In a July 2026 article, Marcus McCarthy, Senior Vice President of Siemens Grid Software for the Americas, argues that grid readiness is becoming the new gatekeeper for U.S. growth. His point: the grid used to be a background assumption of economic life, and it no longer is. Where investment lands increasingly depends on how quickly new demand can be studied and connected.
We agree, and the name of this practice says as much. But the diagnosis looks different from Europe. This is how France compares, where it is ahead, and where it faces the same wall.
THE U.S. PICTURE IN BRIEF
The article sets out the scale: PJM projects around 30 GW of new demand by 2030 and expects to host a large share of future U.S. data center capacity. On 18 June 2026, FERC issued show cause orders to all six jurisdictional regional transmission organisations, pushing them to accelerate large-load connections, protect ratepayers from speculative projects and modernise interconnection rules. According to FERC, some interconnection studies meant to take 60 to 90 days are running close to nine months.
Siemens' core argument is that the bottleneck is increasingly planning capacity: not engineering skill, but the sheer volume of scenarios planners must study, under rules that differ from one region to the next.
WHERE FRANCE IS STRUCTURALLY DIFFERENT
| United States | France | |
|---|---|---|
| Transmission operator | Six RTOs plus non-RTO regions, diverging rules | One national operator, RTE, one national procedure |
| Large-load reform | FERC show cause orders, June 2026, region-specific answers | Dedicated fast-track procedure approved by the regulator (CRE) in May 2025 |
| Pre-identified sites | Case by case | Five fast-track sites published in June 2026, 4.8 GW in total |
| Anti-speculation | Under reform | Financial commitment required at reservation on fast-track sites |
| Typical connection time | Varies widely by region and queue | 18–36 months on brownfield sites with existing HV, 3–5 years greenfield |
The single most important difference is the first line. A developer in France deals with one transmission operator and one set of rules. The multi-ISO complexity that Siemens describes, with protocols diverging across regions, simply does not exist. Details: RTE grid connection timeline and RTE's five fast-track sites.
WHERE FRANCE HITS THE SAME WALL
Speculative queues. France is not immune to the problem FERC is tackling. By May 2026, RTE had reserved close to 18 GW of capacity for around 80 data center projects, up from about 5 GW at the end of 2024, and RTE itself acknowledges that part of it will never be built. It has signalled a move away from pure first-come, first-served towards prioritising committed projects. The symptoms are the same as in PJM; the scale is smaller.
Study bandwidth. Siemens' planning-capacity argument applies in Europe too. A sharp rise in connection requests puts the same pressure on grid operators' study teams, whatever the regulatory framework.
WHAT GRID READINESS REALLY MEANS FOR A PROJECT
Study speed is one part of grid readiness. For a project on the ground, it has at least three dimensions:
Equipment: transformers and switchgear for the site itself, with major manufacturers quoting 48–60 months or more
Permitting and community: authorisations, legal challenges and local acceptance
A project can clear the first layer quickly and still stall on the other two. In France in 2026, several data center projects are facing legal challenges or local campaigns, and grid operators are reserving transformer factory capacity years ahead, as the recent €350M Hitachi Energy–Enedis agreement shows. See our transformer lead time tracker and our guide to data center crisis management.
THE TAKEAWAY FOR U.S. DEVELOPERS AND INVESTORS
If grid readiness is the new gatekeeper, it is worth asking which markets open the gate fastest. France offers a single operator, a regulator-backed fast-track, published sites and low-carbon baseload power. It shares the speculative-queue problem, and it adds its own equipment and permitting constraints. The advantage goes to developers who assess all three layers before committing capital, not only the connection study. More in France for U.S. data center developers.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is grid readiness?
Grid readiness describes how quickly and predictably a site can obtain the electricity connection a project needs. For data centers, it covers the connection study and works, the equipment needed on site, and the permits that make the project deliverable.
How does France's grid connection process differ from the US?
France has a single national transmission operator, RTE, with one national procedure and a regulator-approved fast-track for large loads. The US has several regional operators whose rules diverge, now being reformed after FERC's June 2026 show cause orders.
Does France have speculative interconnection queues too?
Yes. RTE had reserved close to 18 GW for around 80 data center projects by May 2026 and acknowledges that some will not be built. It has signalled a shift towards prioritising committed projects.