The mechanism: Every hyperscale data center campus needs one thing before it needs GPUs -- an interconnection agreement with a regional transmission organization or a vertically integrated utility. FERC's Order No. 2023 (2023) tried to fix the queue backlog by forcing transmission providers into "cluster studies" and a first-ready, first-served model instead of first-come, first-served. It helped some. It did not change the underlying physics: connecting gigawatts of new load still requires new transmission lines, step-up transformers, substations, and switchyards that take years to permit, engineer, and build -- regardless of how fast the paperwork moves. That physical bottleneck, not the software layer, is where the money actually gets made.
Energy
The Data Center Queue Is Backed Up for Years -- Quanta Gets Paid Either Way
FERC's interconnection reforms were supposed to speed up grid connections for new power demand; in practice, hyperscalers are still waiting years for lines, substations, and switchyards -- and one contractor builds nearly all of it, no matter which utility or which data center wins.
1-YEAR MOVE
PWR
▲65.6%
ETN
▲11.7%
CEG
▼35.8%
| Ticker | Company | 1-year change |
|---|---|---|
| PWR | Quanta Services | +65.6% |
| ETN | Eaton | +11.7% |
| CEG | Constellation Energy | −35.8% |