Thursday, October 29, 2026

PJM Interconnection Files Revised Reliability Backstop Generation Procurement Proposal With FERC; Looks To Hold Next Auction March 2027 With Price Cap Of $555/MW-Day

On October 29, the
PJM Interconnection announced it submitted an amended Reliability Backstop Generation Procurement Proposal with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

PJM said it modified three elements of the original filing: the method for determining the cost allocation for Reliability Backstop charges, LSE credit requirements and LSE exit responsibilities. 

An LSE is a regulated entity that buys or manages electrical energy supply for end-use customers.

The process is intended to fill the approximately 6,800 MW generating capacity shortfall, which will be recalculated with updated information given the new RBP timeline, from PJM’s 2028/2029 Base Residual Auction and to allocate the costs for that new capacity to the Large Loads that are driving them. 

The RBP still aims to secure resources for up to 15 years with a maximum willingness to pay equal to a MW-weighted average of $555/MW-day.

[Note: The current cap on PJM auction prices is $325/MW-day. Read more here.]

The shortfall in the last two capacity auctions conducted by PJM is driven by the rapid increase in electricity demand from Large Loads, which is outpacing the addition of new power supply.

The proposal includes two parallel paths: the RBP proposal and the ongoing facilitation of private bilateral contracts between Large Loads and capacity suppliers.

New Procurement Dates

The updated PJM proposal sets the timeline for the RBP procurement to launch March 1. Electric Distributors, the regulated entities that own the electric distribution system, will report new Large Load quantities prior to the March bid window opening. 

The bid window would close March 28, with the final procurement target and supply amounts determined on April 28, followed by posting of results on May 10.

Cost Allocation

PJM now proposes that cost allocation to load serving entities will be based on Large Load growth between the actual summer peak load in 2026 and the forecast for the 2028/2029 Delivery Year. 

For this time period, electric distribution companies will be required to provide PJM firm Large Load growth, and this will be assigned to each zone based on the zone’s contribution to load growth.

Click Here for a summary of the proposal.

Click Here for the PJM announcement and many more details.

The PJM Interconnection coordinates the wholesale electricity grid and markets for all or parts of 13 states—Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia—plus the District of Columbia.

Related Articles This Week:

-- Consumer Alert!  If You Shopped For Your Electric, Natural Gas Supplier In 2024, You Paid $350 Million Too Much For Energy  [PaEN] 

-- PJM Interconnection Files Revised Reliability Backstop Generation Procurement Proposal With FERC; Looks To Hold Next Auction March 2027 With Price Cap Of $555/MW-Day  [PaEN]

-- FracTracker Alliance: A.I. Data Center Developers Propose 12.5 GW Of Natural Gas-Fired Power Plants To Feed 12 Data Center Projects In Southwest PA  [PaEN]    

-- PennLive/LehighvalleyLive: Pennsylvania Now Has 80 Sites Targeted For A.I. Data Centers Statewide; We’ve Mapped, Tracked Each One

-- The Center Square: DEP Data Center Tracker Webpage Maps 73 Proposed/Unconfirmed A.I. Data Centers

-- Penn State Dickinson Law School Hosts Nov. 5 In-Person Symposium On A.I. Data Centers - A Problem-Solving Approach  [PaEN]

-- PA Dept. Of Human Services: Apply For Low Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) Starting Nov. 2

NewsClips:

-- WVIA Podcast: How And Why Electric, Natural Gas, Water Rates Are Increasing

-- PennLive: Home Heating Oil Prices Have Doubled Since 2025, As Customers Brace For Winter And High Costs 

-- WHYY: President’s Heating Oil Reserve Release Unlikely To Ease Sky-High Prices In Pennsylvania, Experts Say; Heating Oil Price Nearly Doubled Since Last Fall

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Why EQT Wants To Acquire Range Resources: Capture Growing Demand For Data Centers, Exports, Cut Operating Expenses $325 Million

-- Fortune: EQT Becomes Nation’s Leading Natural Gas ‘Juggernaut’ With A $13 Billion Deal As A.I. Data Center, Export Demand Surges

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EQT Natural Gas Driller To Acquire Range Resources In $50 Billion All Stock Deal 

