Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission

Data center load explosion and cost allocation — PA PUC launched formal review of grid impacts March 2025; April 2025 hearing found data centers could account for 30-40% of future utility demand. PPL testified it has advanced-stage interconnection requests exceeding 9 GW — more than doubling its 7.5 GW current summer peak. PUC advanced cost-allocation framework November 2025. PPL March 2026 settlement includes first data center-specific tariff in PA, requiring 10-year contracts and $11M in low-income program contributions. HB 1834 (data center ratepayer protection) passed PA House March 2026; pending Republican-controlled Senate.

Three Mile Island / Crane Clean Energy Center restart — Constellation Energy restarting TMI Unit 1 under $1.6B PPA with Microsoft to supply AI data centers. Trump administration provided $1B DOE loan (first advance Q1 2026). Restart targeted for 2027, a full year ahead of original schedule. Sets national model for nuclear-to-hyperscaler power supply with direct PJM interconnection implications for PA grid planning.

PECO rate case withdrawal — After Dec 2024 settlement took effect (10% electric increase in 2025, 1.8% in 2026), PECO filed a new rate case after its March 16, 2026 rate freeze expired. Governor Shapiro publicly announced PECO's withdrawal, crediting executive intervention with saving 1.7M customers $510M. A rare instance of gubernatorial pressure resulting in a utility pulling a pending PUC filing.

PPL data center tariff as national precedent — PPL's non-unanimous settlement (filed March 2026, PUC approval pending) is the first in Pennsylvania to create a separate rate class for large-load data centers: 10-year contracts, take-or-pay cost responsibility for dedicated infrastructure, and mandatory low-income cross-subsidy. Rate freeze of at least two years after July 2026 effective date.

PJM capacity market and nuclear backbone — Pennsylvania's restructured market routes reliability through PJM. Nuclear plants (Limerick, Peach Bottom, Susquehanna, Beaver Valley, plus restarting Crane/TMI) provide ~33% of PA generation. PJM capacity auction outcomes directly affect PA default service rates. NERC flagged operational risk during extreme weather as early as 2026 given the pace of data center load growth.