Opinion

The latest opinion pieces by industry thought leaders

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  • Rows of solar panels in a field.
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    adamkaz via Getty Images
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    Clean firm generation is an important piece of the energy transition, but it’s no silver bullet

    Due to the high cost of clean firm energy, it may be best considered as part of a broader generation portfolio that relies on much lower cost wind and solar most of the time.

    Michelle Solomon • Dec. 5, 2024
  • Solar panels and wind turbines generating renewable energy for green and sustainable future.
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    pidjoe via Getty Images
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    Mitigating price volatility: How flexible assets can strengthen renewable portfolios

    Together, battery storage, gas generation and demand response provide a crucial buffer against the risks associated with renewable energy, making portfolios more adaptable and financially resilient.

    Andrew Warrell, Spencer Holmes and Tyler Bowen, McKinsey • Dec. 4, 2024
  • A natural gas fired turbine power plant with it's cooling towers rising into a blue sky.
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    Ron and Patty Thomas via Getty Images
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    A costly lesson in supply and demand: How to address PJM’s capacity shortages

    The first law of holes says that you should stop digging when you’re in one. It’s time to stop retiring dispatchable resources if we don’t want the hole we’re in to get any deeper.

    Michelle Bloodworth • Dec. 3, 2024
  • With cyberattacks becoming more frequent, now is the time for CFOs to shore up their cybersecurity programs and strategies.
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    Getty Images via Getty Images
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    AI power demands are rising, and so are attacks on utilities. Here’s what they can do about it.

    While the spike in electricity demand from artificial intelligence creates exciting new opportunities for utilities, it also makes them a prime target for both physical and cyberattacks.

    Carmelo McCutcheon • Nov. 27, 2024
  • Rendering of the $11 billion Port Arthur LNG project in Port Arthur, Texas.
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    Courtesy of Port Arthur LNG
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    FERC’s rubber-stamp approach to LNG is bad news for our economy, consumers and environment

    By prioritizing LNG exports, FERC is constraining domestic gas supply, risking deepening economic inequities, exacerbating price volatility, and straining a power sector already tasked with increasing demand and struggling to keep up.

    Megan Gibson • Nov. 26, 2024
  • A data center server room.
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    sefa ozel via Getty Images
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    Shaping the future of data centers in light of FERC’s AWS, Talen Energy ruling

    The ruling shows the need for more comprehensive data center energy sourcing standards that create long-term efficiencies and investment clarity for project pipelines while protecting captive utility customers.

    Mike Granowski • Nov. 25, 2024
  • Wind power generator in green landscape with distributed energy icons.
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    Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn via Getty Images
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    A model tariff can speed distributed power plant deployment and lower grid modernization costs

    Distributed power plants can improve system resilience now, complementing longer-term grid upgrades that will take years or decades to build.  

    America Garcia and Shannon Anderson • Nov. 22, 2024
  • Hydrogen renewable energy production pipeline.
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    audioundwerbung via Getty Images
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    As the 45V hydrogen tax credit rolls out, we have a major problem to address

    Despite hydrogen’s promise, one critical challenge persists: ensuring that emissions from its production are accurately measured and held to a clear, consistent standard.

    Zane McDonald • Nov. 21, 2024
  • The COP29 stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan illuminated with green red and blue lights.
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    Sean Gallup via Getty Images
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    What COP29 entails for the global energy transition, business priorities

    COP29 will be a “critical moment” in the global climate transition, further shaping the ESG landscape and motivating companies to ramp up sustainability initiatives, says Workiva’s chief sustainability officer.

    Mandi McReynolds • Nov. 14, 2024
  • Smoke stack of coal power plant
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    martin_33 via Getty Images
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    PJM sees ‘easy button’ to meet power needs, but Appalachians see higher bills and more pollution

    Mandates and market manipulations are keeping expensive coal online, and consumers are paying the price.

    Marcia Dinkins • Nov. 13, 2024
  • Electricity from solar panels, dams, and wind turbines. Environmentally-friendly renewable energy concept.
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    bombermoon via Getty Images
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    Pursuing 24/7 carbon-free energy is complex. Here’s what really matters.

    For power providers to monetize the opportunity afforded by the rising demand for nonstop clean energy requires meticulous planning that considers both strategy and operations.

    Goran Vojvodic and Edo Macan • Nov. 11, 2024
  • An aerial view of part of Climeworks' Mammoth direct air capture and storage plant
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    Courtesy of Climeworks — The Mammoth plant
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    How good data can fuel carbon capture and storage adoption for power plants

    CCS is vital to complying with recent EPA emissions mandates, but slow permitting and inadequate data are delaying deployment.

    John Tombari • Nov. 7, 2024
  • Silhouette of business people negotiating at meeting table
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    Stock via Getty Images
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    In the wake of increased scrutiny, ESG leaders aren’t backing down.

    Amid a polarized political landscape, companies are beginning to view sustainability and corporate social responsibility through the same strategic lens.

    Sona Khosla • Nov. 1, 2024
  • Picture of a cybersecurity lock
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    iStock via Getty Images
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    To minimize AI’s cyber risks to energy infrastructure, start with the design phase

    Artificial intelligence will escalate cyber threats, and — if left unprotected — it could create new vulnerabilities at the heart of energy infrastructure.

    Leo Simonovich • Oct. 31, 2024
  • The silhouette of a high voltage power line line towers during sunset.
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    imaginima via Getty Images
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    Where the wires meet the road: Fixing missed opportunities for long-distance transmission

    We need to find ways to better integrate the planning of transmission and the siting of transmission from the get-go so that we don’t end up in situations where ideal pathways for transmission are missed.

    Adam Kurland • Oct. 28, 2024
  • Power lines leading into the city of Cleveland Ohio at sunset time.
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    davelogan via Getty Images
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    Utilities’ hidden clean energy tax is at the heart of our energy challenges

    Ending utility self-funding is central to FERC’s efforts to change utilities’ incentives and push them to tackle more ambitious high-voltage projects.

    Ari Peskoe • Oct. 24, 2024
  • Aerial View of San Francisco Skyline at Sunrise, California, USA
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    heyengel via Getty Images
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    Amid hurricanes and wildfires, the legacy grid, not clean power, is failing local communities

    The latest bout of extreme heat is proving that we can increasingly and reasonably rely on renewable energy and storage to save us from catastrophic power outages even as the planet warms.

    Akshat Kasliwal and Anirudh Mathur • Oct. 23, 2024
  • GenAI legal technology AI
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    Alex Cristi via Getty Images
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    Accelerating utility rate case filings with generative AI

    By leveraging generative AI, utilities can draw on a wealth of information to construct more robust and evidence-backed rate proposals.

    Huzaifah Basrai • Oct. 22, 2024
  • Two technicians wearing yellow vests walking past racks of electronic equipment in a data center for cryptocurrency mining.
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    halbergman via Getty Images
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    Can America keep up with AI’s energy appetite in the race with China?

    Even with companies like Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft making big moves on clean energy, without an improved permitting process, their data centers might struggle to get the power they need to go online.

    Divyansh Kaushik • Oct. 21, 2024
  • A pair of binoculars covered with code, indicating a cybersecurity breach
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    Marco_Piunti via Getty Images
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    Achieving energy resilience: Deep insight into threats, assets and national policy is the first step

    While many energy companies maintain business continuity plans, true resilience requires moving beyond this standard approach to become more innovative and adaptive in this heightened threat environment.

    Brian Harrell and Mark Freedman • Oct. 18, 2024
  • A transmission line tower and wind turbines in Illinois.
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    Allkindza via Getty Images
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    Creating a clean and reliable grid for Illinois

    The recent price spike in PJM’s capacity market is drawing attention to the growing need for policy that moves Illinois towards an affordable clean energy future.

    John Delurey • Oct. 17, 2024
  • Chunks of lithium resting on a table with its a tab containing its periodic table number leaning against it.
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    Just_Super via Getty Images
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    Mining for talent: Education’s crucial role in America’s clean energy, mineral-driven future

    Amid a clean energy revolution and a precarious geopolitical landscape, effectively bridging the educational gap in mining and engineering is pivotal for securing America's technological and environmental future.

    Misael Cabrera and Bill Zisch • Oct. 15, 2024
  • Machine for the production of hydrogen by electrolysis. Concept.
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    Scharfsinn86 via Getty Images
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    Turning the US hydrogen field of dreams into reality

    Perhaps a line from the classic American film “Field of Dreams” best summarizes the approach to hydrogen production and infrastructure: “If you build it, they will come.”

    Jeremy Harrell • Oct. 14, 2024
  • Rare earth ore held in partially closed hand
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    BJP7images via Getty Images
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    How clean energy legislation can incentivize US mineral production

    Both presidential candidates generally agree on the importance of supporting U.S. critical mineral projects given their role in securely supplying key industries, from defense manufacturers to automotive companies.

    Gregory Wischer and Morgan Bazilian • Oct. 11, 2024
  • Rooftop solar panels at the Soleil Lofts apartment complex in Herriman, Utah
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    Permission granted by sonnen, Inc.
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    Unfinished business: The bipartisan appeal of distributed power plants

    Policymakers can best address the grid’s problems by leveraging existing regulatory authorizations to make better use of our assets and infrastructure, former FERC chairs Jon Wellinghoff and Neil Chatterjee write.

    Jon Wellinghoff and Neil Chatterjee • Oct. 10, 2024