A commitment to “growth pays for growth” and properly structuring tariffs and energy supply agreements can ensure data centers pay all their costs, writes Nick Myers of the Arizona Corporation Commission.

Regulators attempt to balance the interests of the different stakeholders with the overall goal of promoting the general good. This has become increasingly difficult as regulators must cope with new interests, says energy consultant Kenneth W. Costello.

Flexibility will be a core attribute of the various scenarios and solutions being discussed to meet the snowballing estimates of U.S. electric power demand, says columnist K Kaufmann.

Columnist Steve Huntoon predicts that the independent federal agencies like FERC will survive the Supreme Court’s revisiting of Humphrey’s Executor v. United States.

In 2026, utility-scale energy storage projects in the U.S. will face headwinds that could slow the pace of a technology that is fast becoming a global grid staple, warns columnist Dej Knuckey.

The defining story of the coming year will be the widening chasm between electricity supply and demand, a dynamic driven by a slow-moving supply side, coupled with the explosive growth of energy-hungry data centers, says columnist Peter Kelly-Detwiler.

Expanding transmission can reduce electricity costs for consumers, but only if the buildout uses consumer welfare as the North Star and ignores narrow political or business interests, say Travis Fisher and Nick Loris.

Storm surge events like Sandy offer insights into what the worst of sea level rise may do to an area’s infrastructure and how the power industry needs to think about this slow-moving but inevitable threat, says columnist Dej Knuckey.

For the first time in PJM history, the market signal for flexible capability such as battery storage is strong, consistent and grounded in clear system need, says Ali Karimian of GridBeyond.

Livewire columnist K Kaufmann argues that clean energy supporters should focus on a strategically planned, outcome-focused, and rapidly achievable transition toward renewables.