The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has renewed two emergency orders to help strengthen Puerto Rico’s electric grid ahead of the 2026 hurricane season and anticipated higher energy demand. These renewed orders continue measures first implemented in May, August, and November 2025.
The updated authorizations allow the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to operate key generation units needed for maintaining critical power capacity. The orders also call for accelerated vegetation management to help prevent outages, improve long-term reliability, and lower blackout costs.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said, “The Department of Energy will continue modernizing Puerto Rico’s electric grid to ensure the island achieves long-term resilience and reliability. Renewing these orders ensures critical work moves forward, urgent reliability challenges are addressed, and Puerto Rico’s grid is ready to withstand rising energy demand. Thanks to President Trump, these efforts are delivering real, lasting progress for Puerto Rico.”
DOE reports that its emergency actions have helped restore up to 820 megawatts (MW) of baseload generation in Puerto Rico. This brought the island’s total systemwide generation capacity up to 6,460 MW. During a water crisis last year, some plants operated without water injection but still supplied electricity despite challenging conditions.
Vegetation management remains a priority under the renewed orders because falling branches or brush during storms can damage high-voltage lines and lead to outages or wildfires.
Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González-Colón commented on the importance of DOE’s continued involvement: “The Department of Energy’s 202(c) emergency orders have been instrumental in preventing the widespread power outages Puerto Rico was expected to face, allowing us to increase our baseload generation capacity and advance grid stability measures. Extending the orders is necessary to continue making progress and I thank President Trump and Secretary Wright for their unwavering commitment to ensure the island has an affordable, reliable supply of energy.”
The latest renewals are effective from February 10 through May 11, 2026. DOE says it will keep working with local officials so that all residents—Puerto Rico’s population numbers about 3.2 million—have access to a stable power supply.
DOE originally issued two emergency orders under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act on May 16, 2025; these were previously renewed in August and November that year.
Beyond these specific actions in Puerto Rico, DOE has taken other steps nationwide related to resilience and clean energy transition efforts. For example, in July 2022 it announced $225 million through a new program funded by federal infrastructure law aimed at supporting implementation of resilient building energy codes across states [link]. In addition, DOE has launched programs targeting transportation sector decarbonization [link] as well as environmental management using innovative technologies at federal sites [link]. The department also supports more than one hundred initiatives under President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative aimed at ensuring that disadvantaged communities receive benefits from clean energy investments [link].