-- Scranton Times Guest Essay: PPL Electric Building On Protections In Place So Growth Doesn’t Come At Utility Customers’ Expense - By Christine Martin, President Of PPL Utilities

-- Utility Dive: North American Electric Reliability Corp Takes First Step In Setting Reliability Standards For A.I. Data Centers, Cryptocurrency Miners, Other Computational Loads

[Posted: October 29, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

DCNR Fall Foliage Report Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: The Last Week To Experience The Best Of Fall’s Colorful Splendor

DCNR issued its fifth
Fall Foliage Report for October 29 - November 4 saying the fall foliage season is winding down, this could be the last great weekend to experience the colorful splendor of fall across a wide swath of Penn’s Woods.

Fantastic autumn shades can be seen from the middle and southern Appalachians to the southern Alleghenies and forests in southeastern PA. 

Click Here for the full report and regional details.

For fall festivals and experiences, visit the visitPA.com website. 

Visit Explore PA Trails and Get Outdoors PA for recreation areas near you.

Visit the PA Parks & Forests Foundation’s Events webpage and DCNR’s Calendar of Events for activities happening near you.

  For more information on state parks and forests and recreation in Pennsylvania, visit DCNR’s website.  Click Here to sign up for the Resource newsletter.

Related Articles This Week:

-- DCNR: Pennsylvania's Free State Parks Generate $16 In Economic Impact For Every $1 Invested  [PaEN]  

-- DCNR Fall Foliage Report Oct. 29 - Nov. 4: The Last Week To Experience The Best Of Fall’s Colorful Splendor   [PaEN]

-- DCNR State Parks Environmental Education News Highlights Teaching Treats And Tricks For Fall, Bat Week, Take A Hike!  [PaEN]  

-- Sponsor/Exhibitor Opportunities: PA Recreation & Park Society Conference & Expo March 16-19  [PaEN] 

-- PA Interfaith Power & Light, Partners Host Nov. 12 Webinar -- Canopy Calling: Tree Equity From The Roots Up, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.

NewsClips:

-- Chesapeake Bay Journal: Pennsylvania’s 2026 River Of The Year Award Goes To The Conestoga River

-- WVIA: Communities Across NE PA Receive $11.4 Million In DCNR Outdoor Recreation Grants [From Oct. 7]

-- PA Wilds: DCNR Invests $7.3 Million In Outdoor Recreation Grants In PA Wilds [From Oct. 7] 

-- WNEP: Hickory Run State Park Aims To Create The Region’s First State Park Escape Room In Carbon County 

-- Republican Herald: Schuylkill County Seeking Public’s Opinions On How To Improve Parks

-- Susquehanna Greenway: Use The Online Interactive Map To Explore Trails, Boat Launches And River Towns To Plan Your Next Susquehanna Greenway Adventure 

-- TribLive: Students, Volunteers Plant 200 Saplings At Unity, Westmoreland County St. Xavier  Nature Preserve To Create A Forest In 10 Years 

-- Morning Call: Environmental Group Has Plan To Protect Waterways Thru Riparian Stream Buffers 

-- Carnegie Museum Of Natural History - Pat McShea: [Freshwater] Mussel Memory In The Union City Aquatic Conservation Center Museum Collection

[Posted: October 29, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

Protect PT Hosts Nov. 18-19 Online Workshop On Living Near Shale Gas - How To Protect Yourself From Health, Environmental Impacts

The Westmoreland County-based
Protect PT will host a two-day online workshop November 18-19 On Living Near Shale Gas - How To Protect Yourself From Health, Environmental Impacts from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. both days.

When it comes to fracking, oil and gas developers don’t discriminate. Meaning: you could be at risk of having a well pad built within 500 feet of your home at any time.

Participants learn about the harms of living near oil and gas development, and ways that you can be proactive to keep you and your loved ones protected.

The Program will include presentations, Q&A sessions and a copy of the Protect PT Home Resource Guide.

Click Here to register and for more information.

Visit the Protect PT website to for more on programs, initiatives, upcoming events and how you can get involved.

