SemiAnalysis published an analysis arguing that a modeling mistake by grid operator PJM resulted in $12 billion in unnecessary costs passed to US ratepayers, and that PJM is positioned to repeat the same error. The report does not name a single responsible official but points to structural flaws in how PJM forecasts load growth and prices capacity. The findings arrive as PJM is already under scrutiny for proposed new interconnection and emergency rules affecting data centers.
If the $12 billion figure holds up, it represents one of the largest documented cases of grid planning error in recent US history, with direct cost consequences for consumers in one of the country's most data-center-dense regions. The claim that PJM is repeating the mistake raises urgent questions for data center operators and utilities planning long-term power contracts in the PJM footprint.
The $12 billion ratepayer cost figure and named grid operator PJM triggered selection. The story ranked highly because it combines a specific dollar claim with a forward-looking warning about repeated policy error, directly affecting the power environment for data centers across the mid-Atlantic and Midwest.