Conversations with DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory’s Director, Brian Anderson, NETL’s Jessica Mullen, and Kansas Geological Survey’s Franek Hasiuk.

“As difficult as it might seem to build a nuclear power plant, building multi-state transmission has proven more difficult. The Princeton study shows need for 3 or 4 times as much new transmission capacity added if you do the whole job with just renewables versus firm clean generation from things like nuclear.”

“There was a 2.5% rate decrease in our last rate case on the power side. Business is promising. I wouldn’t be surprised if we can manage our rates at least flat or in the zone of keeping them flat, this upcoming rate case.”

PPL Electric Utilities wins the President’s Award. The Achievement Awards go to PPL Electric Utilities, Florida Power & Light in two different areas, Con Edison, Southern California Edison, and Eversource.

“The main part of my team’s work is in this vulnerability assessment of the T&D system. We also have been playing an important role in helping the climate scientists understand what we will use the data for so they can provide the best climate data for each T&D application.”

“As regulators see these results coming out and are making decisions, it’s our aim that by creating a consistent, replicable methodology, they can have comfort and understanding that this approach is scientifically and technically defensible. It is a well-informed approach to thinking about vulnerability and response prioritization.”

“We’re dealing with heat waves and droughts in Europe. That means a significant reduction of available capacity of nuclear and hydropower. Hydropower because water has evaporated behind the dam, and nuclear because water is getting too warm to be used in cooling.”

“We’ve often used the analogy of being the air traffic controller for the power grid. Another analogy I’ve heard used to describe our market-based services is when we act like Wall Street. We make sure buyers and sellers are aligned.”

“There’s this effort to create climate science and data across the U.S. That was a reason NOAA got involved with EPRI. We also signed an MOU with EPRI to work on advancing climate resilience and climate adaptation in this sector.”

Conversations with NOAA Chief Scientist Sarah Kapnick, Southwest Power Pool COO Lanny Nickell, Eurelectric Secretary General Kristian Ruby, and EPRI’s Morgan Scott and Andrew Phillips.