Source: Niskanen Center
by Rachel Levine
“America’s electric grid is facing a perfect storm: surging demand from data centers, cryptocurrency miners, and re-shored manufacturing is colliding with multi-year delays in connecting new energy projects. The pressure on operators and lawmakers to act is intense, but so is the need to preserve open access — the regulation that has protected energy market competition for nearly three decades by ensuring all projects compete on equal footing for scarce transmission capacity. However, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s recent authorization of regional plans to green-light certain energy generation resources risks undermining this cornerstone policy. Speed and fairness don’t have to be at odds, and states are proving it. Their solutions embrace planning flexibility and high-tech problem solving, offering a model for the nation.” (08/07/25)