Data centers looking to connect to the largest U.S. grid must bring their power supply, the system’s independent watchdog said.

The warning escalates the watchdog’s position from just a month ago when it said the grid operated by PJM Interconnection LLC, stretching across 13 states from Virginia to Illinois, has no spare supply for new data centers and suggested developers build their own power plants.

However, in its quarterly report released Thursday, watchdog Monitoring Analytics LLC said it “recommends that large data centers be required to bring their own generation.”

The grid is home to the highest concentration of data centers whose soaring power demand has strained aging infrastructure, driven up costs for consumers and become a political flashpoint.

“The current supply of capa

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