On May 21, 2026, FERC denied a complaint filed by Gaston Green Acres Solar, LLC (Gaston) and Bethel NC Hwy 11 Solar, LLC (Bethel) (collectively, with Gaston, Complainants) against PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM) arguing: (1) PJM’s Open Access Transmission Tariff (Tariff) is unjust and unreasonable because it prevented Complainants from withdrawing their generation projects from PJM’s generator interconnection process Transition Cycle No. 1 without penalty, and (2) in the alternative, FERC should order PJM to issue Bethel its own generation interconnection agreement (GIA) if PJM’s Tariff is not deemed to be unjust and unreasonable in this regard. FERC denied the complaint, finding the Complainants did not satisfy their burden under Federal Power Act section 206, failed to identify Tariff provisions requiring the issuance of a GIA for Bethel, and did not demonstrate that PJM violated its Tariff.

As established by PJM’s Order No. 2023 compliance proceedings, PJM began the transition from a serial first-come, first-served generator interconnection process to a first-ready, first-served clustered cycle approach in July 2023. As relevant here, under the Tariff, Transition Cycle No. 1 is one part of PJM’s transition process and requires three Readiness Deposits alongside three Decision Points. At Decision Point III, all three Readiness Deposits have been paid to PJM. Pursuant to the Tariff, at Decision Point III, PJM must refund all three Readiness Deposits if the project developer withdraws its service request and the developer’s Network Upgrade costs from Decision Point II to Decision Point III (1) increased overall by 35% or more, and (2) increased by more than $25,000 per MW.

Gaston entered the PJM generator interconnection queue with a 23 megawatt (MW) solar facility in August 2020. Bethel entered the PJM interconnection queue with a 70 MW solar facility in January 2020. Following the conclusion of Decision Point III, during the Final Agreement Negotiation Phase, PJM issued the Final System Impact (Retool 1) Study Reports, which reflected increases of 75.3% (approximately $300,000 per MW) and 57.7% (approximately $203,000) in Network Upgrade Costs, respectively, for each of the Complainants’ generation projects.

In their Complaint, Complainants requested that FERC (1) find the Tariff unjust and unreasonable because it does not permit a penalty-free withdrawal in the face of such Network Upgrade cost increases, (2) order refunds of Gaston’s and Bethel’s Readiness Deposits, and (3) order PJM to modify the Tariff to permit such penalty-free queue withdrawals. Complainants also argued FERC should require PJM to issue a separate GIA for Bethel’s project. PJM argued in response that the Complainants accepted the risk by moving past Decision Point III, PJM’s generator interconnection process is valid under the independent entity variation, and issuing a separate GIA for Bethel would violate the filed rate doctrine.

FERC denied the complaint, finding the Complainants did not demonstrate the Tariff was unjust and unreasonable due to the lack of a penalty-free withdrawal opportunity at the end of the generator interconnection process. FERC found the Complainants understood the risk of staying in the process after Decision Point III and that the Tariff’s framework provides a just and reasonable balance of providing finality alongside the risk of unexpected increases in Network Upgrade costs. FERC also found Complainants failed to identify Tariff provisions that would require PJM to issue a separate GIA for Bethel.

FERC’s order, issued in Docket No. EL26-39-000, is available here.