PJM to Register When, How Much Power Data Centers Will Use as U.S. Sets New Standard for AIDC Demand Management
IT DAILY ·
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FERC approved part of PJM's overhaul of its large-load management system.
FERC accepted tariff revisions related to the Large Load Registry, but rejected a temporary measure that would restrict data center power use in emergencies.
PJM seeks to manage operating and expansion plans for data centers and other large power-consuming facilities through a registry in order to identify projects that will actually materialize.
PJM Interconnection, which operates the power grid in the eastern and midwestern United States, has managed a registry of operating and expansion plans for large power-consuming facilities, including data centers. The purpose of the measure is to identify which projects will actually materialize amid surging electricity demand. It also aims to improve the accuracy of power grid investment and supply-demand planning.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved part of PJM's overhaul of its large-load management system on the 9th, local time. FERC accepted tariff revisions related to the Large Load Registry. However, it rejected a temporary measure that would restrict power use by data centers and other facilities in emergencies.
With this decision, PJM will be able to manage, in database form, information on the power suppliers of large power-consuming facilities, expected operating dates, phased power expansion schedules, emergency generation equipment, fuel types, and facility locations. Reuters reported that the decision would allow PJM to manage this range of information.
PJM's service area covers 13 states in the eastern and midwestern United States and Washington, D.C. PJM serves about 67 million people.
The backdrop to the system's introduction was a sharp rise in data center power demand driven by the spread of generative AI. When PJM proposed the system, it projected that maximum electricity demand in its service area would increase by about 32 GW between 2024 and 2030. PJM said about 30 GW of that increase would come from data centers.
This surge in demand is also driving a steep rise in cost burdens. According to Reuters, the cost of securing generation capacity in the PJM region has risen by more than 1000% since 2024. Reuters also raised the possibility of a supply shortfall of about 6.8 GW in the future.
National-level projections also support this pressure. A June report this year from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) estimated that data centers' share of total U.S. electricity consumption in 2030 would be 11.8%. LBNL put the range at 9.5% to 15.3%.
However, it remains unclear whether the announced data center investment plans will be fully realized. The same project may have been submitted to multiple regional utilities.
Projects that have not yet secured site and power supply contracts may also have been included in demand forecasts. As a result, the gap between actual demand and projections could widen.
PJM sought to distinguish between project feasibility and timing in order to reflect new large loads in its electricity demand forecast. Accordingly, PJM planned to require concrete evidence of progress, such as supply obligations and construction-related commitments, for projects scheduled to come online in the short term, while separating confirmed demand from potential demand for long-term projects before incorporating them into its forecasts.
FERC approved the creation of the registry in this regard. The decision is understood to recognize a registry system for identifying large power demand, based on the premise that confirming data center operating dates and expansion plans is the foundation for power grid investment and supply-demand planning.
By contrast, FERC did not approve PJM's temporary plan that would have allowed power use by new large loads to be limited in the event of a power shortage. PJM's proposal included provisions allowing power supply to be cut off during grid emergencies if new data centers above a certain size had not secured the generation capacity they needed.
FERC determined that the measure could encroach on state authority over retail electric service. It also said there was insufficient evidence to justify prioritizing restrictions on new large loads over other customers. The decision means that different standards are needed for identifying large power demand and for restricting usage in the event of supply shortages. It also showed that if power supply to a specific facility is to be cut first, there must be evidence supporting fairness relative to other loads.
An industry source said that, in responding to AIDC-related power demand, the first priority is to identify AIDC demand that is actually expected to come online. The source said that the identified AIDC demand must then be linked to generation capacity procurement plans and also to grid expansion plans. The source added that overestimating demand at the planning stage could lead to unnecessary investment, while underestimating actual demand could result in supply shortages, and that AIDC power management is emerging as a key issue going forward.
Source: IT DAILY · Lee Jae-young
Original: https://www.itdaily.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=242141
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Source: IT DAILY
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