Power for Tomorrow Statement on FERC’s Show Cause Orders
Power for Tomorrow President Brad Viator commends FERC on the steps it took today: “FERC acted wisely and soundly to focus on addressing what’s broken in the markets. FERC’s process puts every market on the hook to show that it can integrate data centers and other large loads swiftly, reliably, and with protections for other customers. Some markets are doing better than others. And the differences between them are worth FERC scrutiny. PFT looks forward to engaging as these show cause proceedings advance.”
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The Roanoke Times: Commentary: Google's data center campus in Botetourt County is being done right
As data centers drive surging energy demand, the real question isn't whether data centers are good or bad — it's whether they're planned responsibly. In his latest op-ed, PFT's Brad Viator points to Google's proposed campus in Botetourt County, VA, as a model: industrial siting, significant local tax revenue, new infrastructure paid for by Google at no cost to existing customers, and genuine community collaboration. There is a way to have growth and protect customers. Smart development, not stopped development, is the answer.
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Utility Dive: PJM’s crisis has a simple solution: Copy what works in regulated states
The competitive market was supposed to produce lower prices, but when faced with the first big demand shock in decades, it delivered chaos, writes Power for Tomorrow President Brad Viator.
Read the full column in Utility Dive.
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PFT Urges a "No" Vote on West Virginia Senate Bill 420
In a letter sent to West Virginia legislators, Power for Tomorrow President Brad Viator calls on elected officials “to protect West Virginians from energy policy that undermines both grid reliability and customer affordability.”
“Passing SB 420 is antithetical to the Legislature’s own stated commitment to affordability. West Virginia already carries the fourth highest poverty rate in the nation. Its residents cannot afford for this legislation to move forward. If running coal plants at 69% capacity made financial sense, utilities would already be doing it, no mandate required. We urge you to vote no on SB 420 and protect the interests of West Virginians.“
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PFT's Brad Viator Testifies in Support of HB 1561
Maryland’s electricity demand is rising and the grid is struggling to keep up.
Power for Tomorrow President Brad Viator testified before the Maryland House Environment and Transportation Committee in support of HB 1561, the Affordable Energy Act.
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Power for Tomorrow Announces Leadership Changes Amid Rapidly Evolving Energy Landscape
Power for Tomorrow announced a series of leadership appointments that support the organization’s next phase amid a rapidly changing U.S. energy landscape, marked by soaring electricity demand and projected continued growth driven by data centers, electrification, and new domestic manufacturing.
Brad Viator has been elected President of Power for Tomorrow, effective immediately. In addition, Alison Williams has been appointed Senior Vice President, Public Policy & Regulatory Affairs, and Gary Meltz has been appointed Senior Vice President, Communications.
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RTO Insider: Where are Utilities Best Serving Customers?
As PJM grapples with reliability, load growth, and market failures, policymakers are still debating what might work next. Meanwhile, one model has already been delivering real results for more than a century.
Alison Williams of Power for Tomorrow makes the case that well-regulated, vertically integrated utilities are doing exactly what today’s power system needs.
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PJM’s Plan Confirms the Problem Markets Alone Can’t Solve
PJM’s new decisional letter on large load additions confirms what recent capacity auction results already showed: market signals alone are not delivering enough new generation to meet rapidly growing demand. For the first time, PJM cleared short of its reliability requirement.
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Guest Column: Data centers like Meta’s will help lower energy costs
Louisiana is proving that data centers don’t have to mean higher power bills for residents. On the contrary, strategic infrastructure investments tied to industrial growth can be used to improve grid reliability, boost economic growth and lower costs for everyone.
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Clarion Ledger: Mississippi’s proving data centers don’t always mean higher power bills
PFT President Brad Viator writes, in Mississippi’s Clarion Ledger, “Electricity rates are going up nationwide, and data centers aren’t always to blame. But a common misconception by some unfamiliar with how power grids work, is that data centers strain public utilities and raise electricity rates for existing customers.”
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Mississippi Monitor: Mississippi’s Proving Data Centers Don’t Always Mean Higher Power Bills
In an article for the Mississippi Monitor, PFT Brad Viator discusses how the historic economic growth happening in Mississippi shows that when utilities take a thoughtful approach to integrating hyperscale customers into public electric grids, new industry like data centers can actually lower—instead of raise—power bills.
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Real Clear Energy : Electric Deregulation Historically Means Higher Power Bills
The millions of Americans who are struggling with under the weight of higher electric bills deserve real relief, not false promises. Weatherizing homes, investing in efficiency, and strengthening the grid can ease some of the costs. But deregulation is a proven failure because it doesn’t lower bills – it raises them. Lawmakers should reject this policy and focus instead on solutions that actually protect customers, not exploit them.
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The Times-Picayune: Electric Deregulation was a Bad Idea in Other Places. And it's Bad for New Orleans
National groups are sniffing around with a risky idea called electric deregulation. It’s being sold as “choice,” but don’t be fooled. Deregulation won’t lower your power bill. It’ll raise it.
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RTO Insider: PJM Is Flailing, but There’s a Solution
In a recent RTO Insider column, Brad Viator and Alison Williams examine the root causes of PJM’s failures and propose solutions to address its systemic shortcomings.
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The Hill: Why Utility Deregulation is the Worst Way to Generate More Electricity
Power for Tomorrow expert Ed Hirs, an energy economics professor and UH Energy Fellow at the University of Houston, explains that—despite the rhetoric from deregulation advocates—it’s the traditionally regulated states like Virginia and Georgia that are successfully generating enough electricity to attract and support new data centers.
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Forbes: Industrial Only Electricity Deregulation Will Be A Disaster For All Louisianans
Power for Tomorrow expert Ed Hirs — a renowned energy economist and lecturer at the University of Houston — published a compelling column that explores the serious risks of “industrial only” electricity deregulation in Louisiana. Hirs makes the case that this policy shift could have wide-reaching consequences for every Louisianan, not just large industrial users.
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Utility Dive: Surging Data Center Power Demand Risks Subtracting Clean Energy from the Grid
Brad Viator promotes sensible utility regulation with a column in Utility Dive, "Surging data center power demand risks subtracting clean energy from the grid."
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Wall Street Journal: The Rush to Shore Up the Power Grid Against Hurricanes, Heat and Hail
Ed Hirs, energy economist, fellow at the University of Houston and Power for Tomorrow expert, speaks to the Wall Street Journal about how companies are working to adapt as they confront record-setting temperatures, floods and windstorms
“Storms are another big problem because they are expected to increase in severity and frequency. That means utilities, grid operators and power-plant owners will have to spend a lot more on things such as strengthening electric poles, transmission towers and other infrastructure.”
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Pluribus News: Maryland Attempts to Curb Rising Energy Bills with New Law Targeting Third-Party Suppliers
Brad Viator, a state utility policy expert, said the Maryland law was spurred by third-party suppliers’ heavy-handed sales tactics. “They’re like anybody else who’s trying to get a bunch of customers to sign up for a service,” Viator said. “There are some salespeople out there that are super aggressive and are using some unscrupulous tactics to get people to sign up. And the problem has become so prevalent, in Maryland in particular, but really in a lot of the states in the Northeast.”
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Daily Energy Insider: Retail Energy Consumers Will See Stronger Protections Under Newly Enacted Legislation
Power for Tomorrow’s Executive Director in the Daily Energy Insider discussing the Maryland law that will bolster consumer protections — especially those for low-income residents — against deceptive practices in the state’s unregulated retail electricity market.
Read the full article.
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