The severe winter storm that dumped heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain across the South and East Coast is putting strain on the largest grid region in the United States, with lingering low temperatures causing all-time highs for power demand.
PJM Interconnection, the largest grid operator and wholesale electricity market in the country, warned on Monday that more than a dozen states and the District of Columbia could experience historic strain on their electricity grids through the rest of the week.
The region, which stretches from parts of northern Illinois to North Carolina and New Jersey, is expecting extreme cold until Sunday, brought on by a frigid arctic system that followed last weekend’s weather event, dubbed “Winter Storm Fern.”
The winter weather and low temperatures have sent electricity and energy demands in the grid region soaring, with PJM warning that demand could hit record highs on Tuesday.
“Peak demand has the potential to exceed 130,000 [megawatts] for seven straight days, a winter streak that PJM has never experienced,” the grid operator said in a statement.
In order to meet this demand, PJM issued an alert for transmission and generation owners in the region to maximize their power generation and load management.
This allows utilities and other generators to defer or cancel maintenance or testing on equipment that was otherwise scheduled, allowing them to keep all available units online and producing maximum energy needed for consumers.
PJM also turned to the Energy Department for assistance, requesting authorization to deploy customer-owned backup generation facilities that could also help prevent or mitigate any load shortages caused by the extreme weather, as ice and freezing rain can weigh down power lines, causing them to break and fall.
This order, approved by the Energy Department on Monday, allows PJM to direct large-load facilities, such as data centers, to utilize their backup generation to support the grid as a last resort to avoid blackouts for residential customers. The order expires on Saturday.
“The Trump administration is committed to unleashing all available power generation needed to keep Americans safe during Winter Storm Fern,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement, adding that the agency was working to ensure 35 gigawatts of backup generation would be available nationwide.
One gigawatt is roughly equivalent to the amount of electricity needed to power approximately 750,000 homes.
The Energy Department has also permitted the grid operator to run all electricity-generating units within PJM’s region to operate up to their maximum generation output levels through the end of the week to meet soaring demand.
Yesterday, PJM indicated that it had yet to utilize this authority but said it may implement the order later this week as temperatures remain low.
This week’s winter storm and frigid temperatures are the first big test for the already strained U.S. electric grid, which has been facing growing demand brought on by electrification, increasing manufacturing, and rapid development of artificial intelligence.
There are growing fears among consumers that this demand will outpace upgrades to transmission infrastructure as well as new supply brought onto the grid, possibly increasing already high electricity prices.
OVER A DOZEN DECLARED DEAD AFTER MAJOR WINTER STORM SHUTTERS SCHOOLS, OFFICES, AND AIRPORTS
The Trump administration has attempted to tackle this issue by keeping aging coal plants online, boosting natural gas production, and urging large loads such as data centers to supply and pay for their own power.
But the administration has come under fire from Republicans and Democrats for pushing against the development of renewable energy resources such as solar and wind, which are known for coming onto the grid at a much faster pace than fossil fuels.
