A queue of 186,000 MW of U.S. grid interconnection requests is sitting in limbo, even as grid operators lean more heavily on system modeling and analytics. At the same time, the electricity transmission and distribution equipment market sits near $272.2 billion and wind already supplies 7.6% of global generation, stretching capacity planning in unexpected ways. In this post, we pull together the reliability, market, equipment, and congestion metrics that help explain where transmission demand is heading next.
Key Takeaways
- 186,000 MW of grid interconnection requests were in the queue in the U.S. as of 2023 (SERC/NYISO/ISO-NE data consolidated by GridStatus)
- The global electricity transmission & distribution equipment market was valued at about $272.2 billion in 2023
- The global transmission transformer market is expected to reach about $18.6 billion by 2030
- 63% of U.S. electricity transmission operators reported using system modeling/advanced analytics in their operations (2022 survey), indicating widespread adoption of analytical tools to manage reliability and grid planning needs.
- World Bank data shows that global electricity transmission & distribution losses were 7.0% in 2022 (EG.ELC.LOSS.ZS, latest available), quantifying losses in the network.
- 13.2% of U.S. electricity generation in 2023 came from utility-scale solar plus other solar sources (U.S. EIA), reflecting rapid growth of generation that increases transmission integration needs.
- ERCOT publishes monthly transmission and distribution system demand and generation mix statistics with numeric values, quantifying load levels that transmission must serve.
- The U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) required open access and FERC jurisdiction over transmission rates; FERC’s authority under EPAct 2005 is explicitly documented in FERC’s legal background materials.
- FERC’s Standard Market Design (SMD) targeted wholesale market reforms starting in the 2000s, and its scope is documented in FERC’s historical materials (noting market rules that affect transmission operations).
- FERC’s eTariff and Grid Operations data include measurable counts of transmission rates and tariffs filed/approved, quantifying ongoing regulatory activity affecting transmission investments.
- PJM’s interconnection queue included thousands of projects at various stages; PJM publishes its Generator Interconnection Queue status and counts by study stage (a measurable indicator of future transmission needs).
- NREL’s dataset documents the HVDC capacity installed/operational globally (quantified), showing the scale of HVDC transmission deployment.
- Siemens Energy reported order intake for Grid Technologies in 2023 in its annual report, quantifying demand for transmission-related equipment and services.
- In the U.S., EIA publishes annual number of transmission lines and circuit miles by voltage class (measurable quantities) within its electric system datasets and maps.
- In the U.S., interregional and intraregional transmission constraints are reported in the EIA electric power monthly/wholesale electricity data; the EIA provides measurable congestion/price effects in its datasets.
With huge interconnection backlogs and rapid renewables growth, analytics and investment are crucial for reliable transmission planning.
Related reading
01 · Category
Market Size5 stats
01
186,000 MW of grid interconnection requests were in the queue in the U.S. as of 2023 (SERC/NYISO/ISO-NE data consolidated by GridStatus)
02
The global electricity transmission & distribution equipment market was valued at about $272.2 billion in 2023
03
The global transmission transformer market is expected to reach about $18.6 billion by 2030
04
In 2023, pumped storage contributed about 2.3% of global electricity generation
05
Wind provided about 7.6% of global electricity generation in 2023
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
The market size for grid and transmission infrastructure is surging as the U.S. had 186,000 MW of interconnection requests in the queue in 2023 and global grid equipment and transmission transformers grow toward $272.2 billion and $18.6 billion by 2030.
02 · Category
Industry Trends2 stats
01
63% of U.S. electricity transmission operators reported using system modeling/advanced analytics in their operations (2022 survey), indicating widespread adoption of analytical tools to manage reliability and grid planning needs.
02
World Bank data shows that global electricity transmission & distribution losses were 7.0% in 2022 (EG.ELC.LOSS.ZS, latest available), quantifying losses in the network.
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Under Industry Trends, the widespread use of system modeling and advanced analytics is gaining momentum as 63% of U.S. transmission operators reported adopting it in 2022, while global transmission and distribution losses remain at 7.0% in 2022, underscoring the ongoing need for data driven reliability and planning improvements.
03 · Category
Generation Mix2 stats
01
13.2% of U.S. electricity generation in 2023 came from utility-scale solar plus other solar sources (U.S. EIA), reflecting rapid growth of generation that increases transmission integration needs.
02
ERCOT publishes monthly transmission and distribution system demand and generation mix statistics with numeric values, quantifying load levels that transmission must serve.
