Energy Department releases draft 2026 National Transmission Needs Study, opens public comment

The U.S. Department of Energy released a draft 2026 National Transmission Needs Study (NEADS) and opened a public comment period, DOE officials said during a webinar. "We are releasing a draft for public comment," Assistant Secretary Katie Jeresa said, urging stakeholders and decision makers to review the analysis and submit feedback.

DOE presenters said the study, required under Section 216(a) of the Federal Power Act as amended by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, compiles findings from more than 120 published reports and national‑lab analyses to identify where additional transmission investment could improve reliability, relieve congestion and support resource adequacy. "The findings guide the implementation of various federal programs and authorities," Jeresa said, noting the study is intended to inform — not supplant — regional planning processes.

Molly Roy, who described the study’s statutory basis and schedule, said DOE will accept written comments on the draft and aims to publish a final study in October 2026. Roy emphasized the study does not itself designate national interest transmission corridors or prescribe specific projects; any corridor designation or project-level siting would follow separate procedures.

Nikki Regani and Mark Savory walked through the report’s chapters and key results. Chapter 4, which examines 2016–2024 investment, finds roughly 85,000 circuit miles of newly constructed, upgraded or rebuilt lines rated at or above 69 kilovolts were added in that period, representing about 16% of the contiguous U.S. transmission network; DOE reported the current contiguous U.S. system at just over 525,000 circuit miles. DOE attributed the largest recent drivers of new circuit miles to reliability needs (38%), aging infrastructure (20%), and load growth (17%), and reported incumbent utilities developed the vast majority of new transmission.

Chapter 5 analyzes congestion and value of linking regions. DOE and national‑lab analyses, including work from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, found that interregional and cross‑interconnection links often provide the greatest wholesale price reduction potential. Where organized wholesale markets are absent, DOE‑led modeling estimated average congestion value in parts of the Southeast at about $10 per megawatt‑hour for some links. Mark Savory said the analyses map locational marginal price differences across nodes to approximate the value of constructing or reinforcing linkages.

Chapter 6 focuses on future drivers of need and special topics. DOE presenters highlighted rapid projected load growth from commercial and industrial activity — noting data center demand the department projects to exceed 400 terawatt‑hours by 2030 — and listed factors such as resource retirements, new generation interconnections and aging infrastructure as contributors to future needs. The study also quantifies tribal transmission conditions: about 2.3% of the nation’s transmission miles are on tribal lands and the report identifies over 1,000 substations at voltages above 100 kilovolts on or near tribal lands, while cautioning that data gaps limit some conclusions.

Presenters summarized capacity‑expansion and interregional transfer studies in chapter 7, saying long‑term modeling also points to substantial transmission investment needs over the next 20 years to support load growth and improve resource adequacy if regions coordinate planning and operations.

DOE’s speakers stressed the draft’s role as a national assessment and noted data limitations in places such as Alaska and Hawaii where wholesale price data are sparse. The department directed listeners to supplemental materials for methodological detail and to the NEADS website for the draft report and instructions on submitting comments. The department plans to review written comments and consider implementing changes as appropriate ahead of the October 2026 final report release.

The webinar concluded with a reminder to submit written feedback to the email address and web page provided during the presentation.