Pittsburgh data-center power costs: what Duquesne Light’s surcharge can cover

Start with the tariff

For people in Pittsburgh and surrounding communities, there is already one concrete document to read: Duquesne Light’s electric tariff, Supplement 110. A tariff is the utility’s published schedule of rates and rules. Flip to the printed pages, not a PDF viewer’s page count.

Sources: Duquesne Light Tariff No. 25, Supplement 110

What that line on your bill does

On printed page 2, the tariff says the Distribution System Improvement Charge, or DSIC, rose from 2.17% to 3.36% for Oct. 1–Dec. 31, 2026. On pages 137–138, Rider 22 explains what goes into it and how it’s applied: eligible distribution work already put into service, calculated on applicable distribution charges, excluding the State Tax Adjustment Surcharge. Page 137 explicitly excludes the cost of extending facilities to serve new customers. So the increase in this rider, by itself, is not evidence that households are paying to connect a new data center.

A worked example, not a bill estimate: On the same hypothetical $100 of eligible distribution charges, the rider would be $2.17 at the old percentage and $3.36 at the new one, a difference of $1.19. The percentage does not apply to the entire electric bill. Your eligible charges and other line items may differ.

Sources: Duquesne Light Tariff No. 25, Supplement 110

What a large customer can be required to pay

The same tariff sets a different set of rules for eligible High Voltage Power Service customers. On printed pages 64–65, the minimum contract is five years for demand up to 100,000 kW and ten years above that threshold. The facilities provision assigns the customer the cost of new or additional facilities needed to serve it, except specified metering. Those terms apply to customers on that schedule, not automatically to every data center. Separately, Duquesne Light’s transmission interconnection instructions describe a $250,000 application deposit for utility study and third-party engineering work. The deposit is for studying the connection, not a promise that $250,000 covers the buildout.

Pennsylvania’s May 2026 model tariff order, docket M-2025-3054271, provides another layer. It sets out terms utilities can use in their own filings, including an 80% contracted-demand billing floor in the model and a framework for assigning upgrades that would not be needed without the large customer. It is not proof that those terms are an effective Duquesne Light rate or that a particular developer has signed them. The state’s separate GRID permitting agreement describes full project-caused cost responsibility for projects that sign the agreement. Before applying it to a specific site, check for an executed agreement and the corresponding tariff or contract.

Sources: Duquesne Light Tariff No. 25, Supplement 110 · Duquesne Light large-load customer growth and interconnection instructions · Pennsylvania model tariff for large-load customers · Pennsylvania GRID requirements

The postponed conference is separate from the tariff

Pennsylvania had planned to bring utilities, consumer advocates and big electricity users together on Nov. 17 to discuss who pays for the grid costs of data centers. The Public Utility Commission postponed the conference in an Oct. 28 letter, docket M-2026-3065062, and closed that proceeding’s comment window pending further action. The conference page confirms the postponement. It still displays some of the earlier filing dates; readers should rely on the later letter and check the docket for updates. As of the November 14, 2026 (Eastern) source check, Bright had not verified a replacement date.

Sources: Pennsylvania PUC October 28, 2026 postponement letter · Pennsylvania PUC large computational load cost-allocation conference

What remains unanswered

A facility’s direct connection, shared regional transmission upgrades and the cost of keeping enough power available at peak demand are different bills. A local connection rule does not show how every shared or regional cost gets allocated. Likewise, a proposal, a utility study deposit or a land-use permit does not tell us what any household will pay. Bright has not established a project-specific Pittsburgh bill increase, or verified a later Duquesne Light filing applying the statewide model to a particular project.

Southwestern Pennsylvania already has several proposals worth following. FracTracker’s October map offers a place to find the project and municipality; the map does not show which of those proposals will connect, who will pay, or when any cost could reach households.

Sources: Duquesne Light Tariff No. 25, Supplement 110 · Pennsylvania model tariff for large-load customers · FracTracker southwestern Pennsylvania data-center proposals

What this guide does not establish

• The $1.19 example uses hypothetical $100 eligible distribution charges. It is not a total-bill estimate or evidence of project-specific costs.
• The DSIC exclusion for new-customer extensions does not establish how every regional transmission, capacity or generation cost is allocated.
• HVPS terms apply to eligible customers on that schedule, not automatically to every data center. The $250,000 application deposit funds study and engineering work, not the entire buildout.
• The statewide model tariff is separate from binding Duquesne Light rates; GRID terms require an executed agreement before applying them to a site.
• Bright has not established a project-specific Pittsburgh bill increase or verified a later utility filing applying the statewide model to a particular project.
• No replacement conference date was verified at the November 14, 2026 (Eastern) source check.

Primary sources

Source-reviewed 2026-11-15. Source review means Bright compared this explanation with the linked records; it is not independent replication or expert peer review by Bright.

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