RTO Insider: PJM Is Flailing, but There’s a Solution

In a recent RTO Insider column, Brad Viator and Alison Williams examine the root causes of PJM’s failures and propose solutions to address its systemic shortcomings.

“In early July, nine governors, Republicans and Democrats alike, sent a letter to the PJM Board of Managers, whose energy market is responsible for shockingly high rate increases across 13 states and D.C. The governors say that “market participants, consumers and the states” that participate in PJM are having a “crisis in confidence” in the beleaguered grid operator. PJM likely has never been the recipient of such organized, cross-party discontent in its 100-year history. At the heart of the PJM problem is the inability of the grid operator to bring new generation online quickly enough to match skyrocketing demand for electricity.

This shortfall is manifesting directly into exorbitant energy costs. The crisis of timely and affordable generation is largely attributable to a combination of factors: decreased supply because of coal and gas plant retirements, and increased demand because of electrification and data center expansion.”

Read the full column here.