WV — Power Infrastructure Updated 2026-07-17

West Virginia

PJM Natural Gas Nuclear Solar Coal Data Center PPAs

1) Grid operator and market structure

2) Interconnection queue (status, depth, wait times, reforms)

  • Queue depth (WV): PJM’s 2024 West Virginia State Report showed 9,655 MW of generation in the WV interconnection queue, led by 4,085 MW of natural gas, 2,675 MW of wind, 1,358 MW of solar, and 512 MW of storage. PJM 2024 West Virginia State Report, 2025
  • PJM-wide load forecast update: PJM’s January 2026 long-term load forecast kept the long-run growth signal but reduced near-term forecasts through 2032 because of updated economics, electric-vehicle assumptions, and improved vetting of large-load and data-center adjustments; PJM said large-load adjustments in zones including AEP and APS were driven by data-center load growth. PJM 2026 Long-Term Load Forecast Report, 2026-01; PJM Inside Lines, 2026-01-14
  • Large-load interconnection reform moved from inquiry to show-cause orders: after opening Docket RM26-4-000, FERC on June 18 issued orders to six RTOs/ISOs, including a PJM-specific order in EL26-67-000, preliminarily finding that their tariffs may be unjust and unreasonable because they lack adequate rules for connecting large loads. PJM was required to justify or reform its tariff and file a large-load information report by July 20. FERC, 2026-04-16; FERC, 2026-06-18
  • PJM Expedited Interconnection Track proposal: PJM’s February 27, 2026 FERC filing proposed an Expedited Interconnection Track for certain large new or uprated capacity resources, with PJM targeting generator interconnection agreements in roughly 10 months for accepted projects and proposing to limit the track to up to 10 interconnection requests per calendar year. White & Case, 2026-03-12; PJM Inside Lines, 2026-02-27
  • Data center-specific requests: PJM’s generation interconnection queue is not a data-center end-use-load queue; data-center interconnection and service questions generally surface through utility service, co-location, special-contract, and large-load tariff processes rather than being labeled as “data center” in generator-queue tables. PJM 2026 Long-Term Load Forecast Report, 2026-01; FERC, 2026-04-16

3) Ratepayer protection (large-load tariffs, cost allocation, PSC orders)

4) Generation adequacy (new supply, storage, and shortfall risks)

  • Utility-sponsored gas and solar proposal: The Maidsville case proposes a 1,200 MW combined-cycle gas plant estimated at $2.48 billion and three solar projects estimated at $182 million; the utilities also requested a Generation Projects Surcharge that testimony said would initially increase residential bills by $1.18 per month, or 0.9%. Dominion Post, 2026-06-01
  • Capacity shortfall forecast: In the same case, testimony reported that the companies had 298 MW of excess capacity in 2025 but projected a 116 MW shortfall beginning in 2029, increasing to 1,083 MW by 2045; testimony also said the projected load growth was driven almost entirely by a small number of data-center customers. Dominion Post, 2026-06-01
  • PJM regional adequacy context: PJM’s 2026 forecast projects summer peak load growth averaging 3.6% per year over 10 years and winter peak growth averaging 4.0% per year over 10 years, with data-center-related large-load adjustments a key driver in multiple zones. PJM 2026 Long-Term Load Forecast Report, 2026-01
  • 2028/2029 PJM capacity auction showed a regional shortfall: PJM’s July 14 auction cleared 138,318 MW of capacity at the $325/MW-day price cap, and PJM reported a 6,831 MW shortfall against its reliability requirement while identifying continuing large data-center additions as a major forecast driver. Only 525 MW of new generation and uprates cleared. PJM, 2026-07-14
  • Emergency curtailment developments: DOE issued a May 18 order and another order effective June 30–July 3 allowing PJM, as a last resort around Energy Emergency Alert 3 conditions, to direct operation of backup generation at data centers and other large loads. The repeated orders underscore that large-load reliability is already an operational issue across PJM, including West Virginia. U.S. Department of Energy, 2026-05-18; U.S. Department of Energy, 2026-06-30
  • State generation-development policy: enacted HB 5381 set a policy goal of increasing West Virginia’s generating capacity from roughly 16 GW to 50 GW by 2050 and requires the Office of Energy to deliver a comprehensive plan by December 1, 2026. The statute is not a data-center tariff or project approval, but it is a material supply-policy response in a period of rapid large-load recruitment. WV Governor, 2026-04-09; HB 5381 enrolled text, 2026-03-14
  • Advanced-baseload proposal failed: SB 942 would have created incentives and accelerated cost recovery for advanced nuclear or hydrogen produced from coal or gas with carbon capture, with resources eligible to directly serve high impact data centers or form part of a microgrid. It did not pass. WV Legislature SB 942 status, 2026-02-13

5) Utility load forecasts (data center demand in IRPs)

