Energy Central

How can we engage with an energy transition without massive swings in power reliability? Is climate change really just a big cop-out for utility leaders? Or is it a larger predicament that we need to strategize around? What’s the best means of reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience for an energy industry in flux?Today on The Watt & Why, host Mike Smith welcome renowned climate scientist Dr. Judith Curry for a wide-ranging conversation about the intersection of energy abundance and climate stewardship. From the challenges to wind and solar proliferation to the timing of pulling off the energy transition to all of the above vs. best of the above…Mike and Judith are breaking it all down in this insightful, provocative conversation.

The grid of tomorrow is being built today—and the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) is at the center of that transformation.That transformation is being spearheaded by Lanny Nickell, President and CEO of SPP, and host Kinsey Grant Baker welcomes him to this week’s episode of Power Perspectives. This conversation features an exploration of how one of the nation’s most collaborative regional transmission organizations is managing record load growth, integrating renewables, and planning for a future of reliability, affordability, and resilience.Listen in to hear Lanny unpack the key trends shaping the modern energy landscape, from data center demand and electrified oil fields to the $18 billion in infrastructure investments that will define the next era of grid reliability.Signup for the Energy Central Daily Newsletter: https://energycentral.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Christoph Graf, a Senior Economist at NYU's Institute for Policy Integrity, dives into the crisis surrounding capacity markets. He explores the effects of rising auction prices in PJM and questions if these markets can adapt to modern demands like data center growth and decarbonization efforts. Graf contrasts existing reliability models, suggests strategies to enhance grid performance, and advocates for innovations spurred by high prices. With a focus on practical steps for utilities, his insights shed light on balancing affordability and reliability in an evolving energy landscape.

With risks flying at utility leaders from every angle—extreme weather, outages, wildfires, and many more—knowing what’s happening on the grid at any moment isn’t just nice. It’s mission critical.So how is next-gen sensing tech helping power pros get better visibility into real-time grid realities? This week on Piloting the Future, Kim and Lee explore with Scott Lindsay, Director of Sales at GridWare, and Billy Terry, COO at Consumers Power.Sensing and fault detection can help us build a more resilient grid. And the tech behind these major moves? It’s getting better and better, as Scott and Billy point out. Listen in for a look at what this investment in the grid’s future could mean for all of us. Because at the end of the day, visibility doesn’t just enable operational excellence. It’s everything.

The global energy transition isn’t theoretical anymore—it’s happening right now. But how fast can we go, and how far can renewables really take us?In this episode of Power Perspectives, hosts Kinsey Grant Baker sits down with Mark Jacobson, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Atmosphere/Energy Program at Stanford University, to explore one of the most polarizing questions in energy today:100% clean energy, is it actually possible?For decades, Jacobson has modeled the path to a world powered entirely by wind, water, and solar, contending that fossil fuels, carbon capture, or nuclear aren’t necessary to meet the future energy needs. His research has influenced global climate policy, inspired states to adopt renewable targets, and sparked fierce debate across the energy sector.Whether you’re a skeptic of his stance or co-signer that the future can be all renewable, this conversation challenges assumptions and asks the most important question in energy today: what if the solutions we need are already here?Key Links:Mark Jacobson’s Stanford Profile: https://profiles.stanford.edu/mark-jacobsonMark Jacobson on X: https://x.com/mzjacobsonSignup for the Energy Central Daily Newsletter: https://energycentral.beehiiv.com/subscribe

In this discussion, guest Arushi Sharma Frank, a tech investor and advisor with a rich background in energy markets and data integration, delves into the transformative role of AI in the power grid. She shares insights on how AI data centers can evolve from energy burdens into grid stabilizers through innovative orchestration and design. Arushi emphasizes the need for utilities to embrace flexibility, overcome barriers to scaling grid-responsive solutions, and cultivate a new generation of talent to lead the energy sector into the future.

It’s no secret: AI is changing everything from how we think, to where we build, to how we power the world.And nowhere is that disruption hitting harder and more quickly than in the rise of data centers, the massive energy users that are quickly becoming the new industrial load of the 21st century.In this episode of Power Perspectives, host Kinsey Grant Baker digs into the context of this transformation with the illuminating Pete Sacco, founder of Gray Wolf Data Center and physicist-turned-engineer-turned-developer. Sacco blends technical mastery with a human-centered vision for what the next generation of compute infrastructure could look like: distributed, opportunistic, and deeply integrated with local energy systems.From solid oxide fuel cells and on-site microgrids to new partnerships between utilities and data centers, this episode unpacks the radical rethink happening at the edge of the grid—and what it means for energy leaders tasked with keeping pace. This episode is a must-listen for anyone sitting at the intersection of energy, infrastructure, and innovation.And the message is clear: the data center revolution is coming fast, and utilities that embrace the change today will be the ones defining the next era of the grid tomorrow.And thanks to our partner, Renew Developers, for making this episode possible. ReNew Developers is a sustainable real estate development firm offering speed-to-market power solutions and Energy-as-a-Service. We serve data centers and large industrial power users by developing modern projects with on-site power generation. Our unique approach shaves years off the timeline to move into your data center. We have a pipeline of land with energy generation permits in place that can feed your state-of-the-art data center expansion needs. Contact us at ReNewDevelopers.com if you need land with power now.

Ask any utility exec: The key to accurate forecasting isn’t luck. It’s data. In fact, data might be more valuable than electrons these days.Knowing what your customers think (and how they act) is a prerequisite for long-term utility success. So today on The Watt & Why, host Mike Smith welcomes Elizabeth Parks, president and CMO of Parks Associates, for an insightful conversation about how consumers are adapting to new technologies—and the real ways the power industry can better leverage data to get answers to big questions.Mike and Elizabeth explore the utility’s role in communicating the massive benefits of grid tech to customers, the evolving relationship between consumers and power companies, and how utilities can improve everyday peoples’ perception of the work they do.Building trust starts with knowing your customer. Today’s conversation is a crash course in doing just that.

It’s one thing to create a culture of innovation. It’s an entirely other thing to ensure innovation exists at every juncture of your utility business.Today on Piloting the Future, Kim sits down (IRL, in the Philippines!) with execs from Aboitiz Power to learn how they’re incentivizing innovation in everyday ops.Aboitiz’s COO Jokin Aboitiz and AVP of Business Process & Strategic Performance Marynelle Leonor Rosales explain 1) why scale can hamstring innovation and how to outmaneuver business heft 2) the best strategy for making innovation more efficient 3) the role of next-gen tech in the pursuit of affordability…and so much more.Listen in to hear the exec’s playbook for keeping innovation affordable.

How is Exelon, the largest regulated electric utility in the US, preparing for a high-demand future dominated by large loads and electrification? Balancing customer equity with business opportunity? Getting the smartest people excited to work in energy? Fighting for the regulation we need to build things quicker and more efficiently?Mike Innocenzo, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Exelon, answers all that (and more) today on Power Perspectives.He’s giving us a rare glimpse at how decisions are made and strategies are formed at one of the most important companies in power. Press play to see how the modern utility is adapting, pivoting, and prioritizing.