NEW YORK, March 11, 2026, 09:58 EDT
Plug Power climbed roughly 2% after the open on Wednesday, with shares changing hands at about $2.17, following word that the hydrogen fuel-cell company is aiming to offload as much as 250 megawatts of electricity into PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest grid operator. The move comes as investors digested the report.
Now the timing is critical: the market Plug is targeting has become a race. U.S. electricity demand broke records in 2025 and will keep climbing into 2026 and 2027, according to the Energy Information Administration on Tuesday. AI and crypto data centers are fueling much of the surge. Meanwhile, PJM has floated rules that would force large new consumers to secure their own power supply or risk restrictions if the grid gets tight.
Chairman Andy Marsh told Bloomberg that Plug might put up as much as 250 megawatts in a potential auction later this year, but said contracts would have to run for at least seven years. “These are long, long-term assets. So the longer the better,” Marsh said. The company is already in talks with major customers in the cloud, data-center, and utility sectors. Energy Connects
This isn’t just a side hustle for Plug. The company has been looking to monetize its power infrastructure and get a toehold with data-center builders. Back on Feb. 26, Plug inked a definitive agreement with Stream Data Centers, locking in at least $132.5 million. That’s just the opening move—the broader goal: unlocking over $275 million through asset sales, freeing up restricted cash, and dialing back maintenance costs. The deal’s expected to wrap up by June 30, pending standard closing conditions.
Plug’s balance sheet is feeling the strain. On March 2, the company reported a 12.9% increase in 2025 revenue, landing at roughly $710 million. Fourth-quarter gross margin, stripped of direct costs, swung into the black at $5.5 million. Still, Plug wrapped up the year with $368.5 million in unrestricted cash, having burned through $535.8 million on operating activities. That cash drain underscores why fresh power contracts and completed asset sales are critical.
Jose Luis Crespo, the new chief executive, isn’t mincing words about what’s ahead. “Our focus is on converting our commercial strength into consistent financial performance,” he said after stepping in this month. The company’s efforts around hydrogen equipment, fuel cells, and hydrogen generation aren’t changing. GlobeNewswire
Plug isn’t the only player making moves here. Back in January, American Electric Power announced a unit had agreed to pick up more Bloom Energy fuel cells—a package valued at roughly $2.65 billion. In October, Brookfield committed as much as $5 billion to Bloom’s fuel-cell tech targeting AI data centers. The space Plug is eyeing is filling up fast.
Execution remains the sticking point. Plug still lacks the long-term customer contracts it needs; PJM’s auction process isn’t fully greenlit either. James West, managing director at Melius Research, flagged that the grid operator’s rules might unleash “a flurry” of large-scale data-center and power deals—if, and only if, contracts actually get inked. Delays in those agreements or in closing the Stream deal could leave Plug’s power shift moving too slow to stem its cash bleed. Energy Connects
