{"id":"us-southeast","rid":"SE","name":"US Southeast (Atlanta)","flag":"🇺🇸","group":"us","type":"market","parent":null,"regions":null,"tier_range":null,"tier":2,"tier_name":"Strong","score":65,"pillar_score":69,"pillar_tier":2,"pillar_tier_name":"Strong","reliability":{"assessed":true,"level":"watch","dock":4,"provisional":false,"confidence":"Med-High","delivery_transmission":{"level":"watch","measure":"event-based","note":"Winter Storm Elliott (Dec 2022) forced rolling blackouts at TVA (its first ever) and Duke Energy in the Carolinas when cold knocked out coal and gas generation; imports prevented wider outages.","sources":[{"label":"FERC Dec 2022 Winter Storm Elliott review","url":"https://ferc.gov/sites/default/files/2023-09/Presentation%20-%20Elliott_F-R_Open_Mtg_(9-21-23).pdf"}]},"delivery_distribution":{"level":"none"},"forward_capacity":{"level":"watch","measure":"modelled","note":"Winter generation adequacy under extreme cold is the main forward risk; largely vertically integrated utilities are adding capacity."},"read":"Minor flags found","level_means":"reviewed; flags found"},"reliability_dock":4,"regulatory_momentum":{"level":"mixed","direction":"improving","why":"Georgia's PSC now requires any new load of 100 MW or more to sign a customized contract with financial guarantees, terms up to 15 years and minimum payments (in force since 1 February 2025), and in December 2025 approved roughly 10 GW of new generation, about 80 percent to serve data centres, with cost protections for residential customers. Access is managed and selective but genuinely open.","what_would_change_it":"The customized-contract regime and the April 2026 Customer Identified Resource programme delivering firm, predictable connection at scale.","scope":"The regulatory and permitting environment for connecting a new large load. An opinion on a dated record, not a measurement.","vocabulary_version":"regulatory-momentum-1.0"},"scheduled_changes":null,"queue":{"active_gw":153,"wait_months":null,"has_detail":true,"wait_band":"4-5 years"},"friction":null,"connection_pathway":null,"service_evidence":{"contractual_service_held":true,"local_capacity_state":"not_assessed","local_capacity_depth":0,"cost_basis":null,"territory_count":6},"reliability_metrics":{"saidi_min":114.26,"saidi_year":"2024","forward_adequacy":null,"measure":"historical utility-territory delivery performance","standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","standard_note":"major event days identified by IEEE 1366 (2.5-beta method)","evidence_role":"market_context","by_serving_utility":[{"customers":2717959,"saidi_minutes":127.94,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"Georgia Power Co","utility_id":7140,"weight":0.7354},{"customers":268760,"saidi_minutes":73.94,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"Jackson Electric Member Corp - (GA)","utility_id":9601,"weight":0.0727},{"customers":218807,"saidi_minutes":35.12,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"Cobb Electric Membership Corp","utility_id":3916,"weight":0.0592},{"customers":200598,"saidi_minutes":45.7,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"Sawnee Electric Membership Corporation","utility_id":16865,"weight":0.0543},{"customers":149514,"saidi_minutes":94.99,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"GreyStone Power Corporation","utility_id":7090,"weight":0.0405},{"customers":140132,"saidi_minutes":168.48,"standard":"IEEE_STANDARD","state":"GA","utility":"Walton Electric Member Corp","utility_id":20065,"weight":0.0379}],"evidence_role_basis":"comparison and monitoring only: a customer-weighted regional blend is not the record of the utility that would serve a specific site"},"forward_cost":null,"tariff":null,"realized_cost":null,"cost_availability":{"label":"Availability varies by jurisdiction","means":"The jurisdictions inside this region hold different cost-evidence states, in some cases opposite ones. No single regional availability is published, because any one of them would be false somewhere in the footprint.","user_action":"Identify the jurisdiction the site sits in and read that record. Do not apply one jurisdiction's