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The report argues that substituting tax-exempt public debt for investor-owned utility (IOU) equity and taxable debt can significantly lower transmission costs for ratepayers in New England. It identifies two primary paths: strengthening existing quasi-public entities or creating a new purpose-built transmission authority. The author emphasizes that any such vehicle must have a clear statutory mandate for FERC-jurisdictional transmission, non-recourse revenue-bond authority, the ability to form public-private partnerships, and governance structures that ensure state accountability and risk control.

The report argues that New England's transmission costs are the highest in the U.S., driven by a lack of cohesive planning and a reliance on expensive private capital. It proposes replacing private equity and debt with low-cost, tax-exempt public financing, which could save ratepayers up to $8.3 billion on new transmission and $1.1 billion on asset condition projects. The authors suggest several implementation pathways, including integrating public financing into ISO New England's Longer-Term Transmission Planning (LTTP) process or creating new state transmission authorities.

The report assesses how Indonesia can move from corporate-level financing to project finance to meet a USD 24 billion investment requirement for transmission lines and substations. It analyzes five models: leasing, joint ventures (JVs), public-private partnerships (PPPs), infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs), and collective investment schemes for infrastructure (CIS-DINFRA). While leasing and JVs are easier to implement, InvITs and CIS-DINFRA offer the highest scalability and liquidity. The report emphasizes that success depends on three policy enablers: a dedicated transmission fee, off-balance sheet accounting treatment, and targeted fiscal support.

The paper introduces the Climate Risk Assessment Framework (CRAF), a structured approach to quantify physical climate risks for India's power infrastructure. It addresses gaps in existing literature by moving from qualitative risk ratings to energy-denominated impact estimates, specifically Expected Annual Loss (EAL) and Energy Not Served (ENS). The methodology distinguishes between chronic stressors (causing performance derating) and acute events (causing sudden failure), providing a pathway for cost-benefit analysis of resilience investments to avoid stranded assets and unplanned retrofitting costs.

The document examines the surge in data center demand in California, driven by generative AI, and warns that without new statewide policies, this growth could increase electricity costs for ratepayers, delay the clean energy transition, and threaten grid reliability. It highlights the risks of fossil-fueled backup generators on local air quality and recommends that data centers pay for their own clean energy generation and grid connection costs.

The report argues that electrifying household energy use—specifically through electric vehicles (EVs), heat pumps, and electric appliances—is the most cost-effective path for Canada to reach net zero emissions. While electricity prices have remained more stable than volatile fossil fuel prices, the transition requires government intervention to overcome upfront costs and infrastructure gaps. Modelling suggests that by 2050, electricity could meet 73% to 91% of residential heating loads and over 96% of total vehicle kilometers travelled. To support this, the report recommends policies to increase consumer uptake and a massive build-out of clean electricity generation, which may need to double or triple by 2050.

The policy brief outlines seven critical functions that U.S. states perform to advance clean energy and climate goals, emphasizing that state-level action is resilient to federal political swings and provides scalable models for emissions reductions and economic development.

The document outlines the six-step interconnection process for large loads (over 20 MW), detailing the progression from preliminary inquiry to the execution of an interconnection agreement. It distinguishes between customer interconnection facilities, which are typically paid for by the customer, and network upgrades, which ensure broader grid reliability and are often allocated across a service territory. The guide also describes the roles of FERC and state PUCs in cost recovery and allocation.

The briefing proposes a 'regional-first planning' approach to integrate large load interconnection requests, such as those from data centers, into a single region-wide planning model. This method aims to replace project-by-project analysis with coordinated system-level solutions, thereby reducing total transmission costs and closing regulatory gaps regarding the oversight of network upgrades.

The policy brief advocates for system-wide transmission planning over the customer-by-customer load interconnection process to manage rapid electric load growth. It highlights that system-wide planning, which evaluates needs over 5 to 20 years, leads to more efficient grid design and higher benefit-to-cost ratios. To manage the risk of anticipated load not materializing, the document recommends scenario planning to identify "least-regrets" projects and phased, modular investment strategies with built-in triggers, illustrated through case studies from the Southwest Power Pool, ERCOT in Texas, and NV Energy in Nevada.

Ember's analysis reveals a significant gap between planned renewable energy expansion and available grid capacity in Europe, with at least 120 GW of projects at risk. While some distribution grids can support household electrification, transmission bottlenecks threaten large-scale wind and solar projects, particularly in countries like Austria, Bulgaria, and Poland. The report advocates for 'non-wire solutions' and administrative reforms to unlock capacity and ensure energy security.

The document highlights a paradox in the energy transition across Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico: while renewable capacity grew by approximately 29% between 2020 and 2023, social barriers and a continued reliance on fossil fuel investment hinder a just transition. It emphasizes that technical success does not guarantee social license, citing non-binding participation mechanisms in Chile and territorial conflicts in Mexico and Colombia. The report calls for a shift from mere 'socialization' to 'real participation' to prevent community displacement and ensure energy justice, including clean cooking and affordable tariffs.

