Grid Operator Calls for Two-Year Pause on Solar Projects, Citing Massive Backlog

"The nation’s largest electric grid operator, PJM Interconnection, is so clogged with requests from energy developers seeking connections to its  regional transmission network in the eastern United States that it is proposing a two-year pause on reviewing more than 1,200 energy projects, most of them solar power." An article by James Bruggers explains the logjam, which "threatens to put some solar developers in a financial bind and is raising questions about the feasibility of the Biden administration’s goal of having a carbon-free electricity grid in just 13 years."

With demand for solar projects spiking and their economic competitiveness growing as more states implement renewable energy incentives, PJM says it can't keep pace with the careful scrutiny needed to approve each project, Bruggers writes. To ease the backlog of pending projects, PJM proposes "a new approval process that puts projects that are the most ready for construction at the front of the line, and discourages those that might be more speculative or that have not secured all their financing" as well as the two-year delay.

Some compare the process to metered traffic lights at freeway on-ramps. "It feels like you should just get there as fast as you can. You shouldn’t have to pause in order to get on the highway. But actually it’s better for everyone if you do, even if it might be slightly worse for you, the individual traveler," explains Justin Vickers, staff attorney for the Environmental Law & Policy Center.

Trade group experts warn that more long-term systemic solutions are needed to "move the country toward better transmission and interconnection policies" and prevent future bottlenecks.