conclusion to the region.","class":"varies_by_jurisdiction","by_jurisdiction":{"georgia":{"name":"Georgia","availability":"customer_specific","evidence_state":"structurally_unavailable"},"north_carolina":{"name":"North Carolina","availability":"contingent_evolving","evidence_state":"contingent_evolving"}},"band_published":false},"cost_evidence_state":{"state":"structurally_unavailable","answerable":false,"label":"Structurally unavailable","means":"No public evidence can establish this cost, because the archetype is contract-served in this market rather than tariff-served. There is no posted figure to find.","remedy":"Filed or executed contract terms, or a published contract-based rate. Searching for a tariff schedule will not close it.","also_holds":["inapplicable","applicable_evidence_incomplete"],"vocabulary_version":"evidence-state-1.0"},"jurisdiction_evidence":{"parent_state":"varies_by_jurisdiction","parent_state_means":"PowerGridIQ holds different, and in this case opposite, cost-evidence states for the jurisdictions inside this region. No single regional conclusion is published because any one of them would be false somewhere in the footprint.","jurisdiction_required":true,"jurisdiction_required_text":"This region requires a jurisdiction. Ask which state the site is in, then read that jurisdiction's record. Do not apply one jurisdiction's conclusion to the region.","version":"jurisdiction-evidence-1.0","jurisdictions":{"georgia":{"name":"Georgia","evidence_state":"structurally_unavailable","availability":"customer_specific","authority":"Georgia Public Service Commission","proceeding":"Docket 44280","proceeding_status":"approved","source_date":"2025-02-01","threshold":"expected peak demand of 100 MW or greater","what_is_known":"Georgia Power closed its standard rate schedules to new large loads on 1 February 2025 and requires an individually negotiated contract instead. Docket 44280 then added minimum billing requirements and longer contract terms at the 100 MW threshold -- rules ABOUT contracts, not a schedule replacing them. The archetype cannot take a posted rate here.","what_would_change_it":"A posted large-load schedule a new 100 MW customer could take without an individually negotiated contract.","next_milestone":null},"north_carolina":{"name":"North Carolina","evidence_state":"contingent_evolving","availability":"contingent_evolving","authority":"North Carolina Utilities Commission","proceeding":"E-7 SUB 1329 (Duke Energy rate review settlement)","proceeding_status":"pending","source_date":"2026-08-14","threshold":null,"what_is_known":"Duke previously contended its large-load intake did not warrant new tariff rules. Stipulating parties in the rate review now support a separate expedited proceeding dedicated to establishing a formal Large Load Tariff before new rates take effect. A posted rate does not exist yet, but a named proceeding to create one does.","what_would_change_it":"The expedited proceeding concluding with an approved Large Load Tariff, and its eligibility covering a 100 MW load at a 95% load factor.","next_milestone":"The expedited Large Load Tariff proceeding, to be held before new rates take effect. No date is published in the source held."}}},"cost_structure":{"basis":"contract_negotiated","text":"For the standard 100 MW archetype this market is contract-served, not tariff-served. No posted schedule applies, so no tariff-based cost decomposition can exist for it.","since":"2025-02-01","threshold":"100 MW of expected peak demand","rule":"Georgia PSC rule approved 23 Jan 2025, effective 1 Feb 2025: new large loads negotiate an individual contract with financial guarantees, long terms, minimum bills and Commission preapproval. Standard schedules including PLL-18 are closed to new large-load customers.","source":"Georgia Public Service Commission, Data Center Fact Sheet (March 2026)","source_url":"https://psc.ga.gov/site/downloads/datacenterfactsheet.pdf","what_would_close_it":"Executed large-load contract terms filed with the Commission, or a published contract-based rate the archetype could actually be offered. A posted tariff schedule will not do, because the archetype cannot take one."