-- PA Weekly Oil & Gas Compliance Snapshot - October 24 to 30

-- DEP: Fracking Fluid Hose Rupture Contaminates Range Resources Appalachia Shale Gas Pad, And Down The Well Pad Slope In Washington County  [PaEN]

-- DEP: Release From Diversified Production LLC Conventional Contaminated Water Pipeline Pollutes Field In Indiana County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Investigates Transfer Of Conventional Well Ownership, Finds Abandoned, Unplugged Well Leaking Gas 10 Feet From Apartment Building In Washington County  [PaEN] 

Related Articles This Week:

-- EPA Proposes Changes To OOOOb/c Oil & Gas Industry Methane Reduction Rules To Help Reduce Burdens On Oil & Gas Industry; Over 99% Of PA Conventional Well Owners Failed To Comply With DEP's 2022 Methane Rules  [PaEN]  

-- FracTracker Alliance: A.I. Data Center Developers Propose 12.5 GW Of Natural Gas-Fired Power Plants To Feed 12 Data Center Projects In Southwest PA  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Awards $2.4 Million Grant To Penn State To Study How Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Impact Health  [PaEN]

-- DEP Partners With Harrisburg University To Update, Digitize PA Oil & Gas Well Mapping [Video] 

-- Protect PT Hosts Nov. 18-19 Online Workshop On Living Near Shale Gas - How To Protect Yourself From Health, Environmental Impacts  [PaEN]

-- Consumer Alert!  If You Shopped For Your Electric, Natural Gas Supplier In 2024, You Paid $350 Million Too Much For Energy  [PaEN]  

NewsClips:

-- TribLive/AP: President Says He’s Ending Restrictions On Climate-Warming Methane From Oil & Gas Industry

-- The Allegheny Front: How A Federal Rollback Of Methane Reduction Rules For Oil & Gas Operations Could Impact Climate, Public Health 

-- Erie Times-News - Brian Whipkey: Conventional Well Plugging Hits Milestone In PA, But Thousands Remain To Be Fixed

-- PennLive: Home Heating Oil Prices Have Doubled Since 2025, As Customers Brace For Winter And High Costs

-- WHYY: President’s Heating Oil Reserve Release Unlikely To Ease Sky-High Prices In Pennsylvania, Experts Say; Heating Oil Price Nearly Doubled Since Last Fall

-- PA Petroleum Distributors Assn: No Change In Handling Of Dyed Diesel Fuel In PA 

-- AP: In His Own Words: President On Gasoline Prices And Energy Costs Since Launching The War With Iran: ‘We’re Making A Freaking Fortune’

-- Bloomberg: President To Ease Oil, Gas Well Methane Curbs In Bid To Lower Costs 

-- Bloomberg: US Natural Gas Price Falls To 6-Month Low On Warm Weather Forecast 

-- Bloomberg: European Natural Gas Just Hit Highest Price Since 2022 On Winter Risks

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Why EQT Wants To Acquire Range Resources: Capture Growing Demand For Data Centers, Exports, Cut Operating Expenses $325 Million

-- Fortune: EQT Becomes Nation’s Leading Natural Gas ‘Juggernaut’ With A $13 Billion Deal As A.I. Data Center, Export Demand Surges

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: EQT Natural Gas Driller To Acquire Range Resources In $50 Billion All Stock Deal 

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: EQT To Buy Range Resources In All Stock Deal

-- TribLive: EQT Moves To Acquire Range Resources In $13 Billion Stock Deal

[Posted: October 29, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

Sustainable Pittsburgh Summit To Bring Global Climate Finance Leader Peter Fusaro To Pittsburgh Nov. 18

What will it take to turn the enormous changes underway in energy, technology, and finance into opportunity here in Pittsburgh?

That question will take center stage on November 18, when Sustainable Pittsburgh hosts its annual Sustainable Pittsburgh Summit: Grounded Locally, Connected Globally at the Lexus Club at PPG Paints Arena.

The summit will feature a keynote address from Peter Fusaro, New York Times best-selling author and internationally recognized thought leader on climate-change investment, sustainable finance, and the global energy transition. 

Fusaro is the founder of the Wall Street Green Summit, now in its 26th year, which brings together leaders at the intersection of finance, technology, and climate. 

