FERC, the AI Rush, and the Quiet Attempt to Cancel Competition

I read the filing the way modern America reads power: on a glowing screen, coffee going cold, picturing a committee room at midnight where the microphones are off and the decisions are still happening. Docket numbers have replaced the town crier. The scent is familiar: paper, leverage, and that courthouse air of somebody angling for a favor.

What utilities asked FERC to do

This week, a coalition of big utilities and transmission companies asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to pause a core piece of transmission competition across large parts of the Midwest and Great Plains. The pitch is urgency: data centers and other new load are lining up, and we “cannot afford” delay. They want speed. Fair. I want speed too.

I just do not want the bill to come due as a quieter monopoly.

In plain English, the complaint seeks relief from competitive solicitation requirements for certain regional transmission projects in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) and Southwest Power Pool (SPP) regions. The companies argue that bidding requirements tied to FERC Order 1000 add about 16 to 20 months to project timelines on average, and they asked for a decision by July 16, 2026.

The proposed “fix”: two doors, same hallway

• Door one: Let projects skip competitive bidding when delay would hold up serving new generation or new load.
• Door two: Pause the solicitation requirement for five years in MISO and SPP, justified as a decisive window for infrastructure tied to an AI and data-center boom.

The Orwell check: when “speed” becomes a spell

Listen to the noble verbs: accelerate, streamline, modernize, secure, win. A group calling itself the Grid Acceleration Coalition is not subtle about the vibe. As reported, the broader frame leans into a “Speed to Power” story tied to the AI race with China.

My Orwell alarm goes off not because the grid is fine or data centers are imaginary, but because “AI race” is becoming an all-purpose solvent. Pour it on any guardrail and watch the bolts loosen.

The tradeoff: faster wires vs. fewer referees

Opponents, including pro-competition and consumer-aligned groups, argue this is less about speed than control. They point to competitive projects they say came in cheaper and on time, and warn that less competitive pressure can mean higher spending, which can mean higher earnings.

Utilities respond that time is the priority and that the benefits of competition are overstated. Critics answer that delays are broader than bidding: siting, permitting, supply chains, and regulatory sequencing.

Meanwhile, ratepayers live under the long-term tariff structure. Transmission costs land on monthly bills, and billing can begin before a project is delivering benefits, depending on the arrangement. Add one more uncomfortable possibility: stranded assets. If the AI buildout overpromises, relocates, or becomes more efficient, the wires do not disappear. Somebody still pays for the concrete.

The liberty ledger and the Paine test

Liberty ledger: incumbents gain discretion and fewer outside bidders asking “why so expensive?” Consumers and independent developers lose leverage, and the public loses trust.

The Paine test: does this expand liberty or concentrate power? A five-year pause, even wrapped in patriotic urgency, looks like concentrated power unless it is narrow, auditable, and truly temporary.

Guardrails that would make “speed” honest

• Narrow, time-limited relief with a real sunset date and public findings.
• Hard cost containment and schedule accountability, with consequences not quietly absorbed by ratepayers.
• Independent auditing of claimed time savings, project-by-project.
• A wider door for consumer advocates and large customer groups in the proceeding.

So yes: build the lines, serve the load, keep the lights on. Just do not tell me the only way to do that is to cancel competition for half a decade and let the same players who send the invoice grade their own homework. What condition would you require before you let FERC trade competition for speed?