},"cost_withdrawn":{"defect":"#316","reason":"The band was anchored on a regulated bundled industrial tariff that a new 100 MW load cannot take: Georgia closed its standard schedules to new large loads on 1 February 2025 and requires an individually negotiated contract instead. The band's primary source was also EIA industrial monthly pricing, which may serve only as a lagged validation layer and not as the headline large-load price.","withdrawn":"2026-08-20","restore_when":"Executed or filed large-load contract terms for a comparable customer, or a published contract-based rate the archetype could actually be offered, with a stated cost boundary, effective date, method and confidence. EIA industrial pricing may corroborate such a band but may not be its primary source.","related_defects":["#316 tariff anchor unavailable to the archetype","#316b EIA industrial average used as the primary band source"],"consequence":"No delivered-cost band is published for this market. Cost-dependent conclusions return insufficient_evidence rather than a substituted value."},"cost_correction":null,"carbon_correction":null,"carbon_official_reference":null,"partial_cost_verified":null,"cost_pillar_calculation":null,"evidence":{"source_reliability":"High","coverage":"Substantial","coverage_dimensions":2,"last_reviewed":"June 2026","measured_layers":2,"data_layers":2,"layers":[{"layer":"PGIQ Rating opinion","method":"opinion","vintage":"June 2026","freshness":"Current","source_url":"https://powergridiq.com/methodology"},{"layer":"Reliability","method":"measured","vintage":"2024","freshness":"Fresh","source_url":"https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia861/"},{"layer":"Interconnection queue","method":"measured","vintage":"end-2025 (LBNL 2026)","freshness":"Fresh","source_url":"https://emp.lbl.gov/queues"}]},"outlook":"Positive","confidence":"Med","under_review":false,"thesis":"A top-three North American market that is building fast and cheaper than the coasts. Atlanta has around two gigawatts under construction, Southern Company is adding gas and solar, and access is workable. Strong and on an improving path.","pillars":{"access":65,"availability":60,"cost":72,"momentum":88,"carbon":60},"pillar_rationale":{"access":"Workable access: faster than PJM, with utility-led connection and active large-load accommodation.","availability":"Moderate availability: Southern Company is adding gas and solar to keep pace with the build.","cost":"Reasonable cost: mid-range wholesale, cheaper than the coastal hubs.","momentum":"Very high momentum: ~2 GW under construction, a top-three NA market by inventory growth.","carbon":"Carbon moderate (~270 g), gas-and-nuclear with rising solar."},"offtake_opportunity_index":89,"demand_hunger":50,"build_feasibility":71,"supplier_signals":{"bess_arbitrage_usd_mwh":27,"bess_arbitrage_pct":62,"solar_capture_pct":106,"wind_capture_pct":99,"effective_competing_supply_gw":38.2},"outlook_drivers":{"upgrade":["Sustained 2 GW-plus build energizes on schedule.","Vogtle nuclear and solar lower carbon and firm supply."],"downgrade":["Supply additions lag the build and tighten availability.","Local opposition to large loads."]},"risks":["Availability keeping pace with rapid build.","Summer cooling peaks."],"peers":{"like":"Phoenix (fast-building, mid-cost)","ahead":"Northern Virginia on cost and access","behind":"ERCOT on openness"},"sources":[{"label":"North American data-center records, CBRE","url":"https://www.cbre.com/press-releases/fast-growing-north-american-data-center-market-set-records-in-2025"}],"latest_action":{"date":"June 2026","type":"New rating","note":"New rating: Tier 2 Strong assigned.","trigger":null},"grid":{"price_usd_mwh":44,"carbon_intensity_g":280,"renewable_pct":22,"renewable_generation_share_pct":22,"low_carbon_generation_share_pct":50,"fuel_mix":{"gas":38,"nuclear":28,"coal":12,"hydro":8,"wind":5,"solar":8,"biofuel":1},"demand_mw":48000,"capacity_mw":110000,"imports_mw":1000,"exports_mw":1500,"firm_capacity_mw":null,"firm_capacity_availability":"insufficient_evidence","firm_capacity_basis":null,"est_peak_mw":60000,"firm_headroom_mw":null,"firm_headroom_availability":"dependency_unavailable","peak_stress_pct":null,"peak_stress_availability":"dependency_unavailable","adequacy_required_input":"capacity_mix_mw