SMECO tells Calvert commissioners data centers must pay for grid upgrades as public raises health, rate and water concerns

Tom Dennison, senior vice president of external affairs for Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO), told the Calvert County Board of County Commissioners on April 28 that SMECO is obliged to provide service but that data center developers "must directly pay the full cost for all electric transmission and distribution system buildout and ongoing operations and maintenance required to interconnect" a facility to the grid. The presentation and multi‑hour question‑and‑answer session drew sustained public attention and dozens of resident comments urging a moratorium.

Why it matters: SMECO said wholesale capacity prices in PJM have surged, creating a higher commodity portion of customers' bills, and that large new loads — including two proposed sites with combined requested demand of roughly 1.1 gigawatts — could materially change local supply needs. Commissioners pressed SMECO on whether residential rates would rise and on what legal and regulatory mechanisms could protect existing members; SMECO said it would seek a large‑load tariff at the Maryland Public…