Required 5 Gigawatts (GW) of load flexibility in PJM grid by 2030, predicts forecast
The PJM Interconnection, the nation's largest grid operator, has proposed new rules to support flexibility in response to growing electricity demand. However, the proposal has drawn fierce blowback from various companies and organisations, including Microsoft, Amazon, Talen Energy, and the Data Center Coalition.
Former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission commissioner Allison Clements has stated that the proposal is a reflection of PJM trying to decrease the capacity obligations of new large loads. She described it as a stop-gap measure for a grid plagued by bottlenecks and delays, but noted that it is an uncertain, temporary administrative process, not ideal from an efficiency or economic perspective.
The proposal would ask large electricity users such as data centers to voluntarily reduce their power consumption during a shortage of electrons on the wires. This aligns with what the Data Center Coalition recently backed in a North Carolina regulatory filing. However, the Coalition, along with other critics, has expressed concern that the proposal could potentially require large electricity users to reduce their power consumption if too few step up.
Steve Piper, research director of North American power and renewables at S&P Global, discussed PJM on a recent episode of the Catalyst podcast. He echoed the concerns of some, noting that the proposal could lead to unintended consequences.
On the other hand, Google has expanded its demand response work to target machine learning workloads and brokered two new utility agreements. The Data Center Coalition supports PJM's proposal, but Goldman Sachs has praised the concept of data center flexibility in a report.
Tyler Norris, a researcher at Duke University, has released a study detailing how designing data centers to modestly cut back on electricity usage can make space for almost 100 GW of additional load growth. Norris' research assumes that PJM will connect 25% more new generating sources than historically managed. He suggests that the actual need could be higher due to assumptions about connecting more new generating sources.
Norris also emphasised that the industry is still in the early stages of embracing the concept of flexibility. He finds it exciting to see various creative approaches to flexibility being seriously explored, with other researchers involved including academic institutions, energy consulting firms, and grid operators.
PJM has forecasted that at least 5 gigawatts of load flexibility will be needed by 2030 to avoid outages. However, with the ongoing debate and criticism, it remains to be seen how the proposal will shape the future of grid flexibility in the United States.
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