Grid Emergency Declared for Maryland, Delaware and More
State of MD - The U.S. Department of Energy has declared a power grid emergency for a large part of the country, including Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. The order gives the region's grid operator extra tools to keep power flowing while demand for electricity runs high this week.
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright signed Order No. 202-26-50 in Washington, D.C. on October 12, 2026. It is in effect from October 13, 2026, through October 16, 2026.
The order covers the area served by PJM Interconnection, which runs the power grid for all or parts of 13 states and the District of Columbia. The Delmarva Peninsula sits inside that region.
PJM asked for the order on October 11, 2026. It warned that "an imminent electric reliability emergency will exist that will threaten transmission reliability and the ability to serve load in the PJM Region due to a shortage of electric energy, a shortage of facilities for the generation of electric energy, and other causes."
PJM expects demand "at or around 111,500 MW (or higher)" on October 13, 2026. It also reported that "PJM is forecasted to be within 900 MW of its reserve margin on October 14, 2026." A reserve margin is the extra power a grid keeps on hand as a safety cushion.
The order says the biggest problems are expected in the BGE, PEPCO and Dominion zones. Those zones cover central Maryland, the Washington, D.C. area and much of Virginia.
PJM said demand is higher than normal, and many power plants are down for planned work during the fall outage season. Several power lines are also out for planned work, which can limit how much power can move from one area to another.
Under the order, PJM can tell certain power plants on a list to run beyond their normal operating limits when needed. That list will be posted on www.energy.gov.
PJM can also direct backup power systems at large power users to turn on. That includes backup generators and battery storage at data centers and other large industrial and commercial sites.
Those backup systems would only be used as a last resort. They would run right before or during the most serious level of grid emergency, which is the stage just before power would have to be cut to customers.
The order does not apply to backup generators that serve critical needs. That includes hospitals, 911 call centers, first responders, air traffic control, defense and homeland security sites, water and wastewater treatment plants, and natural gas pipeline facilities.
PJM said running plants harder could push some past their permit limits on sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, wastewater release and other pollutants. Units may only run when PJM decides it is needed, and they must follow environmental rules "to the maximum extent practicable." PJM must report to the Department of Energy each day on which units ran under the order.
The order does not announce any planned power outages, and its stated goal is to reduce the need to cut power to customers. If more time is needed, PJM must ask for a renewal before the order expires on October 16, 2026.
