50 MW. That's where PJM's and NERC's proposed large-load rules start. Other utilities draw their own lines; Dominion's is 25 MW. Staying under your utility's cutoff means fewer hoops. It doesn't mean no homework.

The cutoffs, and what each brings:

Below a cutoff, the obligations that start at it don't apply. That's real value, and at ReadyInfra we've seen smart owners stay below their utility's cutoff for exactly that reason.

Recent example: Blackstart Digital agreed to buy IBM's former Almaden campus in San Jose, which it says runs on an on-site 25 MW substation. Energized infrastructure like that is the starting point.

The 12 power questions we ask before deciding

Is the power real?

  1. Energized, signed ESA, or just a utility letter? What MW and date are in writing?
  2. Contracted demand vs. 24-month measured peak?
  3. How much can the internal distribution actually deliver?

Does it stay under the line?

  1. Site peak load (not IT) vs. the lines that apply; does growth cross them?
  2. What affiliated load sits within the aggregation radius?
  3. Rate class, minimum charges, ratchets, years left?

Does it transfer and grow?

  1. Is the ESA assignable, or does a sale trigger re-application?
  2. Spare substation and feeder capacity; who owns the transformers?
  3. Upgrades inside the service: cost and lead time?

Will it stay up?

  1. Age and condition of switchgear, UPS, transformers?
  2. Generator coverage, run-hour permits, ride-through?
  3. Diverse feeds, and what does the outage history show?

Diligence teams: which of these trips up the deals you see most?

Sources

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