August 20, 2026 | Source: U.S. Department of Energy — Emergency Order No. 202-26-25A, Federal Power Act Section 202(c)
DOE Orders Wagner Unit 4 to Stay Online for PJM Under Section 202(c)
The U.S. Department of Energy issued Emergency Order No. 202-26-25A on August 19, directing that Unit 4 at the Wagner Generating Station in Anne Arundel County, Maryland remain available to run. It takes effect today, August 20, and runs through November 17, 2026.
Signed by Secretary of Energy Chris Wright under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act, the order lets PJM Interconnection — coordinating with Talen Energy — operate Wagner Unit 4 beyond its current operating limit to meet anticipated demand.
It is a continuation, not a new unit. The prior order ran from late May and expired August 19. PJM leaned on Wagner during this summer's heat, used up the unit's remaining run hours, and told DOE it still needs it for high-demand periods. DOE frames the move as protecting reliability for roughly 65 million people across the 13-state, plus D.C., PJM footprint.
What It Means in the Control Room
A 202(c) order is emergency must-run authority. The unit runs when DOE and PJM say it runs — often past the environmental or run-hour limits that would otherwise sideline it. That puts dispatch logging, environmental coordination, and clean recordkeeping squarely on operators and compliance staff.
And this is no longer a one-off. DOE has issued a rapid string of 202(c) orders through 2026 across PJM, MISO, SPP, and ERCOT, keeping at-risk units available well past their planned limits. For reliability coordinators and transmission operators, directed must-run generation is now part of the standing operating picture, not an exception.
Practical items before winter: build the November 17 expiration into your planning horizon, confirm Wagner Unit 4's status is reflected in day-ahead and real-time models and outage coordination, and keep defensible records of emergency-directed dispatch in case it surfaces in a future NERC audit or event review.
EPG Solutions Can Help
When must-run orders and thin reserve margins become the baseline, the operators who stay ahead are the ones who can see conditions develop in real time — not in the after-action review. That is the real-time situational awareness EPG Solutions helps control rooms sharpen, from RTDMS and PGDA visibility to the reliability data behind the decisions. Visit EPG Solutions → epgsolutions.services