Perspective

“This article presents a high-level overview of emerging regulatory innovations, focusing on the intersection between tariff design and integrated planning. Other articles in this series will present views on additional innovations underway as load growth reshapes the electricity landscape.”

These articles are the first two in a series with PUF focusing on load growth as both a challenge and opportunity for the continued evolution of the U.S. power sector. The series will present innovative solutions to meet this new era of load growth in a way that is more resilient, affordable, and clean.

“We, working with Southern Nuclear and other partners, effectively built a new construction platform that the new Team Vogtle used to then build the plant. The tools we helped them select and implement for this platform were the same tools they use in operations. There were two big advantages.”

“Utilities are pushing more obligations and responsibilities onto hyperscalers to avoid putting a burden on other customers. For example, we have seen a tech firm develop a transmission line it owns in the northwest U.S.”

“The most surprising is how many times we heard how much the utilities require regulatory stability to meet their goals. They are looking for predictability. However, it’s essential they make resilience a permanent capability to prepare and turn disruption into opportunity.”

Key industry thought leaders from the C-suite gave unique perspectives on building an energy system for resilience, growth, affordability, and more at the sidelines of Accenture’s International Utilities and Energy Conference 2025.

“I led the onshore portion of the South Fork Wind Project and will provide examples from that project of how regulatory influence can drive design decisions and environmental considerations when you’re in construction.”

“We’re looking at the strength of the soil to figure out how deep the foundation needs to go. Not so shallow that it fails in a few years, but not so deep that it’s over-designed and unnecessarily expensive. It’s about finding the right balance between long-term durability and cost.”

“On a steel or wood pole, a specialized coating or a sleeve is put on below grade to protect from corrosion. But with concrete, it comes out of the mold ready to set in a corrosive environment.”

“Order 1920 in some ways may sound drastic in terms of the magnitude of change. But it provides an opportunity to evaluate transmission more creatively, more holistically.”