She is a strategic growth leader who is passionate about consulting and connecting utility clients with solutions to their key challenges, particularly around resiliency and infrastructure. Amy Wharton is our Chief Revenue Officer bringing over 20 years of experience in the Energy and Utilities industry, heading Marketing and Business Development for Think Power Solutions. Whether you’re planning a large‑scale grid transformation, updating substation assets, or deploying digital platforms, Think Power Solutions can help you implement modernization that delivers capacity, resilience and value. Utilities are deploying mobile inspection apps, GIS‑enabled field data collection, and remote worker support through augmented reality or generative AI. Digital twin models create virtual replicas of grids or substations, enabling scenario simulation and predictive maintenance.

Studies commissioned by the states of California and New York show that managed https://eurodialogue.org/Turkeys-EU-Memberships-Possible-Impacts-on-the-Balkans electrification could lower the cost of distribution upgrades needed through 2035 by more than US$30 billion in each of these states.18 That’s because building efficiency measures and smart devices to manage energy usage and smooth EV charging could reduce capital spending on new substations, transformers, feeders, and other distribution equipment (figure 4). Unlocking this potential requires advanced digital technologies to enable active management but could deliver cost savings to utilities and customers. Unlike inflexible loads that are driving up peak demand and grid expansion, residential electrification creates a load that could potentially serve itself by 2035 (figure 3). At the intersection of the power, building, and transportation sectors, DER-equipped households also include major home appliances with smart controls, such as home heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and water heaters, and mobile DER such as EVs that owners intermittently plug into their homes.

Enterprise Capabilities Are Being Democratized

Indeed, only 3% of utility workers are currently employed in smart grid operations, but investments stemming from GRIP funding alone could create 178,000 more of these jobs.66 Many utilities plan to collaborate with unions, in addition to community colleges and apprenticeship programs, and career centers (figure 11). They will likely want to see that utilities are leveraging unprecedented federal funding to build resilient DERstribution capabilities. In an interview, Brien Sheahan, former chairperson and chief executive officer of the Illinois Commerce Commission, explained how utilities can do so. To achieve regulatory backing for DERstribution, utilities should make a clear case to regulators for DER-related investments. That is, the technical, operational, and regulatory capabilities should be in place for DERstribution.