Smart Grid

This article presents a practical four-phase engineering methodology for migrating legacy transmission substations toward adaptive protection architectures in power systems with high distributed energy resource (DER) penetration. Increasing DER integration introduces significant challenges to conventional protection schemes, including bidirectional power flow, dynamic fault current behavior, relay coordination complexity, and reduced protection reliability in aging substations. […]

NextEra Energy says an artificial intelligence (AI)–driven dispatch and outage-scheduling tool has saved its customers more than $20 million so far this year. Santee Cooper expects a custom AI weather-forecasting model to help it avoid spot-market purchases that can cost $100,000 an hour during extreme weather. Both utilities say the tools moved from concept to […]

Utilities and independent power producers have spent years adding sensors to their generating fleets and creating dashboards to view what they relay. But visibility into how a plant is operating isn’t the same as knowing what to do about it—and that gap is where Siemens Energy’s Omnivise Energy Management System is increasingly shedding light, explained […]

Unprecedented scale and load volatility are pushing developers beyond traditional generation strategies toward integrated, digitally orchestrated power systems built for speed, stability, and resilience. As

As artificial intelligence (AI)–driven data center demand strains grid infrastructure across the U.S. and beyond, operators are facing rising scrutiny from utilities, regulators, and the communities where they build. Caspar Herzberg, CEO of industrial software company AVEVA, argues that the industry’s response can’t stop at sustainability commitments—it requires operational transparency and measurable performance data that […]

More than 3 GW of data center load left the PJM system on July 22, 2026, after a single transmission fault. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) investigated the same failure mode in 2024 and found that utility equipment shed none of it. Customer-side protection did all of it. Those settings are about to […]

Growth in artificial intelligence (AI) is outpacing the world’s ability to generate enough power to sustain it. As AI adoption accelerates worldwide, it’s colliding with a power system that wasn’t built for its level of demand. Vittorio Pierangeli, senior vice president PowerGen at Rolls-Royce Power Systems (Figure 1), explains why electricity, not chips or algorithms, […]

The transition to sustainable energy infrastructure has been experiencing steady progress in recent years across the globe, while simultaneously undergoing constant fluctuation. Actual progress is influenced by a wide variety of factors, such as the drivers behind participants’ motivations and the technologies enabling the transition, as well as the status of supply chains and geopolitical […]

Seatrium Limited, the Singapore-based offshore, marine, and energy engineering group formed in 2023 from the merger of Sembcorp Marine and Keppel Offshore & Marine, delivered its first electrons from its

Integrate high-load data centers and renewable energy without compromising grid reliability. Grid reliability hinges on the flexibility identified, managed, and optimized by operational technology (OT). The

Modern power challenges—from renewables and microgrids to artificial intelligence factories—are driving renewed adoption of digital twins as flexible, high-fidelity environments for zero-risk

Why Generative Engine Optimization Is the Next Reputation Management Secret Weapon for Energy Brands Energy has become a kitchen-table issue. Bills are climbing. Data centers are being built at a breakneck pace, and new technologies are being launched faster than ever before, often facing NIMBY concerns. As customers and stakeholders look for answers, they may […]

The explosion of artificial intelligence (AI) computing is, for most utilities, a problem to be absorbed: gigawatts of new data-center demand arriving faster than transmission can be planned or built. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Genesis Mission does not dispute that framing. But buried in the national research portfolio it unveiled July 22 is […]

Artificial intelligence and high-performance computing have helped electrical utilities modernize how they model, forecast, and manage grid operations. These tools already play a central role in maintaining reliability, balancing supply and demand, and planning new infrastructure. But as electrical grids become more distributed, data-intensive, and renewable-heavy, some of the most complex decision-making problems are becoming […]

Why AI Data Centers Can No Longer Be Treated as Passive Customers For decades, even very large electric customers fit inside a familiar planning model. A factory, refinery, industrial campus, hospital complex, hospital system, or manufacturing facility requested service. The utility studied the load, identified required facilities, assigned costs, and folded the demand into its […]

Data center developers have mastered server density and cooling, but power interconnection remains stubbornly slow. Modular substations built in factories rather than fields are emerging as the most practical

Meeting the increasingly important but complex needs of the energy industry requires not only excellent design and engineering, but also advanced sensor capabilities that extend beyond the limits of current technology. A piece of the solution for enhanced technology will come from quantum sensors, which leverage quantum mechanics to deliver tools that will push past […]

As fire-weather risk expands beyond California, utilities are turning to sub-kilometer, asset-level forecasts to support public safety power shutoff decisions they can defend in front of regulators. When the National Weather Service (NWS) issued routine convective outlooks on the morning of May 27, 2025, public guidance for the Houston metro called for widespread 30 to […]

Utilities, federal agencies, and the national labs have finally assembled the tools to harden the grid against an increasingly hostile environment. The question is whether they can put them together fast enough. When a line of storms tore across the Northeast in late April 2025, racing from Ohio into central Pennsylvania, meteorologists recognized the signature […]

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the energy system: While the expansion of wind and solar power continues to progress across Europe, AI will ensure the efficient use of every generated kilowatt-hour. Intelligent algorithms that synchronize generation and consumption in real time will help stabilize grids, avoiding expensive curtailment. Software will become an important tool for […]

How industrial middleware unlocks the full value of operational data AI and why most AI programs fail without it   Power companies are being asked to deliver higher reliability while their operating environment becomes more dynamic. Conventional power generation: must run with greater flexibility, grid assets must absorb new load patterns, renewable portfolios must operate […]

POWER is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2026 POWER Awards, recognizing the projects, people, and organizations setting the pace for the global power industry. Winners will be revealed at an awards ceremony at Experience POWER in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, at 5 p.m. New this year: the Plant of the […]

Transmission corridors can be difficult to inspect, sometimes requiring helicopters and boots on the ground. A Daytona Beach, Florida, company is using drones to improve the process—at roughly a quarter of

The U.S. electrical grid is aging and under increasing strain from rising energy demand driven by technologies like data centers and electrification, making modernization urgent. Much of the current infrastructure is outdated, with many transmission lines nearing the end of their lifespan and relying on less durable materials like wood. Modernizing this infrastructure requires stronger, […]

On April 7, Anthropic announced Project Glasswing, a coalition of 12 major technology companies marshaling a new frontier artificial intelligence (AI) model to find and fix critical software vulnerabilities before attackers can exploit them. While the announcement is framed around technology infrastructure broadly, the implications for the power sector are immediate and serious. Partner posts […]

Dr. Dario Gil, the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Under Secretary for Science, lays out a bold vision to double the productivity of U.S. research and development (R&D) within a decade—and explains why energy and artificial intelligence (AI) are two sides of the same coin. After 22 years at IBM, where he rose to senior vice […]

Power demand in the U.S. is rising faster than the grid was designed to accommodate, driven in large part by rapid growth in data centers. Large, concentrated data center loads are clustering in regions where

Microgrids are bringing greater energy independence to rural and remote communities. ABB’s microgrids experts outline how today’s smart localized power generation and distribution systems lessen far-flung homes and businesses’ reliance on costly fossil fuels and fragile national grid infrastructures. Protecting Remote Communities from Energy Insecurity It’s easy for town and city dwellers to take the […]

On April 24, 1996, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued Order 888, requiring all public utilities owning or operating interstate transmission facilities to file open-access

From plunging costs to policy upheaval, the global battery storage sector is transforming grid design—and facing unprecedented challenges. The energy storage industry stands at a pivotal crossroads. On one side, costs are plummeting so dramatically that utility-scale batteries can now deliver solar power around the clock at competitive prices. On the other, regulatory upheaval—particularly in […]