Energy Department Orders PJM To Dispatch Units, Backup Power Through Mid-October

Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times,

The U.S. Department of Energy on Oct. 12 issued an emergency order directing PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. grid operator, to dispatch specified generating units and order their operation as needed to maintain reliability.

The emergency order, Order No. 202-26-50, also authorizes PJM to direct backup generation resources ahead of declaring an Energy Emergency Alert 3 or during one. PJM may call on its transmission owners and electric distribution companies to carry out the order. The grid operator serves more than 65 million people across 13 states and the District of Columbia.

PJM filed the application on Oct. 11, forecasting demand “at or around 111,500 MW (or higher)” for Oct. 13. The company said the system would sit within 900 MW of its reserve margin on Oct. 14.

Anticipated generation outages were put at 61,591 MW, with the most acute pressure predicted to be in the BGE, PEPCO, and Dominion zones, which primarily serve Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright determined a statutory emergency existed, citing a sudden increase in demand, a shortage of electric energy, or the facilities needed for its generation or transmission. The order lasts from Oct. 13 through Oct. 16, when temperatures are expected to relent.

Similar emergency actions for the same region were issued during a summer heatwave. Wright issued two orders in June authorizing the dispatch of specific units and backup resources ahead of forecasted record demand.

“Maintaining affordable, reliable, and secure power in the PJM service territory is non-negotiable,” Wright said in a statement at the time. “The previous administration’s energy subtraction policies weakened the grid, leaving Americans more vulnerable during events like this. Thanks to President [Donald] Trump’s leadership, we are reversing those failures and using every available tool ensuring Americans in the Mid-Atlantic have continued access to affordable, reliable, and secure energy to power and cool their homes.”

Those directives were also in response to PJM applications.

Wright has repeatedly invoked section 202(c) to keep plants online. In May 2025, the department ordered PJM, in coordination with Constellation Energy, to continue operating two oil- and gas-fired units at the Eddystone Generating Station in Pennsylvania past their May 31 retirement date. The 820-megawatt plant’s units were kept available because of resource-adequacy concerns amid rising demand.

“Maintaining access to affordable, reliable, and secure power is always our top priority, particularly during the summer months when electricity demand reaches its peak,” Wright said. “Americans should never be left wondering whether they will be able to turn on their lights or air conditioning. This emergency order helps keep money in consumers’ pockets while keeping their homes and businesses fully powered. Energy shortfalls or unnecessary price increases are not options in this Administration.”

Wright said at a White House meeting that the Department of Energy under his leadership would prevent closure of plants before their retirement dates.

In September, a D.C. Circuit panel vacated one order that kept a Michigan coal plant from closing. The court found the department exceeded its authority, describing the statute as “essentially a narrow, last-resort backstop.”