Strategy & Planning

Conversation with Infravision’s Cameron Van Der Berg and Chris Cox, Energy Impact Partners’ Evan Pittman, and Edison International’s Sergej Mahnovski.

“To be in Gerald Ford’s hometown, honor his legacy and the work he did around energy as president, ground this in what’s happening today, even as we look forward, has been important. We always wanted to tie in with President Ford’s legacy. The active work we’ve seen in the last couple of years at the federal level has made that more relevant.”

“We can begin to look at advanced nuclear reactor options that are being developed today, such as smaller modular reactors that are about three hundred megawatts versus the thousand-megawatt reactors at Vogtle.”

“The future is bright for NARUC with First Vice President Julie Fedorchak and Second Vice President Tricia Pridemore coming up the line. They’re two hard charging women who are great to work with and have a sense of purpose.”

“There is never a point at which TURN’s policies are in alignment with utility policies. The reason is because ratepayer advocates and utilities have fundamentally diametrical interests.”

A roundtable with NASUCA President Chris Ayers (North Carolina), Vice President Michael Moody (Michigan), Treasurer Tom Content (Wisconsin); the Executive Committee’s Michele Beck (Utah), Bill Fine (Indiana), Nanette Edwards (South Carolina), Patrick Cicero (Pennsylvania), David Lapp (Maryland); and Executive Director David Springe.

“The program can scale up to $250 billion of lending up to 30 years, depending on life of the asset, at a rate as low as U.S. Treasuries plus three eighths of a point. Those benefits have to flow through to regulated customers. An unregulated project, say a merchant coal plant being replaced with solar and storage, that low-cost financing benefit can accrue to the developer.”

“As a way forward, regulators and policymakers need to modernize the way they support the development, planning and operation of the bulk power system, which is beyond the certainty of resource capacity.”

In discussions with ten Commissioners from every end of the country, PUF’s Paul Kjellander asked what’s driving the energy transition in their states, their state’s policies, barriers for the transition to overcome, and risks, also the role of consumer-owned energy. Sponsored by Itron.

Exelon subsidiary ComEd began its Community of the Future program in 2016 with the Bronzeville Community Microgrid in Chicago. PUF journeyed there to see firsthand how ComEd is taking Chicago into the future with the first utility operated microgrid cluster.