There was a time, not very long ago, when talking about significant growth in U.S. nuclear generation felt more like a history lesson, talking about the past.

Today, it increasingly feels like we’re talking about the future. Electric demand is growing again as data centers, AI, advanced manufacturing, and electrification are creating enormous new requirements for power. Utilities need generation that’s reliable, available around the clock, and capable of supporting a rapidly growing system. And companies with some of the largest electricity needs in the world are becoming directly involved in securing new generation.

All of that has put nuclear power back in the conversation.

But what’s especially interesting is that this isn’t just a conversation about building new reactors. Some of the most immediate opportunities involve getting more from the nuclear fleet that we already have through uprates, life extensions, restarts, and potentially even completing plants that were never finished. At the same time, the industry is trying to move small modular reactors, advanced reactors, and even a new generation of large reactors from concepts and commitments into actual deployment.

So, appropriately enough, today’s episode is called “Back to the Future: Nuclear Power and Capacity Expansion.”

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Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Leader | MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Luke Martin, Partner | lukemartin@scottmadden.com

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Over the last several episodes, we’ve talked about explosive load growth, transmission expansion, artificial intelligence, and the investments utilities are making to keep pace with demand. Today, we’re stepping back and asking a more fundamental question: How should utilities actually plan for all of this?

Historically, utilities planned generation, transmission, distribution, and in many companies even gas systems, largely through separate processes. That approach worked when the system evolved more slowly, and the interactions among those domains were more predictable.

Today’s energy system is different. Large loads can arrive faster than infrastructure can be built. Distributed energy resources are changing power flows. The generation mix is becoming more variable. Electrification affects both electric and gas networks. And every major investment decision can create implications somewhere else on the system.

That’s where integrated system planning comes in.

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Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Stephen Haubrich, Partner | Guest

SHaubrich@scottmadden.com

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The electric power industry is entering a new phase of growth. Electricity demand is rising again, driven by data centers, electrification, and new industrial load. But while attention often focuses on generation resources, one of the biggest challenges may be transmission development.

Across the country, utilities and system operators are working to expand the grid, but projects can take years to permit, finance, and build. The result is a growing conversation about whether the transmission system can keep up with the demands being placed on it.

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Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Dave Adams, Partner | Guest

DAdams@scottmadden.com

Info@scottmadden.com

When people talk about the energy transition, much of the focus is on electricity: generation, transmission, distribution, and electrification. But natural gas continues to play a critical role across the energy system, from power generation to residential heating to industrial processes.

At the same time, the role of natural gas is being actively debated. Utilities are facing increasing regulatory scrutiny, evolving policy direction, and long-term uncertainty about demand.

So the question becomes: how do utilities continue to operate and invest in natural gas infrastructure while navigating that uncertainty?

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Marc Miller | Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Ed Baker | Partner

EBaker@scottmadden.com

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Utilities are under increasing pressure from multiple directions. Load is growing again, driven by data centers, reindustrialization, and electrification. The system itself is becoming more complex, with distributed resources and new technologies. And at the same time, utilities are managing workforce constraints and an explosion of data from AMI systems and other sensors deployed in their infrastructure.

Against that backdrop, there's a growing conversation about how artificial intelligence, or AI, can help utilities operate more efficiently and make better decisions. But while many utilities have experimented with AI, far fewer have successfully scaled it. For many, AI still feels more like experimentation than execution.

So the question becomes: how do you move from pilot projects to real, sustained value?

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Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Jon Kerner, Partner | Guest

JKerner@scottmadden.com

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For regulated utilities, the rate case is the moment when strategy, capital investment, and regulatory expectations all come together. It’s the process through which utilities justify their investments, establish their authorized revenue, and ultimately secure the resources needed to build and maintain critical infrastructure.

In many ways, the rate case is where a utility’s strategy meets regulatory scrutiny. It’s the moment when the company must clearly explain not just what it plans to spend, but why those investments matter for customers and the future of the grid.

Or to borrow a phrase from a well-known movie, it’s where utilities have to “show me the money.” Well, not me, but you get the idea.

And that challenge is becoming more complex. Utilities are entering a period of unprecedented infrastructure investment, while regulators and stakeholders are increasingly focused on affordability and clear customer value.

Contact our experts:

Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Josh Kmiec, Partner | Guest

joshuakmiec@scottmadden.com

info@scottmaden.com

Utilities are entering a new capital cycle. Across the industry, we’re seeing more than a trillion dollars of planned investment, driven by load growth, resilience needs, aging infrastructure, and the energy transition.

But this isn’t just about investing more. Utilities are being asked to deploy capital more deliberately and more effectively than ever before.

That creates a dual challenge:

• Are we investing in the right things?
• And can we actually deliver them?

Getting one right without the other doesn’t create value, and increasingly, both are under scrutiny.

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Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Gerardo Morales, Partner | Guest

GJMorales@scottmadden.com

Tony Gonzalez, Partner | Guest

TGonzalez@scottmadden.com

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To learn more about our research on the capital plans of America's largest utilities, read this article. You can fill out the form to request our full report of the data.

Over the past decade, many utilities deployed advanced metering infrastructure, giving them new visibility into customer usage and grid operations. But technology and expectations have evolved quickly, and a new generation of capabilities is emerging.

Utilities are now beginning to explore what many are calling AMI 2.0, systems that go beyond basic meter data collection to support more advanced grid operations, deeper customer insights, and potentially much more sophisticated use of analytics and artificial intelligence.

Get in touch with our experts:

Marc Miller, Partner and Energy Practice Area Leader | Host

MDMiller@scottmadden.com

Kevin Hernandez, Partner | Guest

KLHernandez@scottmadden.com

info@scottmadden.com