Advanced Energy Perspectives

Just as you wouldn’t set off on a great American road trip using a 50-year-old paper map, Colorado shouldn’t be making decisions about regional electricity markets using 20-year-old assumptions about the western grid. Choosing the wrong market could lead to some very expensive mistakes, burdening ratepayers with higher costs and lower reliability and steering Colorado’s clean energy ambitions into a dead end.

A regional electricity market is among the most powerful tools in the toolbox for lowering electricity costs, improving reliability and resiliency to extreme weather events, and integrating Colorado’s abundant renewable resources into a 100% clean grid. In the next few months, Colorado utilities like Xcel Energy and Tri-State will have the opportunity to join with neighboring states and utilities in a regional market, and the benefits have the potential to be great. Colorado’s participation in a regional market could allow the state to trade electricity across the West, tapping into resources like hydro from the Northwest or geothermal from Nevada. In return, it could sell excess clean energy produced by local wind and solar.

Texas has come a long way since 2021, when Winter Storm Uri left millions of Texans without power for days during a stretch of below-freezing temperatures. The deadly impact, and traumatic effects for millions of Texans, forced intense scrutiny of the Lone Star State’s electricity infrastructure. As part of a series of recent winter storms, along with Winter Storms Elliot and Mara, Uri exposed serious vulnerabilities in the Texas grid.

In the four years since Uri hit, Texas has made enormous improvements toward making the grid more reliable, in part by significantly increasing energy capacity. In his recent State of the State address, Governor Greg Abbott highlighted Texas’ 35% increase in power generation. 

This growth is driven almost entirely by increases in advanced energy. In fact, over 90% of Texas’ new power capacity in the past four years came from solar, wind, and battery storage.  

New York is at a crossroads. Despite renewable energy's rapid growth accounting for over 90% of new capacity added in 2024, President Trump has paused energy funding from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and is stalling onshore and offshore wind, all of which supported the much-needed growth in the energy sector along with countless good American jobs. At the state-level, Governor Hochul’s Executive Budget failed to address the growing threats to our clean energy future. 

With our energy future at risk, state policymakers must step up to ensure a reliable and affordable energy future for all New Yorkers. Here’s how:

As we near the end of 2024, I’m pleased to share some good tidings and a bit of hope. While uncertainty hangs heavy on the horizon, Massachusetts offers a bright example of how states can shine when they choose to step up.

Governor Maura Healey recently signed a landmark clean energy package that will accelerate clean energy deployment in Massachusetts, and, in turn, will increase local jobs and lower energy costs. The act includes critical reforms to streamline siting and permitting processes, as well as provisions to expand grid-enhancing technologies, energy storage, and other advanced energy technologies.  

In 2025, the advanced energy sector faces uncertainty as changes in political leadership in Washington, D.C. raise concerns about shifting priorities in the federal agencies, and the potential for rollbacks of key policies within the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and other recent legislation. 

To address how the advanced energy industry can sustain its momentum amidst these challenges, Advanced Energy United recently hosted a webinar entitled “Beyond the Ballot: Mapping State Clean Energy Strategies Post-Election.” Moderated by Jeff St. John, Director of News and Special Projects at Canary Media, the discussion featured insights from panelists Amisha Rai, Vice President of Advocacy at United; Harry Godfrey, Managing Director of Federal Investment and Manufacturing at United; and Kim Jemaine, Managing Director of the clean energy advocacy organization Counterspark.