Massachusetts DPU
Jeremy McDiarmid is Chair on the Massachusetts DPU. Prior to his appointment, he was the Managing Director and General Counsel for the national business association, Advanced Energy United. During that time, he served on Governor Healey’s Commission on Energy Infrastructure Siting and Permitting, led multiple efforts at the intersection of clean energy and affordability, and developed policies to support advanced transmission technologies in multiple states. Previously, McDiarmid served as Vice President for Policy & Government Affairs at the Northeast Clean Energy Council, leading efforts to develop new interconnection policies and opening market opportunities.
Paul Kjellander is PUF Senior Advisor, former NARUC and Idaho Commission President.
Load growth and system planning all require adding electric utility infrastructure but building that runs smack into many reasons for delays, including permitting, NIMBY-ism, supply chain disruptions, and more. The situation threatens to stunt the needed industry growth to handle increased demand.
Throw in affordability, and the issues surrounding meeting the energy required to allow modern society to thrive become even more fraught. Regulators are charged with the difficult task of figuring it all out, culminating in decisions that serve the public interest.
Public Utilities Fortnightly Senior Advisor Paul Kjellander discussed the tough issues surrounding utility infrastructure build with three Commissioners in diverse regions of the U.S. Arkansas Commissioner Katie Anderson, Utah Commissioner John Harvey, and Massachusetts Chair Jeremy McDiarmid talked about how they weigh utility planning options aimed at meeting unprecedented load growth.
PUF’s Paul Kjellander: How significant is the challenge of electric infrastructure keeping pace with increased energy demands?
Chair Jeremy McDiarmid: The Northeast is a densely populated area that has increasing demand for electricity and not a lot of space to put new infrastructure. At the same time, we have affordability challenges like many other jurisdictions.