PENNSYLVANIA — The Pennsylvania Solar Center is raising concerns about rising electricity prices after PJM Interconnection’s latest capacity auction projected a price increase of up to 5% for most Pennsylvanians. Sharon Pillar, Executive Director of the organization, issued a statement this week warning that future energy costs may continue to climb, especially following recent federal policy changes.
Pillar pointed to the outcome of PJM’s 2026–2027 Base Residual Auction, which closed at $329.17 per megawatt-day. She emphasized that this projected cost increase comes on top of a 10% or higher rise seen across many electric distribution utilities last year.
In her statement, Pillar criticized the federal budget bill recently signed into law by President Trump, which she claims undermines investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency. She noted that with the exception of Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania’s Republican congressional delegation supported the measure, which she believes will contribute to future rate hikes.
“Make no mistake – the high prices projected by PJM’s power capacity auction for 2026–27 will be even worse in the following years,” Pillar said.
Capacity pricing ensures power generators are paid to remain on standby to meet demand during peak usage, such as during extreme heat or cold. Pillar argued that renewable technologies like solar power and battery storage can reduce that peak demand and lessen reliance on expensive fossil-fuel-based generators.
She cited an example from a recent New England heat wave, where solar and battery systems helped avoid blackouts and reportedly saved consumers more than $8 million in a single day.
Pillar also raised concerns about increasing demand from large data centers planned for the Pittsburgh region, supported by federal and state leaders. She noted that the proposed build-out of nuclear and gas-fired plants to meet that demand could take up to seven years, while solar infrastructure could be deployed more quickly and at lower cost.
“In the meantime, as PJM’s capacity auction has shown, consumers will pay the price,” she said. “We should be building more cheap, clean energy, not less.”
Pillar’s comments come as PJM continues to express concerns about future grid reliability. Although the 2026–2027 auction marked the first increase in new generation in four years, PJM noted that tight supply conditions persist due to slow resource development and rising demand. The organization is working on regulatory reforms and using artificial intelligence to streamline processes ahead of its next auction in December 2025.
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