PJM Capacity Auction Prices Soar Again
A year ago, PJM’s capacity auction rose over seven times their usual costs. This left the electricity market reeling, with some PA customers seeing their electricity rates rising up to 16%. And this year, prices have jumped again. The latest PJM capacity auction results will likely lead to an estimated 1.5-5% increase in electricity bills for PA consumers. And they would have jumped higher if not for the price cap pushed by Governor Shapiro.
To top it off, PJM barely secured enough electricity to supply the region. This has left questions about what PA can do to combat ever increasing electricity rates and power demand.
PJM Grid Capacity
PJM critics argue that the grid controller is partly to blame for the power supply shortage. It rushed to retire old power plants while new ones sat in PJM’s connection queue. Though changes to the interconnection process are underway, it’s not fast enough. Some 63,000 megawatts of power projects sits in backlog. And this lets big generating companies jumping to cash in on rising rates. For example, Constellation Energy, among others, are buying out smaller plants instead of building new plants. Construction costs have risen, due in part to import tarrifs and local manufacturers not being able to keep up with the demand.
Data Centers Suck Power and Water in PJM
Tight supply and rising electricity demand from data centers has driven the record-setting price spikes during these last two auctions. Data center growth in PA is huge with $90 billion worth expected to flow into PA in the next few years. But along with it comes a power drain. By 2030, PJM is expecting 32 gigawatts of new demand on its system, 30 gigawatts of which coming from data centers.
But data centers also require cooling, and that takes a lot of water. For example, in 2023, the 200 data centers in Loudoun County, VA, used around 900 million gallons of drinking water. Currently Loudoun County has a population of 455,193 people. By 2030, it is forecast to grow by 17.1%, the second fastest in Northern Virginia and the metro Washington DC area. However, county officials estimate data center power usage rising from 3.4 GW to nearly 30 GW by 2028. This also suggests an equal ten fold increase in water use. To be sure, data center growth could soon push ratepayers to pay more for both their electricity and water.
PA Rates Rising Again Next Summer
Consumers throughout PJM face a tough time ahead. For PA electric customers, rising energy demand could see utility Price to Compare rates rise this winter.
That’s why it’s more important now than ever to shop and save on your electricity. Locking in a low fixed rate electricity plan now can save you money for years to come. And you can find the best plan for your home with us. Compare rates, read reviews, and more. Visit https://www.paenergyratings.com to see the electric plans in your area.