Mark Christie issued a stark warning Thursday after he attended his last meeting as chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
“The reliability threat is not on the future horizon. It is now here,” Christie said, pointing to the recent capacity auction of PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest grid operator.
“This auction fell short of its reliability requirement,” Christie told reporters, citing the grid operator’s independent market monitor. “That’s the first time, I’m told.”
His comments come as utilities and grid operators around the country are grappling with how to power a boom in energy-sucking data centers and artificial intelligence. Transmission planners are forecasting an 8.2 percent increase in U.S. electricity demand over the next five years, after 20 years of annual demand growth sticking below 1 percent.
