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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission just did something it has historically avoided: stepping into the business of how large energy consumers connect to the grid. On June 18, FERC issued show cause orders to all six regional grid operators, demanding they either justify their current interconnection tariffs for large energy users or reform them.
The targets are facilities like AI data centers and manufacturing plants that need more than 20 MW of power. For context, 20 MW is enough to power roughly 15,000 homes. A single large AI data center can require hundreds of megawatts.
What FERC actually ordered
The commission acted under Section 206 of the Federal Power Act, directing orders at PJM, MISO, SPP, CAISO, ISO-NE, and NYISO. That covers essentially every major regional grid operator in the country.
The timeline is aggressive by regulatory standards. Grid operators must deliver a capacity status report within 30 days and full integration reform plans within 60 days.
FERC Chair Laura Swett characterized the move as a historic modernization of electric markets. The vote was unanimous.
Here’s the thing about who pays for all this: large energy users will be responsible for covering the full costs of interconnection upgrades. That’s a deliberate design choice meant to shield residential ratepayers from absorbing the infrastructure costs of plugging in a massive data center next door.
The orders trace back to a directive from US Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued on October 23, 2025, which called for accelerating interconnection processes for high-demand loads. FERC’s action is the regulatory muscle behind that policy vision, turning a Department of Energy wish list into enforceable mandates.
Why grid connections take so long
Traditional interconnection timelines can stretch 5 to 10 years or longer. That’s not a typo.
FERC has historically focused almost exclusively on generation interconnections, meaning how power plants connect to the grid to sell electricity. The question of how large consumers connect to buy electricity has been left largely to states and regional operators.
The new orders introduce concepts like flexible and curtailable load structures, which could allow large users to connect faster by agreeing to reduce consumption during peak demand periods. This approach attempts to balance three competing priorities that Swett explicitly named: innovation, reliability, and affordability.
The crypto angle, or lack thereof
FERC’s orders contain no specific references to cryptocurrency mining or digital assets. The focus is squarely on AI-driven power demands and manufacturing reshoring.
Bitcoin mining facilities routinely exceed the 20 MW threshold that triggers these new rules. Texas, which hosts a significant concentration of Bitcoin mining operations, operates its own power grid through ERCOT, which is not among the six regional operators targeted by these orders. But miners operating in PJM territory, which covers much of the eastern US, or in MISO’s footprint across the Midwest, could see new pathways to grid access.
The curtailable load model is particularly interesting for Bitcoin miners, who have already demonstrated willingness to shut down during peak demand in exchange for favorable energy rates. If FERC’s reforms formalize this kind of arrangement at the federal level, it could create a more standardized framework for miners to negotiate grid access.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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