Talen soars on new power plant purchases in giant grid feeding Data Center Alley
Talen Energy soared early Thursday after the Houston-based utility said it had bought power plants in the massive PJM exchange, which has seen rising consumer prices linked to AI infrastructure.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday on how the run-up in prices has been a growing political headache for data center developers.
Yesterday, PJM cut its forecast for peak summer of 2027 demand, suggesting that data center electricity demand going forward may have been overstated.
But Talen’s purchase of natural gas-fueled plants — one in Indiana and two in Ohio — for $3.45 billion in cash and stock suggests the company remains bullish on the AI build-out, especially within the 13-state PJM grid. The nonprofit power grid serves 67 million people from New Jersey to Kentucky, and includes key areas of relatively high data center density such as Ohio and Virginia.
Early Thursday, Talen shares were up by the most since last July. This reaction to the latest in a string of acquisitions suggests Talen executives have an incentive to stay on offense.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday on how the run-up in prices has been a growing political headache for data center developers.
Yesterday, PJM cut its forecast for peak summer of 2027 demand, suggesting that data center electricity demand going forward may have been overstated.
But Talen’s purchase of natural gas-fueled plants — one in Indiana and two in Ohio — for $3.45 billion in cash and stock suggests the company remains bullish on the AI build-out, especially within the 13-state PJM grid. The nonprofit power grid serves 67 million people from New Jersey to Kentucky, and includes key areas of relatively high data center density such as Ohio and Virginia.
Early Thursday, Talen shares were up by the most since last July. This reaction to the latest in a string of acquisitions suggests Talen executives have an incentive to stay on offense.
