Nodal Trader 2026 Workshop: The Data Behind the Headlines

Five Expert-Led Sessions From Yes Energy’s Workshop at S&P Global's Nodal Trader

Power markets didn’t slow down in 2026. Yes Energy’s pre-conference workshop at S&P Global’s Nodal Trader 2026 in Washington, DC, connected the dots across five data-driven sessions.

The team dug into the forces behind the headlines that shaped markets and trading positions. Data center demand is lifting load in months that used to be quiet. Retirements have fallen to their lowest level since 2008. On October 13, PJM’s Western Hub saw real-time prices top $1,500/MWh with load far below summer peaks.

Isaac Velander, Yes Energy’s chief strategy officer, and Ken Sands, editor in chief of RTO Insider, joined Yes Energy’s product managers and market analysts to show what the numbers say about demand, supply, congestion, and policy. Download the deck to revisit the charts, share them with your desk, and pressure-test your view heading into 2027.

What You’ll Learn

•  Which 2026 headlines matter most, from PJM governance changes to FERC’s push on large-load interconnection and Big Tech’s “bring your own power” deals

• How data center demand has “lifted the shoulders” in PJM, and why too few active batteries leave the system exposed when generator outages stack up

• Why retirements are at their lowest level since 2008 and new build is at its highest since 2003, yet PJM’s generation stack looks largely unchanged, with just 8.6 GW of net additions since 2012 compared to 80.2 GW in ERCOT

• How financial transmission right (FTR) volume, participation, and costs have climbed since 2015, and why PJM captured about 66% of 2026 year-to-date realized P&L while ERCOT, the market with the most participants, captured about 2%

• How the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) could add $2.93/MWh to PJM’s 2029 average day-ahead price, nearly double that if Virginia rejoins, and still push emissions higher as generation shifts to non-RGGI states