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.

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.

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.

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.

NYISO's Installed Capacity Working Group's final meeting of 2025 focused on proposed manual changes for several projects.

Gov. Wes Moore issued an executive order calling for reforms to boost electricity supply and ensure affordability, which will be implemented in part by the new executive director at the Maryland Energy Administration, Kelly Speakes-Backman.

The Maine Office of the Public Advocate has asked FERC to initiate evidentiary hearing procedures to answer questions about the prudency of investments by New England transmission owners in asset condition projects placed in service in 2022.