The Trump administration and a bipartisan group of governors urged reforms to the PJM Interconnection to prevent the growth of AI data centers from driving up electricity prices. Officials asked technology companies to help fund new power plants and said the National Energy Dominance Council backed more than $15 billion in generation projects. PJM's board announced immediate steps, including a backstop procurement process and an emergency capacity auction, and emphasized protecting residential customers. Governors Wes Moore and Josh Shapiro joined the White House in the announcement.
Trump Administration and Bipartisan Governors Urge Tech Firms to Fund New Power Plants to Support AI Data Centers
Washington — The Trump administration, joined by a bipartisan group of state governors, on Friday urged urgent reforms to the PJM Interconnection grid to prevent the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence data centers from driving up electricity costs for consumers.
What Officials Announced
Federal and state officials signed a statement of principles focused on PJM, the regional grid operator that supplies power to roughly 67 million people across 13 Mid-Atlantic and Midwestern jurisdictions. The agreement asks technology companies to help finance new generating capacity within PJM's footprint to meet the surge in demand from AI facilities that the White House has encouraged.
Officials said the National Energy Dominance Council has reached accords with several states to support more than $15 billion in new power-generation projects. The statement also urges PJM to run an emergency capacity auction to procure needed power and directs measures to shield residential customers from capacity-driven price increases.
Who's Involved
Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum endorsed the plan at an event inside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building near the White House, joined by Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Democratic governors Wes Moore of Maryland and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania. Governors from each state within PJM's footprint signed the statement of principles.
Wright said the administration wants governors to 'call upon PJM to allow America to build big, reliable power plants again' and that the directives are intended to 'restore affordable and reliable electricity so American families thrive and American manufacturing once again booms.'
PJM's Response And Next Steps
PJM's Board of Managers announced it will take immediate actions to address the additional load from AI data centers, including an 'immediate initiation' to secure more generation and a 'backstop generation procurement process' to address short-term reliability needs. PJM also said it expects the data center community to play a constructive role in addressing the reliability and affordability challenges linked to rapid load growth.
The move represents an unusual moment of cooperation between the Republican White House and Democratic governors who are being discussed as potential 2028 presidential candidates. Both Gov. Wes Moore and Gov. Josh Shapiro have called for increased power supply and lower energy bills; Shapiro previously sued PJM in 2024 to try to block price increases.
Why It Matters
As AI-driven demand for electricity grows, grid operators, state leaders and the private sector face pressure to secure reliable generation without imposing steep costs on households. The agreement attempts to balance rapid industrial demand with consumer protections, but it will require coordination among PJM, state regulators, utilities, developers and technology companies to succeed.
Next steps: PJM is expected to begin procurement actions and hold capacity auctions in the coming weeks, while officials and industry stakeholders negotiate who will fund and build the additional generation needed to support AI data center growth.
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