Gov Shapiro's Prepared Remarks: 13-State Summit on Future of PJM Interconnection | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA - Today, Governor Josh Shapiro delivered opening remarks at the Summit on the State of PJM Interconnection in Philadelphia, a historic convening bringing together representatives from all 13 PJM states and key stakeholders from across the region. During his remarks, the Governor will underscore the urgent need for PJM to modernize and adapt in order to meet the energy demands of 65 million Americans across the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest.

The Governor's remarks can be viewed here.

See below for the Governor's remarks as prepared for delivery:

Thank you all for joining us here today in Philadelphia for an historic meeting.

You see, it was here in Philadelphia that PJM was founded 98 years ago.

What began as a partnership between utilities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey has grown over the last century to encompass 13 states and provide energy for 67 million Americans.

But in 98 years, there has never been a meeting like this - bringing together representatives from all 13 states that make up the PJM grid to get around the table, take stock of the challenges facing this grid we've all come to rely on, and think creatively about potential solutions.

You're making history - and I thank each of you for joining us today.

Because it's time to think big and work together to reimagine the future of PJM - to build a grid that works better for Pennsylvania and each of our states.

Let's face it: change is needed to keep energy costs low, bring new energy generation onto the grid more quickly, and meet the needs of the 67 million Americans who rely on this grid for everything from running a business to keeping the lights on at home.

We've gathered here today at an inflection point.

PJM staff do important work every single day, coordinating the flow of power across our states and ensuring that homes and businesses have a power supply they can rely on, even in the most challenging conditions.

Over the past thirty years, our states have given PJM more and more responsibility.

We now count on PJM to not only coordinate the flow of electricity, but to ensure we have enough power plants to serve the grid.

But over the last few years, PJM has been too slow to let new generation through its queue to join the grid at a time when demand for energy is going up.

PJM has a D-minus rating for the speed of its interconnection queue.

Those delays threaten the very energy projects PJM says we need.

This slow, reactive approach is no longer working for our states and the communities we serve.

And it's all happening at a time when the Trump Administration is cutting funding for new energy projects that are almost complete, at a time when we need more generation.

The result has been dramatically increased prices in PJM's capacity auctions.

And that has led to higher energy bills for consumers across the grid.

As Governor of this great Commonwealth, I represent 13 million Pennsylvanians - and I can tell you: they can't afford never ending price increases.

I think my fellow Governors - who are all represented here today - would agree.

Yet despite these significant challenges, there is no forum for elected officials to have a say in PJM's decisions.

In other parts of the country, states have far more representation in the governance of their shared grid.

For the largest grid in the nation to have the fewest avenues for customers and their elected representatives to be heard is unacceptable.

Our states and our citizens deserve better, especially from an institution that was founded right here in Philadelphia, the birthplace of American democracy.

Let me give you just one example of why this is a problem.

Last year, when I got wind that the 2025 auction would potentially be the highest ever, I immediately objected, because it would have cost ratepayers over 20 billion dollars a year - and we still wouldn't have gotten the power plants we need through PJM's queue.

That was unacceptable to me.

And I told PJM that.

I spent months working behind the scenes with PJM leaders to try and find a different path forward - one that spared ratepayers unnecessary rate hikes and did more to bring new power plants online faster.

When we couldn't come to an agreement, I sued them.

And a bunch of the states represented here today joined me.

The Governors of Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, and Illinois saw that we were standing up for consumers and joined us.

But one thing I've learned over the years as Pennsylvania's Attorney General and Governor is that you've got to keep talking.

Even after you file a lawsuit, you need to keep the conversation going.

Because if you keep talking, you may eventually find a way forward.

So that's what we did.

And as a result of our efforts, we reached an agreement with PJM that staved off the kind of price increases they were talking about - saving ratepayers over 16 billion dollars over the next two years.

That's a huge win for consumers in our states.

But it shouldn't take going to court to have our voices - and the voices of the 67 million Americans who are served by the PJM grid - heard by PJM leadership.

Now, I want to be very clear, even as I work to protect consumers, I also know that we need to bring more affordable power online.

That's why I pushed PJM to expedite the interconnection of new energy generators here in Pennsylvania, including the Crane Clean Energy Center, which will be ready to connect to the grid a year earlier than originally expected.

I'm an all-of-the-above energy Governor.

And with a commonsense strategy inspired by Ben Franklin - the Lightning Plan - we're doing our part by building more power in the Commonwealth, creating good-paying jobs, and delivering long-term savings for Pennsylvanians.

We've made important progress - here in Pennsylvania, and in states across this region.

And we've seen what we can accomplish when Governors speak with a unified voice and make our concerns heard.

I believe we need to do more of that - and I look forward to working more closely with my fellow governors of both parties on this.

I'm hopeful that one outcome of this conference will be greater collaboration between our states to address the serious problems PJM has - and a greater voice in the process.

This system needs real reform.

And that's what we've brought you all here today to work on.

Look, I know we all have different perspectives when it comes to these problems.

I'm on the government side - trying to make sure Pennsylvania consumers have reliable access to affordable energy every single time they flip a switch.

We've asked all of you to come to the table today because all of us have a different piece of this puzzle - but right now, I think we're all looking at the same picture.

We can't keep doing what we've been doing in this rapidly changing world and expect it to work.

It's not working anymore.

And it's time to get serious about the need for significant reform.

I won't stand for a status quo that perpetuates slowdowns and rising costs.

In Pennsylvania, we're moving at the speed of business.

And PJM can't move fast enough, if we need to chart a new course that delivers more for the good people of Pennsylvania - we will.

Pennsylvania is the second largest energy producer in the country - and by far the largest generator of energy in the entire PJM network.

If we're forced to go in a different direction, that will have a significant impact here in this region and across the country.

To be clear - that's not a path I'm eager to chart.

For nearly a century, Pennsylvanians have trusted the PJM grid to keep the lights on.

We believe in the promise of PJM's markets.

PJM was a Pennsylvania success story.

I want it to be one again.

But for that to happen, we've got to really grapple with some serious questions about how this market should work, and how it can be governed more effectively.

How it can bring new generation to the grid in a way that's affordable for families and consumers, and be responsive to those families and their elected representatives.

As we confront rising energy demand, is PJM's capacity market, which we have entrusted with balancing energy supply and demand and maintaining resource adequacy, capable of bringing new energy resources onto the grid at prices that are affordable to consumers?

And if it isn't, what's next?

That's what we need to explore here today.

Now hear me on this: exploring what comes next for PJM and the 13 states who have come here today doesn't mean going backward to the same approaches we've used before.

It means looking forward and really grappling with how we can work together to meet our region's energy needs while keeping costs down.

I challenge each of you not to retreat to your separate corners and familiar arguments, but to approach today's conversations with the clarity that there are significant challenges to solve - and with the ambition to think big and put all ideas on the table.

It was here in Philadelphia that PJM was founded 98 years ago.

This is where it all started.

And this is where we can start writing the next chapter - together.

Thank you.