Despite the best of intentions, transmission construction is measured in decades, not years. Central power stations are disappearing while electrification is soaring, leaving distribution utilities to meet demand in new ways. This conversation will cover what one cooperative is doing to answer the challenge.
Join us for a webinar to explore how pollution burdens disproportionately impact frontline communities and the innovative state-level policy solutions that are making a way forward.
This webinar, part of the Beyond Transmission series by Heatmap Labs, will focus on the key role of customer-side flexibility in the form of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs). Across the country, utilities are harnessing existing network and customer assets – from solar panels and car batteries to smart thermostats and water heaters – to create VPPs that can deliver a range of grid services, satisfy soaring electricity demand, and bring relief to congested grid infrastructure. And VPPs also provide opportunities to empower customers, keep costs low, and decarbonize the grid through flexibility.
In early 2026 several major Colorado Utilities will be joining the Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) as it expands into the Western Interconnection. The SPP will bring an organized market to Colorado and nearby states with the benefits of increased reliability and better economics, with a Brattle Group study predicting $49 million in annual savings. We will be joined by Steve Johnson of the SPP who will discuss what this means for Colorado utilities and ratepayers.
Since passing in August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has been a game changer for clean energy and energy efficiency. According to the Department of Treasury “More than 1.2 million American families have claimed over $6 billion in credits for residential clean energy investments – such as solar electricity generation, solar water heating, and battery storage, among other technologies – averaging $5 thousand per family. 2.3 million families have claimed more than $2 billion in credits for energy efficient home improvements – such as heat pumps, efficient air conditioners, insulation, windows, and doors – averaging $880 per family.” But what we've seen so far is only part of what is on the horizon. We’ll be joined by Owen Vogel of the Clean Energy Credit Union (CECU).
These are exciting times. Every month brings new innovations in solar efficiency, wind, chemical battery storage, smart grids, microgrids, building efficiency, and building electrification—many of which were described in CRES chapter programs. Each of these innovations will play an important role in mitigating climate change risk. However, technological innovation alone is not sufficient to transition us from a fossil fuel-based economy to a renewable and sustainable economy. If these new energy sources are to mature and replace fossil fuels, we also need to create market conditions that will support them in their new role in our economy.
We’ll be joined by Tim Stelzer and Eli Asher of LineVision who will provide an overview of GETs, the capabilities they offer, their current state-of-play in the U.S., and highlight case studies of dynamic line rating (DLR) technology. They will wrap up with a discussion of how legislation and regulation can play a role in ensuring the technology is used cost-effectively.
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