FirstEnergy Sees 26 GW of Data Center Demand by 2036, With 7.9 GW Contracted and a $2.7 Billion Plant Awaiting an Order
- Analysis Data Centers Grid Capacity
Marin Holt
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- Data center demand: 26 GW by 2036, 13,120 (MW) by 2031
- Contracted: 7.9 GW, nearly double since the start of 2026
- Maidsville: $2.7 billion, 1,200-MW gas plant plus 70 MW of solar
- Transmission: at least 25% or $4.75 billion over the $19 billion plan
- Q3 earnings: $557 million on revenue of $4.6 billion
FirstEnergy put its data center demand at 26 GW by 2036 in the third-quarter presentation it filed on October 27. Utility Dive reported that the long-term pipeline grew 4.8% to 26 GW in the third quarter from the second quarter. The Akron, Ohio utility holding company has 7.9 GW of contracted demand from large-load customers. That is nearly double since the beginning of the year. It is in active negotiations for approximately 4 GW of additional load, the earnings release says. The presentation table, in MW, splits the 2036 total of 26,950 into 7,880 contracted and 19,070 pipeline. The 2031 total is 13,120.
The company reported third-quarter GAAP earnings of $557 million, or $0.96 per share, on revenue of $4.6 billion. A year earlier it earned $441 million. Weather-adjusted load rose 1.2% to 40.1 million MWh in the quarter, Utility Dive reported. “We are seeing broad strength in manufacturing activity, including metals, oil and gas, and chemical sectors, along with increasing data center demand,” FirstEnergy CFO Jon Taylor said on the call.
Where the Load Sits
Ohio carries the largest share of the 2036 table at 9,360, with 2,570 contracted. West Virginia follows at 6,045, but only 175 of that is contracted and 5,870 is pipeline. Pennsylvania shows 5,410, Maryland 4,630 and New Jersey 1,505, all in MW. The presentation lists a further 117 GW of load studies that are not in the pipeline at all. FirstEnergy defines contracted demand as a contract to construct facilities or an electric service agreement.
“The first wave of data centers are expected to be online in the 2030 timeframe,” Brian Tierney, FirstEnergy chairman, president and CEO, said on the earnings call, according to Utility Dive. “The large customers that you might think of, the hyperscalers, the legitimate developers, are looking well beyond that, and they’re doing so across our service territory.”
Maidsville and the 3 GW RFP
The West Virginia pipeline jumped to 6 GW, up from 4.3 GW three months ago, Utility Dive reported. Monongahela Power and Potomac Edison are seeking West Virginia Public Service Commission approval for the Maidsville Energy Center. The roughly $2.7 billion project includes a 1,200-MW gas-fired plant and three solar projects totaling 70 MW. FirstEnergy expects a final order in the fourth quarter of 2026. It has secured turbines through a reservation agreement with Siemens, with delivery expected in 2030. It plans to fund about 35% of the Maidsville investment with equity or equity-like content. The company is negotiating with a data center customer as the long-term off-taker of the plant’s output, the presentation says.
“Maidsville is an important investment on its own, but we see it as the first of a broader set of opportunities in West Virginia,” Tierney said in the release. The utilities have issued a request for proposals for 3 GW of combined-cycle turbines to serve data center load in the state. FirstEnergy is also looking at bridge generation while it builds transmission and larger plants. Possible bridge options include reciprocating engines, fuel cells and batteries, Tierney said. A customer that wants a 1-GW campus often asks to start with a building of about 100 MW.
Why It Matters
The transmission bill follows the load. FirstEnergy expects data center demand to lift its transmission investment by at least 25%, or $4.75 billion, over its current $19 billion plan when the plan rolls forward to 2027-2031. Its rule of thumb is roughly $250 million of transmission network upgrades for each 1 GW of data center load. The release describes a five-year, $36 billion Energize365 capital investment. Upgrades tied to contracted demand signed since February 2026 are not yet in the 2026-2030 plan, the presentation notes, so that total grows from here. FirstEnergy deployed $4.9 billion in the first nine months of 2026.
The West Virginia numbers show how much of the growth is still paper. The state carries 6,045 of the 2036 table with 175 under contract, both in MW. The 1,200-MW Maidsville plant needs a commission order before the other major contracts are signed. The 3 GW turbine RFP and the bridge-power study answer a queue that does not yet have signed service agreements behind it.
Critical Perspective
FirstEnergy’s 26 GW is a 2036 figure, and 19,070 MW of it is pipeline rather than contract. West Virginia shows 6,045 MW on the table with 175 MW under contract, so the 1,200-MW Maidsville plant and the 3 GW turbine RFP are sized for load that has not signed. The presentation puts the Maidsville off-taker agreement in negotiation, not in hand, and the Siemens turbine reservation carries a 2030 delivery that assumes a fourth-quarter commission order. The $4.75 billion transmission uplift is a rule-of-thumb estimate at $250 million per GW, not a filed plan. If the contracted 7.9 GW arrives on time but the pipeline slips, who carries the cost of a $2.7 billion plant funded 35% with equity and built ahead of its customer?
Sources
- Utility Dive: FirstEnergy data center pipeline increases to 26 GW in Q3 (Oct 29, 2026)
- FirstEnergy Corp. news release, filed as SEC Form 8-K Exhibit 99.1: FirstEnergy Delivers Strong Third Quarter Results, Builds Momentum for Long-Term Growth (Oct 27, 2026)
- FirstEnergy Corp. 3Q 2026 Strategic and Financial Highlights, filed as SEC Form 8-K Exhibit 99.2 (Oct 27, 2026)
