Lara Pierpoint, Director of Technical Strategy at Exelon, brings a wealth of knowledge in energy policy and systems analysis, with an impressive background that includes roles at the Department of Energy and a PhD from MIT. She discusses Exelon's innovative approaches to navigating the evolving utility landscape and the critical role of the technical strategy team in driving emissions reduction. Lara highlights the potential for nuclear plants to produce hydrogen and other applications, emphasizing the urgent need for sustainable solutions amidst climate challenges.
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insights INSIGHT
US Utility Market Models
The US electric utility sector operates in two main models: regulated monopoly and competitive restructured markets.
Regulated models provide monopoly status with capped returns, while restructured markets introduce competition to lower prices and improve service.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Lara's Path to Exelon
Lara shifted from physics to energy motivated by a desire to have real-world climate impact.
She worked on nuclear waste at MIT, advised Senate Energy Committee, then DOE, and finally joined Exelon to influence utility decisions.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Hydrogen Demo at Nuclear Plant
Exelon explored diverse nuclear plant uses and prioritized hydrogen production with partners.
They secured DOE funding to demo electrolyzers producing clean hydrogen at a nuclear plant.
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Today’s guest is Lara Pierpoint, Director of Technical Strategy at Exelon.
Exelon is America's leading competitive energy provider with one of the cleanest and lowest cost power generation fleets. Its utility serves millions of electric and gas customers. Lara's team is tasked with enhancing Exelon's ability to capitalize on new technology and respond to disruptive innovations. Her expertise is in systems analysis, modeling and policy. And her knowledge is deep in nuclear, gas and electric interface and energy finance as well as widely across the electricity spectrum.
Prior to Exelon, Lara has had a number of different roles. She was Senior Advisor for energy policy and Systems analysis at Department of Energy. She was a AAAS fellow at the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. And she also has her PhD in Engineering Systems from MIT, as well as a Masters in Nuclear Engineering and in Technology and Policy also at MIT, and an undergrad in physics from UCLA. Suffice to say Lara's got a really interesting perspective to talk about everything energy and everything climate change.
In today’s episode, we cover:
Overview of Exelon and Lara’s role within the company
Overview of the utilities market, and history of deregulation
Lara’s career history, and what motivates her to do the work she does
Deep dive into the technical strategy team, its history within the company, the work they do, and some example projects
Broader discussion about the optimal energy mix, and the roles of nuclear, renewables, etc
Some of the headwinds, and the best ways to accelerate the energy transition
You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.
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