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Climate Intuition: Demand Is Here, Time to Build the Grid of Tomorrow

William Attardi on March 27, 2026

Electric grids worldwide are undergoing a transformation as surging electricity demand from data centers and electrification collides with aging, risk-prone infrastructure. This creates both national security imperatives and investment opportunities for grid resilience. Activities that harden, expand and modernize the grid are becoming increasingly attractive investment opportunities and policy priorities globally. Key takeaways: Grid Resilience: Neglected No More

  • Electricity demand is surging, driven by data centers and electrification. To meet it, grid infrastructure will need to be built and upgraded over the next decade.
  • The aging grid is a national security risk. Decades-old equipment is more likely to fail and is vulnerable to extreme weather, cyber risks and geopolitical threats, making it easier for adversaries or disasters to cause widespread outages if not addressed.
  • This also presents a massive investment opportunity. Globally, about $5.8 trillion is forecast for grid upgrades between 2026–2035, with roughly $700 billion for digital grid tech; the U.S. alone expects investments of about $1 trillion over the coming decade.
  • Policies and permits are key to success. While governments are pushing modernization, long siting and approval timelines can slow progress and affect costs for consumers.

Senators Introduce Bill to Modernize America’s Electric Grid

William Attardi on March 9, 2026

A new bipartisan legislation to modernize the nation’s electric grid and meet America’s growing energy demand. This bill cuts permitting delays, incentivizes advanced transmission upgrades, strengthens state grid planning, and accelerates the deployment of innovative grid technologies to lower costs and improve grid reliability for American families and businesses. The REWIRE Act provides a commonsense path forward: rather than building new infrastructure from scratch, it upgrades existing transmission lines with advanced conductors that can double capacity (a process known as “reconductoring”). By reducing congestion and bypassing lengthy permitting requirements, reconductoring could reduce grid costs by $85 billion by 2035 and $180 billion by 2050. Senators Introduce Bill to Modernize America’s Electric Grid – electrifiED

The Digital Backbone of Tomorrow’s Grid

William Attardi on August 27, 2025

The global energy grid faces aging infrastructure, rising renewable integration, and decentralization challenges. AI emerges as a vital tool to optimize capacity, predict failures, and enhance resilience, ensuring a reliable power supply amid growing demand and environmental risks. AI is becoming a crucial tool for utilities to modernize the energy grid, addressing challenges such as aging infrastructure, renewable integration and decentralization. AI enables predictive maintenance, reducing outages by up to 30%, and enhances grid capacity through dynamic line rating. Utilities such as PG&E and Tata Power are already using AI to manage peak demand and improve reliability. The Digital Backbone of Tomorrow’s Grid | T&D World

Remembering the Solemn Purpose of Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States observed on the last Monday in May to honor and mourn U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the armed forces. The holiday traces its roots to the years immediately following the American Civil War (1861–1865), which caused massive casualties—roughly 620,000 soldiers dead, about 2% of the U.S. population at the time. Communities across the North and South began spontaneously decorating the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers, wreaths, and flags, a practice that gave rise to the original name: Decoration Day. On May 5, 1868, Major General John A. Logan, commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)—a powerful Union veterans’ organization—issued General Order No. 11. This proclaimed May 30, 1868, as a nationwide “Decoration Day” to honor those who died in the Civil War. After World War I, the holiday expanded to honor all American service members who died in any war, not just the Civil War.  In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act to create more three-day weekends for federal employees. This moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May, effective in 1971, when it was also officially named “Memorial Day.” As one 1868 quote put it: “That Nation which respects and honors its dead, shall ever be respected and honored itself.”