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Maryland Data Center Intel
Latest data center news, projects, power and policy across Maryland — updated daily.
Recent Maryland data center news
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Surging electricity demand puts pressure on utility planning
Rising U.S. electricity demand challenges utility planning, impacting energy transition efforts and costs.
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Computer engineers at ORNL pioneer approaches to energy efficient supercomputing
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PJM capacity auction to lead to double-digit rate hikes for Exelon utilities: CFO
Exelon’s PJM capacity auction for 2025/26 will likely cause double-digit rate hikes for subsidiaries like Baltimore Gas and Electric. CFO Jeanne Jones attributes this to transmission constraints. CEO Calvin Butler highlights infrastructure investment needs. Exelon plans $34.5 billion in capital investments. Q2 income rose 31% to $448 million.
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Data center, crypto operations in 10 states drive all US commercial power sales growth since 2019: EIA
Data centers in 10 states led 1% growth in US commercial electricity sales since 2019, per the EIA. Virginia, Texas, South Carolina, and Arizona saw significant demand growth, while North Dakota had the highest at 37%. The agency predicts a 3% increase in 2022 sales, influenced by large-scale computing facilities and crypto operations.
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Lack of power pushes rental increases in major U.S. data center markets: report
Rental prices in major U.S. data center markets are rising due to high demand from public cloud providers and AI companies. Northern Virginia leads in net absorption with 407.4 MW. Despite supply increases, data center availability is limited. Northern Virginia and Chicago saw leasing availability reductions, while Dallas-Fort Worth grew by 31.9%.
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Lack of power pushes rental increases in major U.S. data center markets: CBRE
Demand for data centers in North America is rising due to public cloud providers and AI companies, with northern Virginia leading in net absorption at 407.4 MW. Pricing is surging, particularly in Chicago. Dominion Energy projects in Virginia may alleviate power constraints. Dallas-Fort Worth is the second-largest colocation market, with robust construction and pre-leasing.
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FirstEnergy may ‘put a little money on the table’ to help end HB 6 bribery litigation: CEO
FirstEnergy CEO Tierney discusses growth potential in states like Maryland, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, emphasizing data center expansion. The company’s proactive capital spending approach, supported by the sale of a stake to Brookfield for $3.5 billion, aims to enhance reliability and customer experience. Regulatory wins drive positive outcomes.
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FERC approves PJM’s $5.1B cost-share plan for transmission to be built by Dominion, others
FERC approved PJM’s $5.1B transmission plan involving Dominion, Exelon, FirstEnergy, PPL, NextEra, Transource, and Public Service Electric & Gas. Disagreements arose over allocating costs to Virginia due to data center growth incentives, with FERC rejecting a larger share for Virginia. FERC Commissioners Clements and Christie highlighted the regional nature of PJM’s system and advocated for state involvement in resolving cost allocation issues for projects driven by state policies.
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States shouldn’t have to pay for transmission driven by other states’ policies: FERC’s Christie
Mark Christie, a FERC commissioner, opposes making states pay for transmission projects supporting other states’ energy policies. He highlights unfairness and potential litigation risks, urging voluntary consent for costs. NextEra Energy Transmission’s Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link project and Talen Energy’s Brandon Shores plant retirement are linked to state policies and face cost allocation challenges.
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Maryland ratepayer advocate urges FERC to reject PJM’s $5.1B transmission cost allocation plan
The Maryland ratepayer advocate is urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to reject PJM’s $5.1 billion transmission cost allocation plan. The dispute stems from PJM’s 2022 Regional Transmission Expansion Plan and the allocation of costs for transmission projects. The ratepayer advocate argues that the costs should be allocated based on who benefits from the projects, highlighting the economic benefits going to Virginia through the development of data centers. Additionally, the advocate objects to PJM’s plan to base incentives on 2022 load instead of 2028 forecast load. PJM has requested that the proposed cost allocation be allowed to take effect by April 9.