with a declared basis, or an official dependable or accredited capacity from the operator","price_cycle":"other","price_basis":"not_reviewed","price_absent_reason":null,"price_source":"modelled-baseline","price_as_of":null,"price_vintage":"undated_modelled_baseline","price_is_live":false,"carbon_intensity_unit":"gCO2eq/kWh","carbon_measurement_boundary":"operational_combustion","carbon_calculation_method":"structural_estimate","carbon_emission_factor_source":null,"carbon_basis_withdrawn":true,"carbon_imports_treatment":"not_accounted","carbon_provenance_state":"structural","carbon_decision_eligibility":"insufficient_evidence","carbon_confidence":"low","source":"modelled-baseline"},"evidence_depth":{"use_case":"project_case","use_case_label":"Standardized Project Case","overall":"not_assessed","overall_permits":"Not assessed. Treat as an open diligence item; absence of a finding is not evidence of low risk.","insufficient_evidence":true,"unassessed_required_fields":["cost"],"project_ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection","reliability"],"fields":{"cost":"not_assessed","connection":"M2 Compiled","reliability":"M2 Compiled","carbon":"M2 Compiled","regulatory":"M2 Compiled","local_capacity":"not_assessed"},"by_use_case":{"discovery":{"label":"Discovery and monitoring","matrix_version":"1.0","tier":"not_assessed","ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection"],"insufficient_evidence":true,"why":"not assessed here: cost"},"market_comparison":{"label":"Market comparison","matrix_version":"1.0","tier":"not_assessed","ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection","reliability"],"insufficient_evidence":true,"why":"not assessed here: cost"},"project_case":{"label":"Standardized Project Case","matrix_version":"1.0","tier":"not_assessed","ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection","reliability"],"insufficient_evidence":true,"why":"not assessed here: cost"},"project_case_carbon":{"label":"Project Case with a carbon requirement","matrix_version":"1.0","tier":"not_assessed","ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection","reliability","carbon"],"insufficient_evidence":true,"why":"not assessed here: cost"},"site_diligence":{"label":"Conditional site diligence","matrix_version":"1.0","tier":"not_assessed","ready":false,"blocking_fields":["cost","connection","reliability","local_capacity"],"insufficient_evidence":true,"why":"not assessed here: cost, local capacity"}},"reliability_layers":{"bulk_historical":{"state":"held","method":"event-based"},"forward_adequacy":{"state":"held","method":"modelled"},"local_delivery":{"state":"held","method":"measured"},"contractual_service":{"state":"held","method":"reported"},"designed_site_resilience":{"state":"unknown","method":null}},"definition_version":"carbon_scope@1.0;connection_process@1.0;cost_archetype@1.0;evidence_tiers@1.0;reliability_layers@1.0","scale":"M1 broad / M2 compiled / M3 project-ready / M4 local; cumulative, so each tier includes the ones below it. Assigned per field from held evidence with provenance. Not a rating strength, confidence score or feasibility conclusion."},"next_review":"2026-11-15","report_url":"https://powergridiq.com/rating/us-southeast","as_of":"June 2026","evidence_layers":{"version":"evidence-layers-1.0","band":{"state":"withdrawn","label":"Withdrawn","means":"A band was published, found unsupported, and removed under a dated correction.","reproducible":false},"component":null,"cost_pillar":{"state":"analyst_assessment","label":"Analyst assessment","means":"The score is a judgement recorded with a written cost-specific rationale. It is not calculated from a formula and does not claim to be.","reproducible":false},"layers_are_independent":"Band, component and cost-pillar evidence are separate judgments. A market may have a sound, applicable band and an illustrative component breakdown at the same time. Do not read a component-evidence limitation as a statement about the band."}}