On July 16, 2026, FERC directed the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to file new or modified Reliability Standards to address reliability risks to the Bulk Power System associated with the integration of computational loads, revise its Rules of Procedure necessary for registration of computational load entities, and submit a workplan pertaining to the same.

On October 23, 2025, the Secretary of Energy issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANOPR) pursuant to section 403 of the Department of Energy Organization Act directing FERC to consider reforms to ensure timely and orderly interconnection of large loads to the transmission system. In the ANOPR proceeding, NERC filed comments supporting the need for FERC action and explaining that its 2024 Long-Term Reliability Assessment identified that “demand growth is higher than at any point in the last two decades,” with particular challenges arising from large loads that “are substantially larger and constructed more quickly than prior loads using the [Bulk Power System].” NERC also explained that it had begun to assess and mitigate the reliability implications of large loads, such as reviewing whether revisions to existing Reliability Standards could mitigate impacts to the Bulk Power System and initiating an open stakeholder process. In supplemental comments filed on March 20, 2026, NERC announced an accelerated action plan under which it committed to file initial new or modified Reliability Standards, Glossary changes, and registry criteria revisions by December 31, 2026.

FERC stated that it agreed with NERC regarding the urgent need for action to assure that computational loads are reliability integrated into Bulk Power System operations. While FERC explained that it “support[ed] and encourage[d]” the activities NERC had already undertaken, “in light of the unprecedented load growth driven by data centers, it is imperative that NERC address the reliability concerns associated with computational loads in a timely manner and with greater certainty than provided by voluntary timelines.” Therefore, FERC directed NERC to develop by December 31, 2026, one or more new or modified Reliability Standards that address reliability concerns associated with the integration of computational loads into the Bulk Power System, along with any associated definitions to be included in the NERC Glossary of Terms. The December 31, 2026, deadline imposed by FERC is consistent with the timeline NERC had already proposed in its accelerated action plan; FERC’s order serves to make that timeline mandatory and enforceable rather than voluntary. FERC also directed NERC to revise by December 31, 2026, its Rules of Procedure, including registry criteria for computational load entities, and to submit by March 1, 2027, a more detailed informational filing describing its workplan regarding Reliability Standards relating to computational load integration.

FERC emphasized that it “expect[s] NERC to prioritize near-term measures capable of reduction identified reliability risks while preserving flexibility for subsequent refinements as additional experience is gained with large-load interconnections,” explaining that it “recognize[s] that both the nature of the computational load challenge and NERC’s understanding of it continue to evolve,” so it “do[es] not expect any submitted workplan to be fully comprehensive in its forecasting of future action.”

FERC’s order, issued in docket RD26-7, is available here.