Industry experts, state and federal regulators, and leaders from the United States and Canada gathered in Washington, D.C., in late February for the Reliability Leadership Summit, which takes place every two years and is co-hosted by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and the Reliability Issues Steering Committee (RISC).

The day-long Summit focused on emerging reliability issues and their impacts on the reliable operation of the bulk power system. Feedback and observations from the event will be incorporated into an ERO Reliability Risk Priorities Report that informs NERC’s work plan on key priorities.

Welcoming remarks were provided by Teresa Mogensen, RISC chair, president and chief executive officer, ATC LLC; and Mark Lauby, NERC’s senior vice president and chief engineer. Morgensen and Lauby welcomed attendees and emphasized the importance of the Summit’s role in magnifying awareness of risks that have emerged since the 2023 report.

NERC Board of Trustees Chair, Suzanne Keenan, reflected on the vital importance of the work undertaken by the ERO Enterprise and the RISC during her keynote. She emphasized actions around several risk priorities that were identified in the 2023 ERO Reliability Risk Report, highlighting several initiatives currently underway. Keenan urged participants to provide input and feedback on the prioritization of the risks being discussed.

Humayun Tai, senior partner, McKinsey & Company, and his team provided a lunchtime keynote, reviewing the trends and status of industry investments and indicated that 2025 is an inflection year for industry.

Several key areas that require further consideration were identified, including: infrastructure permitting, the need for investment in new resources, addressing customer costs, and deploying efficiencies in transmission and distribution (including deployment of new grid-enhancing technologies) – all focused on increasing confidence in the grid’s capability to serve existing and new demand.

Four panels featured subject matter experts with perspectives on the inherent and trending risks affecting BPS reliability. Discussions covered grid resiliency, security, energy policy, and “What Keeps You Up at Night.” Several consistent themes arose throughout the panel discussions, including the following:

1 – Energy Policy:

A – Greater alignment and coordination among federal, state, and provincial policymakers, including the development of policy frameworks that will encourage resilience.

B – Reform of permitting processes to support load growth at the local level.

 

2 – Grid Resilience:

A – Focus on enhanced design, supply chain integrity, system operations, and staffing and training.

B – Identification of opportunities to support grid resilience by leveraging large loads and distributed energy resources, and consideration of nuclear resources by RISC in support of grid resilience.

 

3 – Interdependence:

A – Continued attention on gas-electric coordination.

B – Focus on the role of telecommunications for resilience during an event.

 

4 – Technology:

A – Government funding to support integration of new technologies that can bridge the reliability gap.

B – Consideration of security impact of using artificial intelligence to operate grid operations.

 

5 – Supply Chain:

A – Consider how to ensure the integrity of products used.

B – Establish and support solution sets to diminish risks of compromised equipment/software.

Jim Robb, NERC president and CEO, closed the Summit by reflecting on industry’s positive performance during recent significant cold weather events, while also emphasizing that gas-electric coordination is still paramount. He underscored that telecommunications was brought up in multiple discussions during the day and suggested the need for increased focus on the sector. Robb also emphasized the value of diversification and the need to be cognizant of risks in any specific fuel type or asset, as well as exacerbating common mode or condition failures.

Feedback and observations from the event will be shared in a RISC report, expected to be published in August, that informs NERC’s work plan on key priorities for the coming years.