Pre-Conference Comments of Gregory J. Poulos, Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc., at the 07/07/2026 Software Conference panel on Load Forecasting, under AD10-12.

Summary: Gregory J. Poulos, Executive Director of Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc. (CAPS), submits pre-conference comments regarding the importance of accurate load forecasting. He argues that precise forecasting, particularly regarding data center growth, is essential to ensure reliability and prevent consumers from overpaying for unnecessary capacity.