  • PJM load forecast (WV baseline): PJM’s 2024 West Virginia State Report projected modest state peak-load growth, but PJM’s 2026 regional forecast shows that the broader PJM footprint is being reshaped by data-center and other large-load adjustments. PJM 2024 West Virginia State Report, 2025; PJM 2026 Long-Term Load Forecast Report, 2026-01
  • West Virginia utility forecast evidence: The Maidsville PSC testimony provides a concrete West Virginia utility example of data-center load entering resource planning: a single large-load customer was forecast to reach 1,012 MW by 2033 and remain at that level through the forecast period. Dominion Post, 2026-06-01
  • Mason County microgrid load outside the local grid: Nscale’s Monarch Compute Campus plan is structured as an on-site microgrid AI data center campus; WCHS reported 2 GW initial capacity targeted for early 2028 and 8 GW expansion by 2031, while WVPB reported that the campus is expected to operate independently of the local grid. WCHS, 2026-03-16; West Virginia Public Broadcasting, 2026-03-17
  • Berkeley County grid-adjacent load: Penzance’s Bedington Campus was announced with 600 MW of critical IT capacity, and May 2026 reporting on a Martinsburg-Berkeley County Chamber event said the site’s advantages include proximity to the largest electrical substation in West Virginia and an intent to rely heavily on reclaimed water rather than potable supply. WV Governor, 2026-02-26; The Intelligencer, 2026-05-18

6) Behind-the-meter / co-location / direct supply

  • Microgrid pathway: West Virginia law authorizes certified microgrid districts and high impact data centers and preempts local regulation for certified projects, creating a state-backed pathway for behind-the-meter or independent utility-style data-center power supply. WV Code §5B-2-21b, current as of 2026-07-17
  • Tucker/Grant County example remains conceptual: Fundamental Data/Ridgeline described a dedicated-generation/data-center complex with a potential 5.2 GW scope. Commerce issued a June 18 notice that it appeared to require high impact certification, then rescinded that notice July 1 after Fundamental said the plans remained conceptual and it did not then own, operate, or lease the relevant property. WV News, 2026-06-19; WBOY via AOL, 2026-07-02
  • Mason County example: Nscale’s Monarch Compute Campus is being developed as an AI data center powered by a microgrid on a 2,200- to 2,250-acre Mason County campus, with operation expected by late 2027 or early 2028 depending on phase/source. West Virginia Public Broadcasting, 2026-03-17; WCHS, 2026-03-16
  • Monarch fuel-supply proposal: a proposed approximately 14-mile natural-gas pipeline through Putnam and Mason counties would supply the Monarch campus; a June 15 public meeting addressed a stormwater permit, and the associated comment period ran through June 25 without a project decision at the meeting. WSAZ, 2026-06-16
  • Berkeley County example: The Penzance Bedington Campus is the first state-designated High Impact Intelligence Center and is planned for 600 MW of critical IT capacity on a 548-acre site. WV Governor, 2026-02-26
  • Federal co-location backdrop: FERC’s RM26-4-000 proceeding, its June 18 PJM show-cause order, and PJM’s 2026 large-load filings make co-located generation/data-center arrangements a live regional issue for West Virginia projects in PJM. FERC, 2026-06-18; White & Case, 2026-03-12

7) Transmission constraints and upgrades

  • WV transmission upgrade pipeline: PJM’s 2024 West Virginia State Report listed approximately $2.497 billion of transmission investment in the state across baseline, network, and supplemental projects, making transmission availability and timing relevant to large-load siting. PJM 2024 West Virginia State Report, 2025
  • MidAtlantic Resiliency Link entered West Virginia siting review: NextEra applied in PSC Case 26-0075-E-CN for a 107.5-mile, 500 kV line from Pennsylvania to Virginia, including 58.9 miles across Monongalia, Preston, Mineral, and Hampshire counties. The PSC held four public-comment hearings June 4–11; the case remained pending on July 17, with an evidentiary hearing scheduled for October. PJM presents MARL as a regional reliability project, while West Virginia opponents contend that Northern Virginia data-center growth is a principal driver and question the local cost-benefit balance. Public Service Commission of West Virginia, 2026-04-09; PJM MARL fact sheet, 2025-12-04; WV News, 2026-05-28
  • Large-load integration reforms: PJM’s 2026 large-load plan and FERC’s June 18 PJM show-cause order address the same planning problem facing West Virginia projects: how to add very large loads while protecting reliability and cost allocation. PJM Inside Lines, 2026-02-27; FERC, 2026-06-18
  • Reliability stress indicators: DOE’s May and late-June emergency orders and PJM’s July capacity-auction shortfall show that backup-generation coordination and accelerating supply are no longer only long-term planning issues. U.S. Department of Energy, 2026-06-30; PJM, 2026-07-14

Notes and gaps