Load Management, Efficiency & Demand Response

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    welcomia via Getty Images
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    $8.8B energy efficiency rebate program on hold in most states, underway in some

    David Terry, president of the National Association of State Energy Officials, said he has been “repeatedly” assured that obligated funds will be disbursed.

    By • Updated Aug. 6, 2025
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Lawmakers in House and Senate move to maintain Energy Star

    The Trump administration’s fiscal year 2026 budget request, which it released in early May, eliminated all funding for the Atmospheric Protection Program, which administers Energy Star. 

    By Robert Freedman • Aug. 6, 2025
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    Nathan Howard/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Electricity Supply and Demand

    After nearly two decades of flat demand, U.S. electricity consumption reached an all-time high in 2024 and is expected to continue rising. This trendline brings together the best of Utility Dive’s coverage of emerging trends in supply and demand and the decisions being made today that will impact the power system for years to come. 

    By Utility Dive staff
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    Spiroview Inc. / Adobe Stock

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    Sponsored by Franklin Energy

    Inclusive by design: A new model for expanding energy engagement

    See how data-driven design is reshaping energy access for underserved communities.

    By Brian McKee • Aug. 4, 2025
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    Caia Image via Getty Images
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    Sponsored by Oracle

    The grid’s hidden asset is your customers. The FCC just unlocked access to them.

    Learn how to take advantage of unlocked customer access to scale demand response programs, encourage peak load reductions, and make the grid more resilient.

    By Mary Sprayregen • Aug. 4, 2025
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    halbergman via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    Aggregations and data centers: If a resource shows up when the grid is straining, make it count.

    Allow AI data centers to participate in grid stress management, and the capital will flow to the solutions that enable flexible, grid-supportive outcomes.

    By Arushi Sharma Frank • July 31, 2025
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    Courtesy of GE Vernova
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    Data center flexibility can save money but may come with higher emissions: MIT

    In Texas, where renewable energy is booming, data center emissions fell by up to 40% in the MIT modeling of flexible data center workloads. In other regions, however, emissions rose.

    By • July 30, 2025
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    Carl Court via Getty Images
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    Nvidia addresses AI peak power demand, spikes in new rack-scale systems

    One engineer called it a “moderate big deal,” given Nvidia’s dominance, but “not transformative.”

    By • July 30, 2025
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    The image by Notorious4life is licensed under CC BY 1.0
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    DTE Energy in talks with data centers for 7 GW of new load

    Data centers are providing upside to the company’s long-term plan, potentially requiring investment in energy storage and generation, company officials said Tuesday.

    By • July 29, 2025
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Demand response programs improving, but customers remain wary: report

    One provider said demand response events increased 173% from 2021 to 2024, but the average enrolled device participated in only 2% more events.

    By Brian Martucci • July 28, 2025
  • An aerial view of a cluster of large data centers.
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    Nathan Howard via Getty Images
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    Data centers seek flexible power solutions for resilience, sustainability

    Flexible battery- or generator-based solutions can help data centers power up faster, reduce grid impacts and keep their owners’ sustainability goals within reach, experts say.

    By Brian Martucci • July 25, 2025
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    US electricity demand to grow 2.5% annually through 2035: BofA Institute

    Building electrification, data centers, industrial growth and electric vehicles are among the factors contributing to growth, according to the prediction.

    By • July 24, 2025
  • An aerial view of a large data center next to a home
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    Nathan Howard via Getty Images
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    Microgrid ‘energy parks’ could ease strain from rising power demand, report says

    Several such sites are already in the works, including the $1 billion Meitner Project in Texas, which is developing wind, solar and hydrogen resources.

    By • July 23, 2025
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    Provided by Hyundai Motor Co. 

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    Ionna tops 3K contracted battery charging bays with new partnership

    The Wawa convenience store chain is the latest company to join the automaker-led joint venture aimed at expanding EV charging infrastructure.

    By Larry Avila • July 22, 2025
  • Aerial view of a data center under construction in Ashburn, Va.
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    Gerville via Getty Images
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    Texas must balance speedy data center buildout with risk of stranded costs: stakeholders

    All loads should pay for a portion of transmission, “regardless of whether they're co-located or have behind the meter generation,” said Clif Lange, general manager of South Texas Electric Cooperative.

    By • July 22, 2025
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    Permission granted by Schneider Electric
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    Schneider Electric launches platform to boost supply chain decarbonization

    The new Zeigo Hub will allow companies to engage suppliers of all sizes, track and manage emissions, and accelerate progress toward their net-zero goals, the company said.

    By Zoya Mirza • July 18, 2025
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    Spencer Platt via Getty Images
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    Virtual power plants helped save the grid during heat dome

    It costs far less — and takes less time — to aggregate existing customer-sited resources than it does to build new dispatchable generation or storage. “Light bulbs are starting to go off,” said one expert.

    By Brian Martucci • July 16, 2025
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    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    So you’re thinking about buying an electric school bus

    From working with a utility to choosing a charger, five insights to improve the decision-making.

    By Linda Margison, Ryan Henderson and Linda Stevens • July 16, 2025
  • Georgia Power's Plant Bowen units during a period of inactivity.
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    The image by Sam Nash is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Georgia Power’s new IRP keeps coal plants online to serve data centers

    The integrated resource plan approved by regulators on Tuesday also calls for up to 4,000 MW of renewable resources by 2035 and more than 1,500 MW of storage.

    By • July 16, 2025
  • The Google Cloud pavilion stands at the 2025 Hannover Messe industrial trade fair on March 31, 2025 in Hanover, Germany.
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    Sean Gallup / Staff via Getty Images
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    Google Cloud to pour more than $25B into AI infrastructure across PJM

    The investment will expand the hyperscaler’s data center footprint across the largest U.S. power grid over the next two years.

    By Matt Ashare • July 15, 2025
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    onurdongel via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    Ignoring customers is unsustainable and bad policy

    Enabling flexible customer demand can drive significant system-wide benefits while mitigating the cost or timing of expensive system upgrades.

    By Kent Chandler, Chris Villarreal and Michael Giberson • July 11, 2025
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    Nathan Howard via Getty Images
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    Ohio regulators approve AEP data center interconnection rules

    The Ohio PUC ordered the utility to file updated tariffs and lift a moratorium on connecting new data centers as soon as possible.

    By • July 10, 2025
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    Nathan Howard via Getty Images
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    There aren’t enough AI chips to support data center projections, report says

    High-end forecasts are “not credible,” according to London Economics International, which called its report a “sanity check” on demand growth projections. 

    By • July 9, 2025
  • Two little girls draw on a table with a candle during a power outage
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    Marizza via Getty Images
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    Load growth, plant retirements could drive 100x increase in blackouts by 2030: DOE

    The U.S. Department of Energy on Monday published a methodology for assessing grid reliability, but clean energy advocates say it likely exaggerates the risks of blackouts.

    By • July 8, 2025
  • An entrance to a Madison Avenue JPMorgan Chase building is shown, with revolving doors and a person walking in the foreground.
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    Michael M. Santiago / Staff via Getty Images
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    JPMorgan launches carbon market blockchain app

    In a bid to boost data standardization and transparency, the bank is working with three global carbon registries to test the viability of tokenizing the voluntary carbon market.

    By Lamar Johnson • July 7, 2025
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    peeterv via Getty Images
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    Cities can decarbonize buildings while cutting costs, new road map says

    The guide from Climate Mayors and Veolia aims to help cities tackle one of their biggest greenhouse gas emissions challenges, even as federal support for energy efficiency and decarbonization shrinks.

    By Robyn Griggs Lawrence • July 7, 2025