FERC Rejects Talen-AWS

Amended ISA to Expand Co-Located Load Denied

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣?

U.S. energy regulators denied an amended interconnection agreement for an Amazon data center at Talen Energy's Susquehanna nuclear plant, citing concerns over potential public cost increases and grid reliability impacts.

𝙒𝙝𝙮 𝙞𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨?

•   The proposal would have increased "the amount of Co-Located Load from 300 megawatts (MW) to 480 MW and to make revisions related to the treatment of this Co-Located Load".

•   The proposed agreement failed to prove the changes were "necessary". The ruling notes"a transmission provider seeking a case-specific deviation from its pro forma interconnection agreement bears a high burden to justify and explain that its changes are not merely “consistent with or superior to” the pro forma agreement, but are necessary changes".

•   What does connected to the grid mean? It's not just about energy, but also about ancillary services and capacity. Exelon and AEP claim the co-located load would receive two types of benefits from the transmission system: 1) power from the transmission system to operate: "the nuclear power plants cannot operate without electricity and cannot be islanded from the system" and, 2) it "still receives ancillary services and capacity from the PJM transmission system".

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