A new report is raising red flags about whether Pennsylvania will have enough power to meet growing electricity demand in the coming years.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s report, conducted by Synapse Energy Economics, warns the region’s power grid could face a significant shortfall within the next five years, increasing the risk of electricity outages.
The report points to the rapid growth of data centers as a major factor behind the growing demand for power.
State House Energy Committee Chair Elizabeth Fiedler (D-Philadelphia) is sounding the alarm over the future of electricity costs following the PUC’s report.
The report found that the PJM Interconnection’s grid could be six times less reliable by 2030. It also projects 13 electricity shortages per year in 2030, compared to the current rate of about one shortage every 10 years.
“This report presents some of the starkest warnings that we’ve seen about the crisis that we are facing,” Fiedler said.
Fiedler warned that a less reliable power grid could have serious consequences for Pennsylvanians.
“People will be struggling to keep the food in their fridge cold, struggling with any medical devices or life-saving equipment that they have that helps them be able to breathe and survive and be as healthy as possible,” she said. “We are talking about some of the most catastrophic consequences, really, of our failure to act. And again, they are right at our front door.”
The report comes as public officials grapple with how to balance the economic effects and artificial intelligence needs of data centers with their consequences for the state’s energy infrastructure.
Data centers require large amounts of electricity to operate, and their rapid development has raised questions about whether the existing power grid can keep up with demand.
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s executive order last month cracked down on speculative data center development. The PUC itself is also looking to implement PJM’s Reliability Backstop Procurement plan, which is intended to allow for more power generation and address potential shortfalls.
Action, however, has been slow.
With development underway at major future sites such as the PAX-1 data center project in Cumberland County, Fiedler said the PUC report should serve as a call for both parties to act on reining in data center development and bringing more power onto the grid before it is too late.
“Everybody’s utility bills are going up. Everybody’s bills, period, are going up,” Fiedler said. “Nobody can afford for them to continue to rise, and that’s true whether you’re here in Philadelphia or you’re in Cambria County or you’re in Erie.”
Fiedler said she is willing to work with lawmakers from both parties and both chambers of the General Assembly on the issue.
“My door is always open, and I am always glad to meet with colleagues from both chambers and both sides of the aisle because I really do think we have to do something,” she said. “Otherwise, it’s very clear from this report that the future is not a bright future in the way that we would hope.”
Fiedler’s House Energy Committee will hold a hearing on Oct. 7 to respond to the report.