May 10, 2026 21:00:00

Maryland authorities have objected, arguing that it is unfair for residents who do not need the power transmission infrastructure and do not benefit from it to bear a cost burden of over 250 billion yen over 10 years.

The Maryland Office of Public Counsel (OPC) has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) against

PJM Interconnection (PJM), which operates the power grid in the eastern United States, for billing Maryland $2 billion (approximately 313 billion yen) for grid upgrade costs. The OPC argues that this will force consumers in the state to bear an additional $1.6 billion (approximately 250 billion yen) over a 10-year period.

OPC complaint challenges PJM cost rules for unfairly assigning $2 billion in data center-driven transmission costs to Marylanders
https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MDOPC/bulletins/415c9b6

Maryland citizens slapped with $2 billion power grid upgrade bill for out-of-state AI data centers — state complains to federal energy regulators, says additional cost breaks 'ratepayer protection pledge' promises | Tom's Hardware
https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/maryland-citizens-slapped-with-usd2-billion-grid-upgrade-bill-for-out-of-state-ai-data-centers-state-complains-to-federal-energy-regulators-says-additional-cost-breaks-ratepayer-protection-pledge-promises

PJM is the largest power transmission company in the United States, covering Washington D.C. and 13 eastern states, serving approximately 65 million customers, representing about 20% of the total population. These states, including Maryland, have many data centers, and infrastructure upgrades are needed to meet the demands of power-hungry AI systems.

Therefore, a $22 billion (approximately 3.45 trillion yen) renovation project is planned, of which $2 billion is planned to be recovered through fees paid to customers in Maryland. According to the OPC, the consumer burden will amount to $1.6 billion, with general customers paying $823 million (approximately 129 billion yen) at an average of $345 (approximately 54,000 yen) per customer, commercial customers paying $146 million (approximately 22.9 billion yen) at an average of $673 (approximately 105,000 yen) per customer, and industrial customers paying $629 million (approximately 98.5 billion yen) at an average of $15,074 (approximately 2.36 million yen) per customer.

OPC stated that this additional cost is not rationally related to the increased energy load occurring in Maryland, nor is it due to customers in Maryland being a cost factor, but simply a result of geographical proximity and PJM's cost allocation.

Developers of hyperscale data centers have pledged in a 'payer protection agreement' signed at the White House to 'bear appropriate renewal costs so that the costs of updating the power grid are not passed on to ordinary households.'

Therefore, OPC has requested remedial measures from FERC and is arguing that the costs should be billed directly to customers with large-scale data centers.

'Regardless of whether the data center growth forecasts materialize, we need new rules to replace outdated regulations that distort the incentives of power companies, which are in a position to greatly benefit from building the power grid,' said Maryland advisor David S. Rapp.