Maximizing the Grid for Growth
The electric utility industry has moved past the era of predictable one percent growth. As we reach the middle of 2026, however, the question is no longer whether new load is coming, but rather how providers can build fast enough to meet the demand. This month, we spoke with eight leaders currently navigating unprecedented growth challenges to discuss the strategies and infrastructure we all need to modernize the grid.
The scale of the current challenge is significant. In Virginia, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative is managing five GW of contracted data center load against a foundation where the current peak is only 1.2 GW. In New York, Con Edison is executing a $17 billion investment plan to ensure the grid remains resilient as the city electrifies its buildings and transportation. However, as Rajesh Kumar of NYPA and Jacob Lucas of Eversource emphasize, a central challenge is the timing mismatch; while large loads can be commissioned in eighteen months, transmission and generation projects require significantly more time to complete.
To bridge this gap, the industry is adopting new physical and digital strategies. Theodore Paradise of CTC Global explains how advanced conductors can double capacity on existing rights of way in a fraction of the time required for new construction. On the digital side, Gautam Aggarwal of Bidgely and Jeff Ressler of Clean Power Research emphasize how they can help utilities move from being data collectors to data orchestrators, using AI and automated workflows to manage the high volume of interconnection requests.
Finally, Bill Brackmann of Burns & McDonnell reminds us that hardware and software are only part of the solution; the industry is also facing a critical workforce talent gap that requires early, integrated partnerships to keep these large projects on schedule.
The following eight conversations offer a comprehensive roadmap for maintaining reliability and affordability while the grid fundamentally modernizes for the future.
Points of Connection conversations at fortnightly.com
- Raghusimha Sudhakara, Con Edison VP of Distributed Resources Integration
- Rajesh Kumar, New York Power Authority Senior Director of Engineering
- Jacob Lucas, Eversource VP of Transmission System Planning
- Peter Muhoro, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative Chief Strategy, Technology, and Innovation Officer
- Gautam Aggarwal, Bidgely Chief Revenue Officer
- Jeff Ressler, Clean Power Research CEO
- Theodore Paradise, CTC Global Chief Policy and Grid Strategy Officer
- Bill Brackmann, Burns & McDonnell Project Director
