NJBPU seeks utility input to implement Sherrill energy orders
Board directs four electric utilities to submit 30-day plans to speed clean energy connections and lower costs
TRENTON, N.J. — The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities on Wednesday issued a Request for Information to the state’s four electric utilities as the first step toward implementing new executive orders from Gov. Mikie Sherrill aimed at modernizing the electric grid and lowering energy costs.
The request directs Atlantic City Electric, Jersey Central Power & Light, Public Service Electric & Gas, and Rockland Electric Company to submit detailed responses within 30 days outlining how they will accelerate the interconnection of distributed energy resources, such as solar and energy storage systems, to New Jersey’s electric grid.
The RFI was issued in response to Executive Order No. 2, signed by Sherrill on Jan. 20, 2026, which calls on the Board to ensure utilities are fully complying with interconnection regulations and to identify additional ways to streamline the process.
“Addressing interconnection challenges is critical to lowering costs and getting clean energy online faster,” said Christine Guhl-Sadovy, president of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. “This RFI is the first step toward meeting Governor Sherrill’s Executive Orders and advancing grid modernization in New Jersey.”
State officials said New Jersey and the broader PJM Interconnection region are facing rapid growth in electricity demand, driven in part by data centers, which has contributed to rising electricity prices. As a historically net importer of power, New Jersey could reduce costs by increasing in-state generation, particularly through distributed energy resources that connect directly to the local distribution grid.
While solar deployment has expanded in recent years through programs such as Community Solar Energy and the Competitive Solar Incentive program, officials said progress has been limited by grid constraints on key distribution circuits. Hosting capacity — the amount of distributed generation that can be added without affecting reliability or safety — can be increased through infrastructure upgrades and advanced technologies such as smart inverters, according to the Board.
The RFI requires utilities to address five areas, including compliance with existing interconnection rules, opportunities to modify or waive regulations to improve efficiency, improvements to hosting capacity maps, identification of constrained or unreliable circuits, and plans for expanding energy storage and flexible interconnection protocols.
The Board has already adopted amendments to its interconnection rules under N.J.A.C. 14:8-5, and the executive order directs regulators to ensure those rules are fully implemented while identifying further opportunities to reduce delays.
Responses to the RFI are due by 5 p.m. March 5, 2026. Public comments will be accepted under Docket No. QO24030199. The full Request for Information is available through the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.
