Highlights from the NARUC Summer Policy Summit
Sheri Givens is President and CEO of the Smart Electric Power Alliance.
Boston was buzzing this July as more than fourteen hundred regulators, consumer advocates, utilities, and technology innovators gathered for the 2025 NARUC Summer Policy Summit. The conversations were as energizing as the city’s summer sun, and the takeaways underscored just how much opportunity there is when we work together to meet today’s unprecedented energy challenges.
Unprecedented Load Growth
The theme that ran through nearly every conversation was how to meet soaring electricity demand while keeping the grid reliable and affordable for all customers. Data centers, EV charging networks, electrification of buildings — they’re all fueling rapid load growth. And the solutions require coordination across the entire ecosystem.
From Microsoft’s call for faster interconnection timelines to PPL’s innovative rapid response load forecasting team, the message was clear: Utilities and regulators are embracing flexibility and speed, while large energy users are ready to engage on fair cost allocation and planning. This is a moment for shared problem-solving, not siloed thinking.