Google and Voltus announce a planned PJM virtual power plant with different capacity figures

Google and Voltus announced an expanded agreement on October 22, 2026, to build a planned virtual power plant (VPP) in the PJM grid region. Their capacity descriptions differ: Google calls the project 1 gigawatt (GW), while Voltus says the announcement adds 1,070 megawatts (MW) to an earlier 100 MW agreement.

How Google and Voltus describe the capacity

Google describes the plan as a 1 GW VPP, a tenfold expansion of its earlier 100 MW agreement. Voltus says its announcement adds 1,070 MW to the initial 100 MW agreement signed in June 2026. The New York Times reported the amount as up to 1,070 MW. These are distinct descriptions of the planned capacity, not one shared figure.

The initial 100 MW agreement is also the subject of NeoTeo’s earlier coverage of Voltus’s role in Google’s PJM capacity obligation. For the current project, see Google’s announcement and Voltus’s announcement.

How the planned virtual power plant would work

A VPP coordinates flexible electricity resources at separate sites so they can support the grid together. Under the plan, Voltus would aggregate resources from homes and local businesses, then signal participating sites to reduce or shift electricity use when the grid is strained. The resources could include smart thermostats, batteries, industrial equipment and changes to industrial processes.

That is demand response: adjusting electricity use to help balance demand on the grid. It differs from building a power plant, which generates electricity. Google says participating customers would receive benefits such as bill savings and cash payments.

What the PJM region covers

Google says PJM serves 67 million people across 13 states and Washington, D.C. The planned VPP would draw on flexible resources within that grid region.

The New York Times connected the project to growing data-center electricity demand, describing demand reduction elsewhere on the grid as an indirect way to free up capacity. The agreement therefore concerns grid flexibility in PJM, rather than a dedicated supply line from a power plant to a Google data center.