Dynawatt — May 25, 2026
The weekly read on AI/data-center load growth and the US grid.
A note on what this is.
Dynawatt is a weekly brief on the collision now reshaping the American power system: demand for electricity from AI and data centers is growing faster than the grid can add supply, and the gap is being negotiated in real time — in interconnection queues, working-group filings, and tariff proceedings that rarely surface in the headlines.
This brief reads those primary sources so you don’t have to. Each week it surfaces the most consequential developments in large-load interconnection, generation buildout, and the rules being written to govern both — compiled from public ERCOT, ISO/RTO, and federal filings, in a plain, non-advocacy register. The aim is signal: what happened, and why it matters to anyone building, financing, or planning around grid capacity.
It is informational, independent, and not investment advice. This inaugural issue covers the last seven days.
Large-load & data-center
⚡ ERCOT updates LEL-SSO power-variation framework; proposes three regulatory options
ERCOT presented updated guidance on managing sub-synchronous oscillations caused by AI training loads’ rapid power fluctuations, which can stress synchronous generators and cause shaft fatigue. The framework quantifies maximum continuous terminal variation (MCTV) per location; ERCOT is now soliciting industry feedback on three compliance models — project-specific limits, tiered/hybrid, or system-wide uniform caps — to balance interconnection speed, flexibility, and grid stability.
ISO: ERCOT · Type: Large Load · Stage: Rule-change · State: TX
⚡ ERCOT studies 2-second LEL reconnection time, finds better grid stability
ERCOT evaluated voltage ride-through requirements for large electrical loads, testing reconnection times of 1 vs. 2 seconds post-fault across scenarios with 15.2 GW baseline load and up to 19.2 GW under higher-load conditions. Results indicate 2-second reconnection improves frequency settling and rate-of-change-of-frequency trends, supporting the NOGRR282 compliance framework for data-center and industrial loads.
ISO: ERCOT · Type: Large Load · Stage: Study · Capacity: 19.2 GW · State: TX
⚡ ERCOT Large Load Working Group charter approved by TAC
ERCOT’s Large Load Working Group charter received Technical Advisory Committee approval on April 23, 2025, formalizing governance and operational procedures for coordinating hyperscale data-center and AI-compute load integration into ERCOT’s system planning and interconnection processes.
ISO: ERCOT · Type: Large Load · Stage: Rule-change · State: TX
Grid, generation & regulatory
Atlas Complex: 3,200 MW solar + storage enters CAISO queue (La Paz County, AZ)
A 3,200 MW hybrid solar and battery storage project, Atlas Complex, has entered the CAISO interconnection queue in Arizona’s La Paz County — among the largest hybrid entries this cycle.
ISO: CAISO · Type: Hybrid · Stage: Queue-entry · Capacity: 3.2 GW · State: AZ
Jove Solar: 2,000 MW solar + storage enters CAISO queue
Jove Solar, a 2,000 MW photovoltaic-plus-storage hybrid in La Paz County, Arizona, has entered the CAISO interconnection queue, positioned to support California’s constrained summer-peak environment.
ISO: CAISO · Type: Hybrid · Stage: Queue-entry · Capacity: 2.0 GW · State: AZ
Angeleno Solar Farm: 1,150 MW hybrid enters CAISO queue
A 1,150 MW solar-plus-storage project in Los Angeles County has filed its initial interconnection request with CAISO — a major transmission-addition request amid rising state solar and storage targets.
ISO: CAISO · Type: Hybrid · Stage: Queue-entry · Capacity: 1.1 GW · State: CA
Windwalker Offshore: 1,000 MW offshore wind enters CAISO queue
Windwalker Offshore, a 1 GW offshore wind project in San Luis Obispo County, has filed a new interconnection request (Queue ID 1750), underscoring continued developer interest in offshore wind despite permitting and supply-chain headwinds.
ISO: CAISO · Type: Wind · Stage: Queue-entry · Capacity: 1.0 GW · State: CA
Bouse Solar + Storage: 1,000 MW hybrid enters CAISO queue (La Paz County, AZ)
Bouse Solar and Storage Plant, a 1,000 MW hybrid combining photovoltaic generation with battery storage, has entered the CAISO interconnection queue (Queue ID 2052), adding significant seasonal and diurnal balancing capability.
ISO: CAISO · Type: Hybrid · Stage: Queue-entry · Capacity: 1.0 GW · State: AZ
Dynawatt is an independent brief compiled from public sources (ERCOT Large Load Working Group, ISO/RTO interconnection queues, FERC & Federal Register filings). It is informational, non-advocacy, and not investment advice.