PJM Interconnection has outlined a strategy to accommodate data center growth within its grid territory, but Data Center Knowledge reports that significant policy gaps remain unresolved. The grid operator serves 13 states and the District of Columbia, covering some of the densest data center markets in the world, including Northern Virginia. Key unresolved issues include cost allocation for new transmission built to serve large loads and the treatment of speculative interconnection requests.
PJM's policy direction will determine how tens of gigawatts of planned data center capacity connects to the grid across the most data-center-dense region in the US. Unresolved cost allocation rules affect which projects advance and who pays for grid upgrades.
Named grid operator PJM, specific policy gaps, and implications for large-load interconnection triggered selection. This follows PJM's recently published framework proposals and adds reporting on what remains undone.