MISO declared a maximum generation emergency for its Midwest region just after midnight on Jan. 24 as the northern portions of the footprint rode out double-digit negative temperatures.

The grid operator said it was contending with forced generation outages and transfer limitations along with the demand of subzero temperatures.

On Jan. 24, Minneapolis bottomed out at around -20°F, Detroit at -5°F, while northernmost points of North Dakota and Manitoba delivered -30°F actual temperatures.

At the time, MISO said it curtailed scheduled exports and activated emergency maximum limits for resources in its markets. Around 6 a.m. ET, the RTO elevated its emergency pricing from its $600/MWh first tier offer floor to its second tier, $1,100/MWh floor.

MISO forecasted a 96.4 GW peak demand for Jan. 24. It was accepting about 4.5 GW in imports around 9:30 a.m. ET on Jan. 24 while coal and gas units supplied about 74% of a 93-GW demand. Prices in the moment appeared to exceed $500/MWh at Wisconsin and Minnesota pricing nodes.

However, MISO said it was experiencing “system difficulties” with its real-time locational marginal prices on Jan. 24 and said it could not issue prices. The RTO’s website listed an unchanged, $211.22/MWh marginal cost on Jan. 24.

According to Yes Energy data, Great River Energy’s D.B. Wilson coal plant went offline unexpectedly on Jan. 22.

MISO entered conservative operations beginning Jan. 23. The grid operator didn’t appear to issue a maximum generation warning before it entered emergency procedures.

Ahead of winter, MISO predicted a 103-GW season peak and said that level of demand shouldn’t have it entering emergency procedures. (See MISO Predicts 103-GW Peak for Winter.)

MISO’s all-time winter peak of 109 GW occurred in early January 2014, when Minneapolis registered a low of -23°F. MISO last entered a maximum generation emergency on June 23, 2025. (See MISO Declares Max Gen Emergency in Heat Wave.)