PJM Regional Transmission Expansion Plan Moves Ahead
Image courtesy of Georgi Todorov under Attribution 2.0 Generic Deed, resized to 700 x 391 pixels.
Last month (Feb. 2025), PJM approved the details of its Regional Transmission Expansion Plan. The development of the plan, as well as its approval, was a long and winding road, but ultimately the ends will justify the means. What follows is a brief summary of the recently approved plan.
Overview of PJM’s Regional Transmission Expansion Plan
The transmission expansion plan, coming in at a total cost of about $6.7 billion, aims to enhance reliability across PJM’s 13-state footprint. A key driver is to accommodate the anticipated accelerated load growth expected from new data centers planned for the region, as well as the expected proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs), in the coming years. In addition, the expansion will ease the ability to add more renewable energy sources into the grid.
A key element of the plan is the allocation of $4.6 billion worth of projects for the development of a “regional transmission backbone,” a 765-kV multi-state transmission network to be built by American Electric Power, Dominion Energy Virginia, and FirstEnergy. The idea is to fortify west-east regional power transfers.
Overall, the transmission expansion will cover a 260-mile line from West Virginia to Maryland, and another 155-mile line across Virginia. Both lines will be 765 kV, and will connect the AEP system in the western part of the PJM footprint to central and southern parts mainly in Virginia.
Despite the approvals, challenges lie ahead. One issue relates to cost. Specifically, equipment prices are increasing. Another issue relates to timing. For example, there are still lingering supply chain issues on transformers. According to PJM, it still can take 3 years to obtain cables and 4 years for transformers – twice as long as it took just 5 years ago.
That said, I believe PJM and its utility partners on the Regional Transmission Expansion Plan will rise to the occasion and complete the project on time and within budget. Fingers crossed!
