FERC’s Large Load Action Makes the Case for Speed to Power

FERC’s latest action on large load integration sends a clear message: speed to power is now central to reliability, affordability, and economic competitiveness.

Data centers, advanced manufacturing, electrification, and industrial growth are increasing demand faster than traditional transmission timelines can often support. FERC is right to focus on faster processes, clearer cost allocation, and better rules for how large loads connect to the system.

But process reform alone will not be enough. Speed to power also depends on a more flexible grid.

Speed to power is not only a process issue

In many cases, the challenge is not simply that the grid needs more wires. It is that the existing network is not being used as effectively as it could be.

Power follows physics, not planning intent. One line can become overloaded while nearby infrastructure still has available capacity. That creates congestion, delays interconnections, limits load service, and can force utilities into expensive upgrades that take years to complete.

Why flexibility matters for large loads

Large loads are arriving on timelines that do not always match traditional transmission development. A data center or manufacturing facility may need a path to power in months, while major network upgrades can take years to plan, permit, and build.

This is where Advanced Power Flow Control can play an important role.

APFC gives grid operators more control over how power flows across the transmission system. It can help move power away from constrained lines and onto parts of the network with available capacity, creating additional usable transfer capability from infrastructure that is already in place.

• It can support speed to power by relieving targeted constraints on the existing network.
• It can improve reliability by giving operators more control under changing system conditions.
• It can protect customers by reducing reliance on larger, slower, or more disruptive upgrades where a faster solution can meet the need.

Using every tool in the right sequence

This is not an argument against building new transmission. The United States needs more transmission, and it needs it urgently.

But the industry also needs to be practical about timing. When demand is moving quickly, utilities and grid operators should not have to wait years to solve constraints that can be addressed sooner with advanced technologies.

The right approach is sequencing: use flexible grid technologies to create capacity now, improve speed to power for customers, and continue building the larger infrastructure the system will need over time.

Contributing Expert

Joaquin Peirano

General Manager, Americas

Joaquin Peirano is General Manager for the Americas at Smart Wires, leading commercial and operational activities across North, Central, and South America. He has over 15 years of experience in the energy sector and has been with Smart Wires since 2017. He holds a Master of Engineering Management from Dartmouth College.