The U.S. is entering a period of sustained, structural electricity demand growth from data centers, AI, and manufacturing, while simultaneously retiring dozens of gigawatts of reliable, dispatchable generation. This creates a growing gap between supply and demand, threatening both reliability and affordability.
The existing grid is a major bottleneck, with congestion costing consumers over $12 billion in 2024. The discussion highlights a two-pronged approach: building new, high-capacity inter-regional transmission for long-term resilience and deploying modern technologies like GETS and VPPs to maximize the efficiency of current infrastructure.
A significant portion of the hearing focuses on how slow, complex, and fragmented permitting processes are stalling essential energy projects. Witnesses and senators agree that streamlining these processes at both state and federal levels, particularly for inter-regional transmission, is critical to unlocking new supply.
Over 2,000 gigawatts of new power plants, nearly double the capacity of the existing U.S. fleet, are stuck in interconnection queues. This massive backlog prevents low-cost, clean power from reaching the market, exacerbating supply shortages and keeping prices high.
Keep pulling the thread on United States.