Exelon wants its utilities to own more of the hardware that keeps the lights on in PJM Interconnection. On the company's third-quarter 2026 earnings call on Oct. 30, Exelon officials said the company's utilities could build 1.5 to 3.5 GW of regulated energy storage at a cost of $3 billion to $7 billion, according to Utility Dive. That range does not include the roughly $1 billion, 500-MW battery that Exelon subsidiary Atlantic City Electric (ACE) has already proposed in Salem County, New Jersey, a project now before the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) in a petition that Board Staff has found administratively deficient.

The storage plan arrived alongside updated figures on data center and other large-load demand, a revised transmission outlook and pointed comments from CEO Calvin Butler about the pace of new generation in PJM.

What Exelon Put on the Record

Exelon's earnings release, filed with the SEC as an exhibit to a Form 8-K on Oct. 30, reported GAAP net income of $0.70 per share for the quarter, compared with $0.86 a year earlier, and adjusted operating earnings of $0.87 per share, compared with $0.86. The company narrowed its 2026 adjusted operating earnings guidance to $2.85 to $2.91 per share, according to the filing. Utility Dive reported quarterly net income of $729 million, down from $875 million, on revenue of $7.3 billion, up from $6.7 billion.

In the release, Butler pointed to "long-term solutions like battery storage and utility-generated power" as ways to address what he described as an energy supply crisis. Chief Financial Officer Rob Kleczynski said in the same document, "we continue to advance transmission and storage solutions that support growth and affordability for our customers." The release itself does not include storage dollar or gigawatt figures, nor the large-load numbers; those were provided by officials on the call, as reported by Utility Dive.

The storage opportunity Exelon described breaks down as follows, per the call as reported by Utility Dive:

  • Regulated storage potential: 1.5 to 3.5 GW across Exelon's utilities, at an estimated $3 billion to $7 billion.
  • Already proposed: the ACE battery, about $1 billion for 500 MW, developed with Invenergy and excluded from the range above.
  • Transmission: $16.3 billion already planned through 2029, plus what Exelon described as a further $12 billion to $17 billion opportunity beyond that plan.

Those figures describe potential investment, not approved spending. According to Utility Dive, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware are the three states where Exelon utilities are allowed to own energy storage facilities, and CFO Kleczynski described utility-owned storage as "one option alongside competitive development, not a replacement for it."

Large-Load Demand Held Flat, Wider Pipeline Shrank

Exelon's count of "high-probability" large-load additions, the category that includes data centers further along in development, held steady at 11 GW, with 9 GW at Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) in northern Illinois and 2 GW in the Mid-Atlantic region, according to Utility Dive. The broader pipeline of large-load requests slipped to 23 GW, made up of 14 GW at ComEd and 9 GW in the Mid-Atlantic, from 25 GW the prior quarter.

Butler said PJM is not adding generation fast enough, and Utility Dive reported that two key PJM initiatives, its backstop capacity procurement plan and its Interim Resource Adequacy Service proposal, have been delayed by only partial approvals from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Butler said neither proposal would have solved the reliability and affordability challenges facing customers, but that both represented important steps forward. That is the backdrop for Exelon's argument that adding storage and transmission can help address the supply problem.

The Pittsgrove Battery, in Detail

The most concrete piece of Exelon's storage strategy is in a BPU docket. According to a Sept. 9, 2026 Board order in Docket No. EO26070402, ACE filed a petition on July 23, 2026, with an effective filing date of Aug. 8, 2026, seeking approval for a battery energy storage system of up to 500 MW. The order describes the proposal as:

  • A four-hour lithium iron phosphate system on ACE-owned property in Pittsgrove Township, Salem County.
  • About 36 months to build, with commercial operation possible in late 2030, subject to the timing of the interconnection process, according to ACE's estimate.
  • Operated and maintained by Invenergy, ACE's operations and maintenance manager, with the battery participating in the PJM wholesale market.
  • Recovered from customers through a monthly surcharge, with no bill impact for five years after operations begin, according to the petition as summarized in the order.
  • A benefit-cost ratio of $1.36 in benefits for every $1.00 invested, per a benefit-cost analysis by an ACE witness.

ACE serves about 576,000 customers in Southern New Jersey, according to the BPU order. On the earnings call, Kleczynski said the project is expected to provide more than $700 million in net benefits to customers, and Utility Dive reported that it would be the largest battery installation in PJM. Those benefit estimates come from the utility and have not been tested in a BPU ruling.

The docket has already hit one procedural snag. Board Staff sent a letter on Sept. 4, 2026, finding the petition administratively deficient and asking ACE to cure the deficiencies, according to the order. Five days later the Board designated Commissioner Emma Rebhorn as presiding commissioner and determined that the petition should be retained for hearing if and when ACE submits a version that Staff determines is administratively complete. The order does not list specific deficiencies, and the BPU has not ruled on the merits.

Why It Matters Beyond New Jersey

For communities fielding data center proposals, the relevance is indirect. Exelon discussed its storage and transmission spending alongside its large-load figures and Butler's view that PJM is not adding generation quickly enough. Utility Dive reported that Exelon's CFO said customers would benefit from regulated storage through lower capacity prices and the flow-through of investment tax credits. ACE's petition, by contrast, proposes recovering the battery's costs through a monthly surcharge on customer bills, according to the BPU order. How the BPU weighs ACE's claimed customer benefits against that cost recovery proposal is a question the Pittsgrove docket will address.

What Happens Next

Under the Sept. 9 order, the ACE petition is to be retained for hearing before the Board, with Commissioner Rebhorn presiding, once BPU Staff deems the filing administratively complete. Exelon expects the BPU to make a decision on the proposal late in the first quarter of 2027, according to Utility Dive's account of CFO Kleczynski's remarks on the Oct. 30 call. ACE has estimated that construction would take about 36 months, with commercial operation possible in late 2030, subject to the interconnection process.

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