Are utilities ready for data centers’ big AI energy?

Amidst challenges of renewable integration and aging infrastructure, Black & Veatch’s new report signals data center power demands may test utilities’ capacity planning.

By Phil Fischer, Black & Veatch, Data Center Client Executive • Oct. 14, 2024

Hurricane Milton slams Florida, leaving 3.4M utility customers without power

About 71% of Tampa Electric’s customers were without electricity Thursday morning after the hurricane hit land on Florida’s west coast.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 10, 2024

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 Stories from Utility Dive

The U.S. energy transition is facing challenges around grid interconnections, project permitting and power system reliability, but state, federal and other solutions are emerging.

By Utility Dive staff

DOE offers microgrid funding with focus on Alaska, Hawaii, indigenous tribes

“DOE plans to work closely with rural and tribal communities to develop microgrid technologies that will lead to more reliable, affordable energy in isolated regions,” science and innovation chief Geri Richmond said.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 7, 2024

Why decarbonization, reliability and affordability depend on co-optimized planning

Holistic planning can highlight opportunities for gas and power systems to optimize their interdependence, as well as help avoid dangerous disruptions in supplies of energy.

Oct. 7, 2024

In areas hardest hit by Helene, rural cooperatives could need weeks to restore power

Mudslides, flooding and downed trees are challenging utilities in remote areas as they work to restore power. So far, supply chains have kept pace with the need for replacement equipment.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 2, 2024

Utility conferences to watch in 2025

Start planning for 2025’s biggest power sector events, which will cover the clean energy transition, the impact of the 2024 elections and more.

By Larry Pearl, Ethan Howland, Robert Walton, Diana DiGangi • Oct. 1, 2024

PJM artificially inflates capacity prices by billions, complaint alleges

The PJM Interconnection is artificially boosting its capacity prices by not accounting for reliability must-run power plants in its capacity market, the Sierra Club and other groups told FERC.

By Ethan Howland • Sept. 30, 2024

Virtual power plants and time-varying rates: The next big power move for a smarter grid

The energy system is fundamentally changing. There is a major need for new grid management strategies to handle this transition and the challenges that come along.

By Rachel Bryant, Senior Director of Regulatory & Policy Business Development at GridX and Alex Lopez, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Uplight • Sept. 30, 2024

Millions without power after Hurricane Helene rocks Southeast

The storm struck Florida as a Category 4 and moved inland. More than 4 million customers lacked power Friday morning.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 27, 2024

5 ways utilities and other climate planners can tackle extreme heat

As climate change causes extreme heat to spread and become more frequent, the health and energy insecurity impacts faced by vulnerable populations will grow, too.

By Judsen Bruzgul and Mason Fried • Sept. 27, 2024

NERC sounds alarm over winter gas supplies, potential grid impacts

December could be colder than normal across the northern and midwestern U.S., and grid operators and the natural gas sector say they are preparing.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 19, 2024

Go big or go home? How utilities can win the energy transition race

By leaning into change and driving the transition forward, energy providers can come out of this transition as leaders.

Sept. 9, 2024

WestTEC to develop West-wide ‘actionable’ transmission plan

The initiative aims to develop interregional and interstate transmission portfolios across the West on 10- and 20-year timeframes.

By Ethan Howland • Sept. 6, 2024

Ratepayer advocates urge PJM to include RMR power plants in capacity auctions

PJM should hold a stakeholder process to include reliability-must-run plants and, if needed, delay the next auction, set to take place in December, to avoid “unjust and unreasonable” prices, they said.

By Ethan Howland • Sept. 3, 2024

Getting real about reliability in PJM

The July capacity auction for the 2025/26 delivery was the first auction in over five years that sent a message to power suppliers: We need you to stay, and we need you to bring some more friends.

By Glen Thomas • Aug. 29, 2024

Better grid edge visibility is key for load forecasting, cost control: Heatmap Labs panel

Advanced metering infrastructure is already enabling more effective distribution grid operation and planning, but regulatory support and proactive utility investment is needed now, panelists said.

By Brian Martucci • Aug. 28, 2024

How software and AI bolster grid resilience

Grid resilience has never been as critical or as challenging as it is today.

Aug. 26, 2024

New England may need ‘vast renewable build-out’ by 2050 to meet state decarbonization goals: ISO

By 2045, wind and solar resources are projected to meet just 10 GW of the 51 GW peak gross load during peak winter demand, according to the grid operator’s modeling.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 23, 2024

Data center vacancy rate hits record low in H1 2024 as power supply challenges persist: CBRE

Demand for high-power computing is driving a significant price gap between new data centers and legacy facilities, which lack the infrastructure to support workload demands, the firm says. 

By Joe Burns • Aug. 22, 2024

California pioneers new ways to ease interconnection of large DERs

Limited generation profiles in California will schedule limits to DERs during system constraints. New York, Illinois, Colorado and others are testing more flexible approaches.

By Herman K. Trabish • Aug. 21, 2024

With 10 new climate resilience centers, DOE aims to translate research into local action

Researchers will work on actionable science and tools to help local stakeholders combat extreme heat, flooding, drought and more, the U.S. Department of Energy announced last week.

By Ysabelle Kempe • Aug. 20, 2024

New York encourages electrification with new grid planning process, affordability pilot

“The rate at which consumers are electrifying buildings and vehicles has the potential to outpace the existing grid planning processes,” the New York Public Service Commission said.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 19, 2024

Artificial intelligence and workplace safety: A new era for the energy and utilities sector

AI’s potential to revolutionize safety standards in the energy and utilities workplace is significant, yet it presents its own set of challenges.

By Simar Grewal • Aug. 19, 2024

CenterPoint cannot cancel $800M lease for large mobile generators unused during Beryl

The utility should weigh its options, including subleasing the generators and renegotiating contracts, members of the Public Utility Commission of Texas said Thursday.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 16, 2024

Texas AG investigates CenterPoint storm response, possible ‘fraud, waste’

Hurricane Beryl left 2.3 million CenterPoint customers without power in July, spurring questions about the utility’s storm preparedness and restoration efforts.

By Robert Walton • Aug. 14, 2024