WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Department of Energy ordered two oil- and natural gas-fired units at Constellation Energy Corporation’s Eddystone Generating Station in Pennsylvania to remain available through the summer as federal officials warn of mounting reliability risks across the Mid-Atlantic power grid.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued the emergency order directing PJM Interconnection and Constellation to keep Units 3 and 4 of the Eddystone plant operational through August 22, 2026. The units had originally been scheduled to retire on May 31, 2025.
The order reflects growing federal concern over tightening electricity supply margins in the PJM market, which serves 13 states and the District of Columbia, amid rising power demand and ongoing retirements of conventional generation assets.
“The energy sources that perform when you need them most are inherently the most valuable,” Wright said. “This emergency order will mitigate the risk of blackouts and help maintain affordable, reliable, and secure electricity access across the region.”
The Department of Energy said the Eddystone units were dispatched during periods of grid stress over the past year, including major summer heat waves and Winter Storm Fern, which drove elevated electricity demand across the region.
According to EPA data cited by the department, the Eddystone units generated 26,971 megawatt-hours of electricity between June and December 2025.
PJM has repeatedly warned that accelerating generator retirements, coupled with increasing electricity demand from data centers and electrification trends, could outpace the addition of new generating resources.
In supporting earlier federal intervention involving the Eddystone facility, PJM said it had “repeatedly documented and voiced its concerns over the growing risk of a supply and demand imbalance driven by the confluence of generator retirements and demand growth.”
The emergency action extends a series of federal orders first issued by Wright on May 30, 2025, that prevented the units from retiring as scheduled.
The Department of Energy referenced findings from its Resource Adequacy Report warning that power outages could increase “by 100 times” by 2030 if reliable generation continues to leave the grid without sufficient replacement capacity.
The order also directs PJM to use economic dispatch procedures intended to minimize operating costs while maintaining system reliability.
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