Heading into 2026, New England is counting on an increasingly collaborative approach to energy policy as federal opposition to renewable energy development threatens affordability, reliability, and decarbonization objectives in the region.

MISO has indicated that new generation to serve data centers and other large loads will be mission critical over 2026 and said it will take pains to interconnect units.

The defining story of the coming year will be the widening chasm between electricity supply and demand, a dynamic driven by a slow-moving supply side, coupled with the explosive growth of energy-hungry data centers, says columnist Peter Kelly-Detwiler.

PacifiCorp filed a partial motion to dismiss an Oregon complaint by Amazon Data Services that alleged the utility has breached agreements to provide electric service to four data centers in the utility’s service territory.

MISO and the Minnesota Department of Commerce said federal funding for the Joint Targeted Interconnection Queue portfolio is still in play, though they didn't offer any additional details.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and panelists discussed efforts to meet energy demand at a Western Governors’ Association workshop in Phoenix, with some noting opportunities and challenges navigating state-level permitting and regulation.

ERCOT proposed revisions to its large load interconnection process just days after a new rule established more rigorous criteria for connecting data centers, bitcoin miners and other power-hungry facilities to the grid.

IESO released proposed market rule and manual revisions to require synchrophasor data from storage resources.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission, in collaboration with the regulators of four other New England states, issued a request for proposals to procure clean energy in northern Maine and 1,200 MW of transmission to connect it to the ISO-NE grid.

With a surge in interconnection requests from large load customers, Public Service Company of Colorado has fallen behind on processing applications, a situation that has sparked concern from state regulators.