Welcome to Grid Brief! Today we’re looking at power generation, demand, prices, and more in America’s power markets.

What’s Keeping the Lights On?

Let’s start with a snapshot of generation nation-wide:

Natural gas and nuclear maintained dominance nation-wide.

And here’s a map to orient you as we move through the market areas:

ISO-NE

New England’s low spring load persists, as natural gas, nuclear, and hydro keep the lights on.

Real-time prices routinely doubled day ahead, though pitched towards zero a couple times, too.

ISO-NE is anticipating a 17% rise in energy use by 2033 thanks to EVs and electrified heating, according to a recent report. The grid operator expects a “steady growth in net annual energy use as state policy goals for carbon emissions reductions drive the increased electrification of heating systems and transportation in the region.”

PJM

Natural gas, nuclear, and coal satisfied PJM’s low demand.

Prices in PJM spiked above $400/MWHr, though in Chicago and at the Eastern hub they also swung negative.

Ohio’s AEP is facing 15 GW of new load. “Companies representing up to 15 GW of load — primarily for data centers — are seeking service from American Electric Power utilities by 2030 with ‘many, many’ more gigawatts possible from hundreds of inquiries from potential customers, Ben Fowke, AEP interim president, CEO and director, said during an earnings call Tuesday,” reports Utility Dive. “In Ohio, surging load growth is sparking discussions in business communities and at the state level about whether utilities should own power plants again, according to Fowke. ‘I think that would take legislation … so that we’d be assured of good [cost] recovery and potentially any kind of stranded cost risk,’ he said.”

Public Service Enterprise Group in New Jersey is also in talks to sell off its nuclear power capacity to data centers.

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