Arctic Blocking
A meteorological phenomenon in which a stable, long-lasting high-pressure system in the high latitudes disrupts the jet stream, causing it to stall and often allowing warm air to move into the Arctic while forcing cold Arctic air southward.

Back End of Curve
The furthest-dated futures contracts or forward prices in a commodity or financial market, representing expectations for the future.

Backwardation
A market condition where a commodity’s current price (or spot price) is higher than the price for future delivery contracts, which can create a downward-sloping futures curve, as market participants are willing to pay a premium for immediate delivery.

Base Residual Auction (BRA)
An auction held regularly by PJM to secure future electricity capacity (usually 3 years out) to ensure enough power will be available to meet demand.

Bearish
An economic state or environment marked by, tending to cause, or fearful of falling prices when prices are expected to go down.

Billion Cubic Feet (Bcf)
A unit of measurement for natural gas; 1 Bcf equals 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

Bring Your Own Generation (BYOG)
A framework established by PJM — and expected to be implemented by August 2026 — to address the growing strain of data center power demand. This policy allows new large electricity loads to bypass traditional, slower interconnection queues and avoid or limit curtailment during grid stress if the data centers agree to co-locate and pair their facilities with new, dedicated power generation.

Bullish
An economic state or environment marked by, tending to cause, or hopeful of rising prices; when prices are expected to go up.

Capacity
The amount of electricity that a power plant can make at one time when running at full strength.

Capacity Rates
A charge reflecting the cost of maintaining enough electricity supply to meet peak demand; these rates help ensure power is available when customers need it most, especially during high-usage periods.

Climate Prediction Center (CPC)
A division of the U.S. National Weather Service providing forecasts and data on climate trends, including seasonal outlooks and long-term weather patterns that can affect energy usage.

Co-Location Arrangements
An agreement between large energy consumers — like data centers — and power generators in which large-load facilities are built directly near or on the site of power generation.

Conservative Operations
A set of heightened procedures grid operators use during extreme events (like severe cold, storms, or cyber threats) to ensure grid reliability by taking extra steps beyond normal market operations.

Cooling Degree Days (CCDs)
A measure of how much the average daily temperature is above a specific base temperature, typically 65°F, indicating the potential need for air conditioning.

Department of Energy (DOE)
The federal department managing national energy policy.

El Niño
A climate pattern characterized by warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean; El Niño can influence global weather, often leading to warmer winters in the U.S., reduced hurricane activity, and increased flooding and rainfall in the southern U.S.

Energy Information Administration (EIA)
A federal agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for collecting, analyzing, and issuing independent and impartial energy information.

ENSO-Neutral
A climate state in which neither El Niño nor La Niña conditions are present in the tropical Pacific Ocean; a phase in which sea surface temperatures, atmospheric pressure patterns, and trade winds are close to their long-term average values, and global weather patterns tend to be more stable or typical compared to during El Niño or La Niña events.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
A U.S. government agency regulating electricity, natural gas, and oil markets, especially interstate transmission.

Flexible Load Model
A model in which certain electricity-consuming devices, systems, and processes can shift, reduce, or increase power usage in time or intensity to help balance supply and demand on the grid.

Forward Market
A financial market in which financial instruments or commodities are traded for future delivery.

Freeze-Off
A disruption of natural gas production that occurs when freezing temperatures cause the liquids within gas pipelines and infrastructure to solidify, sometimes triggering significant supply drops and price spikes.

Gigawatt (GW)
A unit of power, equal to 1 billion watts, commonly used to describe the capacity of large power plants or the total electricity demand of a region.

Heating Degree Days (HDDs)
A measure of how much the average daily temperature is below a specific base temperature, typically 65°F, indicating the potential need for heating.

Henry Hub
A major natural gas pipeline hub located in Erath, Louisiana, serving as the delivery point for NYMEX natural gas futures contracts.

Installed Reserve Margin (IRM)
A target percentage of the additional generating capacity above peak demand that’s needed for grid reliability, ensuring enough power to respond to unexpected outages or load spikes.

Intermittent Renewables
Energy sources, like solar or wind, that can’t produce power continuously and are dependent on time and weather conditions.

Inverter-Based Resources (IBRs)
Power sources, like solar or wind, that use special equipment to send electricity to the grid.

Jet Stream
A narrow, variable band of strong, predominantly westerly, air currents circling the globe several miles above the earth; North American weather is most affected by the Polar and subtropical jet streams.

La Niña
A climate pattern characterized by cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean; La Niña can influence global weather, bringing colder and wetter winters to the Pacific Northwest and warmer, drier conditions in the southern U.S., as well as increased hurricane activity.

Large Load Addition (LLA)
A substantial new electricity demand — typically from data centers, advanced manufacturing, and overall electrification efforts — of 50 MW or more.

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)
A natural gas that’s been cooled to a liquid stage to make it easier to store and ship.

Locational Marginal Pricing (LMP)
A representation of the price of electricity at a specific location, based on supply, demand, and transmission constraints at that point on the grid.

Megawatt (MW)
A unit of power equal to 1 million watts.

Megawatt-hour (MWh)
A unit of energy equal to 1 million watts used for 1 hour; commonly used to measure electricity usage or production.

Natural Gas Withdrawals
The removal of natural gas from underground storage to supply the market with additional inventory during a time of high demand, often during winter.

NYMEX
The major North American marketplace where people trade energy products like oil and gas to set future prices.

Pipelines
A key method for moving natural gas from producing regions to consumption points. Across the U.S., there are about 3 million miles of interstate and intrastate pipelines that face different regulatory requirements.

PJM Interconnection
The large power grid that manages electricity in parts of the eastern U.S. — including 13 states and Washington, D.C.

Polar Vortex
A large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding Earth’s poles that weakens in summer and strengthens in winter.

Power Burn
The amount of natural gas consumed by power plants for power generation over a specific period.

Prompt Month
The futures contract with the closest expiration date — typically for delivery in the next calendar month.

PUCO (Public Utilities Commission of Ohio)
The state agency responsible for regulating utility services in Ohio and ensuring customers receive safe and reliable service at fair prices.

Regional Transmission Organization (RTO)
An independent group coordinating the movement of electricity over large areas to ensure reliability and efficiency.

Renewable Generation
Electricity produced from sources that naturally replenish, such as solar, wind, hydro (water), and geothermal.

Reserve Margin
The amount of unused available capacity of an electric power system — at peak load for a utility system — as a percentage of total capacity.

Storage Injections
The act of storing natural gas for future use.

Title Transfer Facility (TTF)
A virtual trading point for natural gas in the Netherlands, setting the benchmark price for the European gas market.

Transmission Cost
The expense associated with moving electricity from the site of generation to a local distribution network over high-voltage transmission lines.

Trillion Cubic Feet (Tcf)
A unit of measurement used to describe large volumes of natural gas; 1 Tcf equals 1 trillion cubic feet of gas — enough to supply millions of homes for a year.

Unforced Capacity (UCAP)
A metric in PJM’s capacity market that adjusts a resource’s nameplate capacity to reflect real-world availability and reliable contribution.

Weather Front
An occurrence where two different air masses meet, often producing active weather in terms of wind, clouds, and precipitation.

Winter-Weighted
A reference in natural gas pricing to contracts or price calculations that prioritize or bundle the months with highest gas demand (November through March).