Blog Posts

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has invoked a rarely used provision of the DOE Act to request that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) take jurisdiction over transmission-level large load interconnections (greater than 20 MW). This proposal, currently in the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking stage, aims to standardize processes and set national guardrails for how utilities manage these requests. If adopted, utilities could be required to complete studies for curtailable loads within 60 days, creating faster, more predictable timelines for data center and industrial developers. However, states and utilities are likely to challenge the rule, raising questions about jurisdictional authority and cost allocation that could delay implementation until 2026 or later.