DOE Emergency Order Lets PJM Run Plants Past Permit Limits and Call on Data Center Backup Power Through October 16

The Department of Energy issued Order No. 202-26-50 under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act on October 12, giving PJM Interconnection emergency authority from October 13 through October 16. The order lets PJM dispatch the generating units listed in its application even where an environmental permit or state rule would otherwise limit them, and authorizes it to direct backup generation at data centers and other large loads to run as a last resort before, or during, an Energy Emergency Alert Level 3, the point at which firm load is interrupted.

PJM applied on October 11. It forecast demand at or around 111,500 MW on October 13 and said it expected to be within 900 MW of its reserve margin on October 14, with generation outages reaching 61,591 MW as the autumn maintenance season overlaps with planned transmission work. The most acute pressure is in the BGE, PEPCO and Dominion zones. The order also cites limits on north-to-south flows over the Conastone-Peach Bottom 500 kV line and west-to-east flows on the Crete-St. Johns 345 kV tie with MISO, which has issued its own capacity advisory.

Backup units at hospitals, 911 call centers, water plants, gas pipeline facilities and similar critical sites are excluded, and backup generators run under the order do not count as capacity resources. PJM must report daily to DOE on every unit that operates under the waiver, and rate recovery is available under the statute. The order builds on Energy Secretary Chris Wright's January 22, 2026 letter to grid operators on using backup generation during energy emergencies.