He also launched Wall Street Green Cap Intro, connecting investors with emerging ClimateTech companies, and has advised numerous ClimateTech startups.

For more than five decades, Fusaro has worked at the intersection of energy, finance, technology, and environmental policy, helping governments, corporations, and investors understand the challenges and economic opportunities created by major shifts in the energy system.

“Peter brings an extraordinary perspective to a conversation that Pittsburgh needs to be having right now,” said Sean Luther, chair of Sustainable Pittsburgh Board of Directors. 

“Our region has a long history of adapting to major economic and technological shifts. Today, we have an opportunity to think proactively about how Pittsburgh can lead in the emerging economy, and how we can make sure that innovation, investment and opportunity translate into lasting benefits for our communities.”

Moving From Solutions From Ideas To Technology

That question will be spotlighted with Funding What’s Next: Innovation, Investment and Impact, a featured conversation focused on one of the most important questions facing the sustainable economy.

The conversation will bring together perspectives from philanthropy, venture capital, and emerging technology, featuring:

-- Chris DeCardy, President, The Heinz Endowments

-- Joe Blair, General Partner, Bay Bridge Ventures

-- Colin Huwyler, CEO, Optimus Technologies

-- Dr. Reeja Jayan, Founder and CEO, SeaLion Energy

Together, the panelists will explore how capital, innovation, and investment can help bring the next generation of sustainable technologies to market.

The conversation reflects the summit’s broader focus on connecting global trends with practical opportunities in Southwestern Pennsylvania. 

Rather than viewing sustainability solely through an environmental lens, the summit will examine the systems increasingly shaping the region’s economic future, from energy and technology to capital, workforce, supply chains, and artificial intelligence.

Grounded Locally, Connected Globally

Pittsburgh sits at the center of these converging forces: a region built on industry, powered by world-class research and talent, and increasingly recognized as a hub for innovation and emerging technology.

The summit will bring together business and organizational leaders, sustainability professionals, executives and decision-makers, investors and funders, entrepreneurs, public-sector and civic leaders, university and research leaders, workforce professionals, nonprofit and community leaders, and emerging professionals.

“Pittsburgh doesn’t have to choose between being grounded in its history and looking toward the future,” said Bhavini Patel, executive director of Sustainable Pittsburgh. “We can do both. Our history gives us the experience, our institutions give us the knowledge, and our people give us the capacity to build something new. This summit is about connecting those strengths to the global forces that are shaping what comes next.”

To register and for more information, visit the Sustainable Pittsburgh Summit: Grounded Locally, Connected Globally webpage.

Related Article This Week:

-- Six Pennsylvania, Two North Carolina Colleges, Universities Help Bring 150 MW Solar Energy Facility Online In Kentucky  [PaEN]  

-- Philadelphia Solar Energy Assn. Hosts Nov. 5 Webinar On New Ways For Homeowners, Businesses, Churches To Go Solar And Save On Your Energy Bills  [PaEN]

-- DEP, Agriculture Award $971,000 RISE PA Grant To Jubilee Dairy In Dauphin County To Turn Farm Waste Into Energy, Cutting Costs, Reducing Air Pollution  [PaEN]

-- PennTAP: Simple Upgrades Funded By RISE PA Helped Blair Image Elements Stay Globally Competitive By Reducing Energy Costs And Local Air Pollution In Blair County 

-- Sustainable Pittsburgh Summit To Bring Global Climate Finance Leader Peter Fusaro To Pittsburgh Nov. 18  [PaEN] 

-- PennDOT Invests $37 Million In Federal Funds To Building More Than 500 Electric Vehicle Charging Ports In Southeast PA; Applications Being Accepted For Grants In Western, Central, Eastern PA  [PaEN]

-- DEP Awards $19.6 Million To Support 18 Local Projects In 15 Counties To Reduce Diesel Emissions From Freight, Cargo Transportation Thru Driving PA Forward Initiative  [PaEN]  

NewsClips:

-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: Can This Josh Fox Film Change Our Understanding Of The Climate And Human Migration Crisis

-- AP: UN Report: US Is Big Reason For World Losing Ground In The Fight Against Climate Change

[Posted: October 29, 2026]  PA Environment Digest

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