Trump, governors push tech companies to pay for rising power costs

"The plan seeks to speed construction of new plants - especially natural gas ones dispensing round-the-clock electricity - needed to supply data centers. At the same time, it aims to douse the political flames over who should pay the costs of surging electricity demand. "We are addressing serious market failures in PJM," the administration said in a fact sheet, citing "energy subtraction policies that forced the shutdown of power plants in PJM that were needed for grid resource adequacy, reliability and stability.""

"The grid operator serves more than 67 million people from the Mid-Atlantic to the Midwest. It wasn't invited to Friday's event with the administration and governors. Instead, PJM said in a statement that its board plans to issue a decision later Friday on integrating data centers and other large electricity-load additions to the grid. "We will work with our stakeholders to assess how the White House directive aligns with the Board's decision," it said."

Administration officials and several governors urged PJM Interconnection to hold an emergency auction for tech companies to bid on 15-year contracts for new generation capacity. The proposal targets rapid construction of round-the-clock natural gas plants to serve expanding data center demand and to address rising electricity needs. The initiative also seeks to resolve disputes over who bears the cost of increased demand. The administration cited market failures and past energy subtraction policies that forced plant retirements and harmed reliability. PJM serves over 67 million people and said its board will decide on integrating large new loads and assess alignment with the directive. Analysts cautioned that the program's implementation and legal fit with existing industry structures remain unclear and could require significant federal or state changes.

Read at Axios