The document outlines technical adjustments made to the ReEDS database for a study on data center threats in Louisiana. Key modifications include restricting wind power deployment in Louisiana until 2029 due to slow growth and interconnection delays, and updating retirement dates for several coal and gas plants in Louisiana and Arkansas to reflect current utility filings and legal settlements.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) warns that Louisiana's current regulatory trajectory could lead to up to $26 billion in electricity system costs and $3 billion in public health damages between 2026 and 2041 due to data center growth. The report highlights a systemic overreliance on fossil gas, which is projected to peak in 2038, and criticizes the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) for a lack of transparency and inadequate ratepayer protections, specifically citing the 'Lightning Amendment' and the Entergy/Meta project as examples of risky policy. UCS recommends reforming the Integrated Resource Planning (IRP) process, implementing standardized tariffs for data centers, and expanding wind, solar, and grid connectivity to reduce costs and emissions.

The Union of Concerned Scientists finds that under current policies, Louisiana will meet increased electricity demand from data centers using gas-fired generation, leading to significant costs for ratepayers and environmental damage. Between 2026 and 2041, cumulative electricity system costs attributed to data center growth are projected to be between $14 billion and $26 billion. The analysis further estimates that electricity generation for data centers will result in $1.5 billion to $3.0 billion in public health costs and $35 billion to $87 billion in climate damages by 2041. The report urges the Louisiana Public Service Commission to reform resource planning, ensure technology companies pay for the costs of new demand, and diversify the energy mix with non-fossil resources.

The Colombian electrical transmission sector faces a structural lag as generation capacity is projected to reach 38.9 GW by 2030. The National Interconnected System (SIN) is nearing operational limits, with less than 5% transport capacity available and 90% of substations expected to exhaust short-circuit interruption capacity within five years. Execution is a critical failure point, with 55% of the 20 active transmission projects delayed, including the Bacatá-Norte and Sogamoso Norte-Nueva Esperanza projects. These delays are attributed to socio-environmental factors, licensing difficulties, and poor coordination between national energy planning and land-use instruments. To address this, the 'Plan Maestro de Modernización y Expansión de la infraestructura de Transmisión Eléctrica' proposes 98 strategic works, 44 of which could resolve over 149 operational restrictions by 2037. Additionally, the UPME adopted the 'Modelo de Relacionamiento Territorial' in 2025 to better integrate socio-environmental and cultural criteria into planning.

The report advocates for reconductoring as a primary solution to the U.S. energy grid's capacity crisis, which currently stalls 2,500 GW of clean energy projects. By replacing traditional steel-core cables with advanced composite conductors, the grid can double its transfer capacity at less than half the cost of building new lines, with installation times of 18-36 months compared to 10-15 years for new construction. The document highlights the potential for $180 billion in system savings by 2050 and a 3-4% reduction in wholesale electricity costs. It details technical improvements, such as trapezoidal wires and carbon-fiber cores, and cites successful implementations in Texas, Nevada, California, and Minnesota, as well as international adoption in Europe and Asia. The report concludes by urging policymakers to support legislation like the High-Capacity Grid Act and the REWIRE Act to incentivize the adoption of these technologies.

The US faces a critical bottleneck in connecting new electricity generation and storage to the grid, with over 2.2 terawatts of projects currently in queues. While the US Department of Energy has pushed for streamlined load interconnection for data centers, the author argues that this is insufficient without parallel reforms to generator interconnection. Current processes are characterized by long delays—averaging nearly five years from request to operation in 2024—and high network upgrade costs that often exceed 10% of project capex, leading to high attrition rates. The brief proposes several solutions: adopting advanced AI and automation software for studies, integrating Grid-enhancing technologies (GETs) to reduce costs, improving transparency in network upgrade construction, and implementing 'fast track' pathways such as energy-only interconnection, surplus interconnection service, and generator replacement.

The document examines the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in overcoming the technical challenges of integrating variable renewable energy (VRE) in Southeast Asia. It highlights five commercially proven AI applications: improving forecast accuracy to reduce reserve needs, enabling predictive maintenance to extend asset life, optimising dispatch to lower balancing costs, providing real-time control for grid security, and supporting dynamic line rating (DLR) to increase transmission capacity. The report provides global case studies—including examples from Google DeepMind, Siemens, and various utilities in the US, UK, and Belgium—to demonstrate how AI can reduce operational costs, curtailment, and carbon footprints while enhancing the reliability of power grids facing high VRE penetration.

The report examines Colombia's electrical transmission sector in 2025, highlighting a structural lag in infrastructure that threatens the integration of renewable energy. It details the operational limits of the National Interconnected System (SIN), significant project execution delays, and the technical exhaustion of transport and short-circuit interruption capacities. The document also outlines the regulatory framework and the proposed 'Master Plan for Modernization and Expansion of Electrical Transmission Infrastructure' as a means to resolve these bottlenecks.