Hitachi Energy is adding more than 800 jobs in Halifax County while Virginia Transformer has nearly tripled its companywide workforce in four years. Demand from data centers, new generation and aging equipment has stretched some medium-transformer lead times from 12 to 16 weeks to about 80.
PG&E PROPOSES AN $11.4 BILLION UNDERGROUNDING PLAN
The Tribune
PG&E wants to bury 5,000 miles of power lines across 30 California counties from 2028 through 2037, including 91 miles in San Luis Obispo County. The utility says undergrounding cuts ignition risk by 98%, but state regulators must still decide whether customers should fund the plan.
GREEN BANKS SHRINK THEIR PLANS AFTER THE FEDERAL FREEZE
Canary Media
Local green banks are narrowing their lending after losing access to federal climate funds, leaning harder on private capital and standardized loan platforms. One shared system now supports 13 lenders, while a Maryland program offers qualifying homeowners 2.99% solar loans for 15 years.
Data Centers
SENATE DEMOCRATS SAY BIG TECH SHIFTS COSTS AND HIDES THE JOBS
Sen. Elizabeth Warren
A 27-page report from Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen and Richard Blumenthal says seven data-center operators oppose paying the full cost of shared grid upgrades their projects trigger. None supplied comprehensive figures for permanent jobs, while four acknowledged routinely requesting nondisclosure agreements.
A $3 BILLION DATA CENTER FIGHT HITS REMINGTON'S OLD HOME
Syracuse.com
Developers are considering a 200-MW, two-building campus worth as much as $3 billion at the former Remington Arms complex in Ilion, New York. The proposal has turned a hoped-for reuse of 44 empty industrial buildings into a fight over secret talks, power demand and who controls the village's future.
COLORADO SPRINGS PETITION SEEKS A FOUR-YEAR DATA CENTER PAUSE
The Gazette
Organizers need 24,861 valid signatures to put a four-year moratorium before voters. The measure would cover new facilities above 10 MW or 200,000 gallons of daily water use, though the proposed Project Taurus campus may be grandfathered in.
CLEVELAND PREPARES TO EXTEND ITS DATA CENTER PAUSE
Signal Cleveland
Council Member Brian Kazy plans to seek another 90 days for the city's moratorium while officials finish new rules. He said three public meetings and tours of two local facilities showed broad opposition to hyperscale campuses but more acceptance of smaller internet infrastructure.
MEMPHIS TAKES ITS FIRST VOTE ON DATA CENTER ZONING
Tri-State Defender
The City Council unanimously advanced rules that would add data centers to Memphis's development code, where no specific standards exist today. The measure needs two more votes, while a separate 12-month moratorium faces its next vote Oct. 20 after protests and a lobby fight derailed the Oct. 6 meeting.
Stat of the Day
$73.8 million
Transmission upgrades tied to Google's 390-MW Indiana data center
AES plans to put the network work into its transmission rate base, drawing objections from consumer advocates.
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