The mechanism. On June 18, 2026, FERC issued show cause orders to every jurisdictional grid operator — PJM, MISO, SPP, ISO-NE, NYISO, and the rest — under Docket RM26-4, giving each 60 days to either justify its existing interconnection tariff or rewrite it to handle "large loads." That's regulator-speak for data centers. PJM alone expects to host 70% of new U.S. data center demand and is projecting 30 gigawatts of incremental load by 2030. The reform menu FERC laid out — faster transmission-study processes, co-location and behind-the-meter rules, new flexible-load tariffs — isn't a spending bill. It's a set of procedural unlocks that let hyperscalers actually get power to sites already permitted and under construction. Layered on top, the 2026 National Electrical Code cycle and the newly revised UL 9540A large-scale fire test (6th edition, March 2026) are rewriting the switchgear, medium-voltage distribution, and battery/ESS safety specs that every gigawatt-scale campus must meet before it can energize. Both levers point at the same chokepoint: the electrical gear standing between the grid and the rack, not the poured concrete around it.
Who cashes in: