Michigan, New York lawmakers consider virtual power plant bills

The proposals would prohibit utility ownership of participating distributed energy resources and require reasonable access for third-party aggregators.

By Brian Martucci • March 25, 2026

Data center buildouts slowed late last year

“Power and electrical equipment is still the main driver of construction delays,” said Gordon Dolven, CBRE data center research director.

By Matt Ashare • March 25, 2026

Explore the Trendline➔

Energy Efficiency

With hostilities between the U.S., Israel and Iran driving up global energy prices and a surge in domestic electricity demand from large-load data centers, manufacturing and electrification, efficiency could play a key role in meeting that demand as economically as possible. 

By Utility Dive staff

Puget Sound’s vehicle-to-home charging pilot combines demand response, peak shaving, resilience

The test will use electric vehicle batteries for demand response and residential peak shaving while also making their storage capacity available during power outages.

By Brian Martucci • March 24, 2026

Better grid utilization could save customers $170B: Brattle report

However, the report’s lead author said that “we need regulatory models that reward utilities for pursuing this opportunity.”

By Brian Martucci • March 23, 2026

Battery developers, local officials ask New York to roll back Con Edison BESS methodology

“The grid has been built to serve customers, not to host battery storage anywhere, at any scale,” a Con Edison official told Utility Dive.

By Brian Martucci • March 18, 2026

To strengthen power reliability in extreme weather, diversify grid resources

More expensive, less reliable power need not be our unavoidable fate, writes NextGen Energy CEO Kimberly Johnston.

By Kimberly Johnston • March 18, 2026

Mass. governor orders state to pursue 15 GW of resources, including storage, VPPs

The executive order also calls for a review of existing gas and oil storage capacity and utilization, including how the Everett LNG import terminal helps meet the region’s energy needs.

By Robert Walton • March 17, 2026

Lowering peak energy demand can provide outsized benefit, executive tells facilities managers

Building owners, tenants or operators are “paying a huge premium” on peak demand charges that could be based on a single, 15-minute period in the billing cycle, said Richard Fox of Sanalife Energy.

By Joe Burns • March 16, 2026

EPB of Chattanooga deploys battery-based microgrids for savings, resilience

Within three years, the Tennessee distribution utility could have as much as 150 MW of energy storage on its system, representing more than 10% of peak load, an executive told Utility Dive.

By Brian Martucci • March 11, 2026

4 affordability solutions states and utilities can implement now

States can take steps to drive electricity cost savings more quickly as well as pursue long-term reform, write Allison Clements, a former member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and Lori Bird of the WRI Polsky Energy Center.

By Allison Clements and Lori Bird • March 11, 2026

Power and capital constraints may drive shift to modular cooling, smaller data centers

The wait for new large-scale data centers to connect to the power grid is approaching five years in major data center markets, according to a Feb. 26 report from JLL.

By Brian Martucci • March 10, 2026

Energy Star is moving to DOE. Industry groups are hopeful.

Both the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency, which currently runs the program, had big staff cuts last year. At least one group has questions about DOE’s plans.

By Robert Freedman • March 10, 2026

EPA properly awarded $1.5B of now-terminated grants, inspector general says

Among the 80 impacted awardees were dozens of energy projects, including energy efficient housing retrofits and weatherization, solar, storage, microgrid and workforce development programs. 

By Jacob Wallace • March 9, 2026

Utilities are spending billions on the data center boom. What are the risks?

“Data center demand is hard to project over the next few years,” said Advait Arun of the Center for Public Enterprise. “In a market correction, it's very possible that data centers ... will end up crashing out of their tariff arrangements.”

By Diana DiGangi • March 6, 2026

World’s ‘largest’ grid battery part of Google-Xcel Energy agreement

Form Energy will supply iron-air batteries for the 300 MW/30 GWh deployment, which the parties say will bolster Xcel’s Upper Midwest grid with cost-effective multiday energy storage.

By Brian Martucci • March 4, 2026

The physics of reliability: Why gas peakers alone can’t save the modern grid

Most outages don’t start as a multihour energy shortage; they start as a frequency crisis. If you only have gas, you’re trying to stop a bullet with a shield that takes 10 minutes to lift, writes Arun Muthukrishnan from Arevon Energy.

By Arun Muthukrishnan • March 3, 2026

Data centers remain standout industry for Schneider Electric

Data center orders accelerated toward the end of 2025 and will likely remain strong through 2026 as projects planned for the next 18 to 24 months take shape, Schneider Electric Chief Financial Officer Hilary Maxson said.

By Brian Martucci • March 3, 2026

California orders utilities to add 6 GW of non-fossil capacity by 2032

“Eligible new resources must be either zero-emitting or otherwise eligible under the [renewables portfolio standard] program,” according to the California Public Utility Commission order.

By Diana DiGangi • Feb. 27, 2026

Efficiency first: A fast track to capacity in the era of hyperscalers

Prioritizing demand-side management before committing billions to new infrastructure mitigates risks for utilities and their customers, according to a pair of efficiency experts.

By Paige Knutsen and Erin Kempster • Feb. 27, 2026

House passes bills to weaken DOE’s appliance efficiency program, repeal home rebates

Consumer advocates lamented the votes. “Efficiency rules are incredibly popular because they save families money on their utility bills,” said Dylan Jaff at Consumer Reports.

By Robert Walton • Feb. 26, 2026

Governors are promising lower power bills. Here’s the only credible path to deliver.

If we treat every new megawatt like it must be served with new poles, wires, substations and peakers, we will lock in another decade of rate shock, write Jigar Shah and Arnab Pal from Deploy Action.

By Jigar Shah and Arnab Pal • Feb. 26, 2026

Massachusetts’ least-cost 2050 peak power mix is combustion-free: report

But a top official with a regional independent power producer group said the focus now, amid rising demand, should be on “energy addition, not retirement or replacement.”

By Brian Martucci • Feb. 25, 2026

Rivian partners with EnergyHub on managed EV charging

Rivian drivers will be able to participate in passive and active managed utility charging programs, company officials told Utility Dive.

By Brian Martucci • Updated Feb. 25, 2026

House bill would make it harder for DOE to mandate efficient appliances

The Home Appliance Protection and Affordability Act could see a floor vote this week. 

By Robert Freedman • Feb. 23, 2026

VPP vs. VPP: Customer-owned DER aggregators challenge Xcel-owned batteries in Minnesota docket

The Minnesota decision could affect how regulators see virtual power plants nationwide.

By Herman K. Trabish • Feb. 19, 2026