Maryland Residents to Pay $1.6 Billion More in Power Bills Due to Out-of-State Data Centers: Complaint

A Maryland regulator has filed a formal complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) against PJM, the regional transmission organization, over an estimated $1.6 billion in additional power bill costs for Maryland residents. The complaint alleges that these significant costs are being incurred to upgrade the regional power grid, primarily to support the energy demands of out-of-state data centers. The Maryland regulator is advocating for a change in PJM's cost allocation policies, arguing that the financial burden for these grid upgrades should be assigned directly to the locations where the data centers are situated, rather than being broadly distributed to ratepayers in Maryland.