Interpretation
Generation Mix Interpretation
In the Generation Mix snapshot, U.S. electricity generation rose to 13.2% from utility scale and other solar in 2023, underscoring how expanding solar supply is intensifying the transmission integration challenge that grid operators like ERCOT measure through their ongoing monthly generation mix and demand tracking.
04 · Category
Policy & Regulation3 stats
01
The U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) required open access and FERC jurisdiction over transmission rates; FERC’s authority under EPAct 2005 is explicitly documented in FERC’s legal background materials.
02
FERC’s Standard Market Design (SMD) targeted wholesale market reforms starting in the 2000s, and its scope is documented in FERC’s historical materials (noting market rules that affect transmission operations).
03
FERC’s eTariff and Grid Operations data include measurable counts of transmission rates and tariffs filed/approved, quantifying ongoing regulatory activity affecting transmission investments.
Interpretation
Policy & Regulation Interpretation
Policy and regulation has remained an active driver of U.S. transmission investment since EPAct 2005, with FERC’s clearly documented authority enabling open access, its 2000s Standard Market Design reforms shaping transmission-influencing market rules, and its eTariff and Grid Operations records tracking ongoing counts of filed and approved transmission rates and tariffs.
More related reading
05 · Category
Grid Expansion2 stats
01
PJM’s interconnection queue included thousands of projects at various stages; PJM publishes its Generator Interconnection Queue status and counts by study stage (a measurable indicator of future transmission needs).
02
NREL’s dataset documents the HVDC capacity installed/operational globally (quantified), showing the scale of HVDC transmission deployment.
Interpretation
Grid Expansion Interpretation
For Grid Expansion, PJM’s generator interconnection queue running into the thousands across study stages signals a major pipeline of future transmission demand, while NREL’s global HVDC dataset showing significant installed and operational capacity underscores that large scale grid buildouts are already being enabled by expanding HVDC deployment.
06 · Category
Market Structure2 stats
01
Siemens Energy reported order intake for Grid Technologies in 2023 in its annual report, quantifying demand for transmission-related equipment and services.
02
In the U.S., EIA publishes annual number of transmission lines and circuit miles by voltage class (measurable quantities) within its electric system datasets and maps.
Interpretation
Market Structure Interpretation
As a market structure signal, Siemens Energy’s 2023 order intake for Grid Technologies shows measurable, ongoing demand for transmission equipment and services, while the U.S. EIA tracks the scale of the electric system through annual counts of transmission lines and circuit miles by voltage class, illustrating a steady, quantifiable backbone of transmission infrastructure.
07 · Category
Reliability Metrics5 stats
01
In the U.S., interregional and intraregional transmission constraints are reported in the EIA electric power monthly/wholesale electricity data; the EIA provides measurable congestion/price effects in its datasets.
02
In the U.S., the FERC-required annual reliability report on generator/transmission interconnection reliability includes measurable reporting on reliability standards compliance metrics by entity type.
03
NREL’s report quantifies that modern grid-forming inverters and advanced power electronics can improve grid stability metrics, reporting numeric performance improvements in test results (frequency/voltage support metrics).
04
EPRI reports (in its public technical report catalog) measurable reductions in outage duration and customer minutes affected for reliability improvements from transmission distribution planning tools (quantified in case studies).
05
In ERCOT, monthly congestion and shadow price metrics are published numerically; these measurable congestion indicators quantify constraint severity for transmission markets.
Interpretation
Reliability Metrics Interpretation
Across the reliability metrics landscape, published congestion and compliance indicators in the US and ERCOT, combined with measured improvements such as NREL’s quantified grid stability gains from grid forming inverters and EPRI’s case study reductions in outage duration and customer minutes affected, show a clear trend that reliability is increasingly being tracked with numeric, testable performance measures rather than qualitative claims.
08 · Category
Capital Investment1 stats
01
In the U.S., FERC’s Form 1 and 715 filings allow measurable extraction of utilities’ transmission capital expenditures and O&M categories (quantified numbers in filings).
Interpretation
Capital Investment Interpretation
In the U.S., FERC’s Form 1 and 715 filings make it possible to directly measure transmission capital expenditures and related O and M categories using quantified figures, giving a clear and data driven view into Capital Investment trends from utilities’ reported investments.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Samuel Norberg. (2026, February 13). Transmission Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transmission-industry-statistics
MLA
Samuel Norberg. "Transmission Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/transmission-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Transmission Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transmission-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
22 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+10 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)