Power Surge: Solving for Unprecedented Energy Demand

Primary Drivers of Demand Growth

Projections for US power needs now greatly exceed what would have been predicted only a couple of year ago by ordinary economic growth because of the exceptional needs of AI Data Centers and the electrification of diverse parts of the economy. 

What are the challenges of building, financing and operating new data centers? How much more power will these new facilities require? Where will they be located and what is the attitude of utilities, state and federal government towards supporting them?  

And how will the rapidly changing AI competitive landscape affect these power projections? Does the advent of very cheap, highly efficient, smaller SLMs, open source models and Chinese competitors mean that investors have overestimated the need for huge data centers?  

The electrification of vehicles, buildings and industry has been accelerating and is also creating significant incremental power demand. How much additional power will each of these expanding use cases require over the coming years and what will be the challenges to implementation? Will the new administration's renewed emphasis on fossil fuels result in a slowdown in electrification? 

What will be the impact of the tariffs on the buildout of all these projects?

Finally, the reversal of Biden Administration policies hostile to crypto by the new administration have spurred a resurgence of the crypto markets and mining activity, adding to the need for more industrial scale power. This adds another variable to the complex picture.  

DISCUSSION PANELS

Keynote

• Bill Tai, Hut 8 Mining and Venture Capitalist 
• Howard Chao, Doon Capital (interviewer)

Data Center and AI Demand: Building, Financing, and Operating Data Centers

• Andrea Wang Lucan, Sidley (moderator)
• Rajeev Oak, Prologis Ventures
• Kaitlin Savage, Energy Market Development, Google
• Bill Tai, Hut 8 Mining and Venture Capitalist

Electrification of Vehicles, Buildings, and Industry

• Sergej Mahnovski, Edison International (moderator)
• Andre Duurvoort, JLL
• Adam Faulk, Newmark

Policy Conversation:

How the New Administration's Energy Policy will Unleash the Development of AI, Industrial Electrification, and Power Generation to Sustain Economic Growth 

• Jim Connaughton, Government Policy Advisor
• Peter Whitfield, Sidley (interviewer)

The Supply-Side Response

In response to this formidable demand side picture, we will be discussing both near and longer-term challenges and solutions to the surge in power demand.  

The sexiest and biggest solutions, nuclear fission and fusion, will be coming on stream faster than most people believe. Just as developments in space tech moved slowly until a large and aggressive private company took over leadership of the sector, so both nuclear fission and fusion are being led by fast-moving private companies that should pleasantly surprise us with their speed to market. 

But in the interim, we will need strong near-term solutions. There is no silver bullet -- this will require a patchwork of revamped legacy technologies, increased wind and solar, better behind-the-meter solutions such as fuel cells, distributed generation equipment, increased energy storage facilities, and enhancements to the grid. There is also the question of whether the new Administration's emphasis on fossil fuels will change this mix.  

In the realm of nuclear fission, advancements in small modular reactors (SMRs) offer enhanced safety features, reduced construction times, and the flexibility to be deployed in diverse locations. Major technology companies are investing in SMRs to power their expansive data centers. 

The fusion energy sector is experiencing a wave of breakthroughs, with multiple companies and research initiatives racing to commercialize this game-changing technology. Advances in high-temperature superconductors, improved plasma confinement techniques, and novel reactor designs are accelerating progress toward practical fusion power. As private investment surges and public-sector backing grows, fusion energy is moving closer to a viable role in the clean energy mix, with pilot plants expected within a few years.

DISCUSSION PANELS

Keynote

• Ray Rothrock, Venture Capitalist
• Howard Chao, Doon Capital (interviewer)

Near Term Solutions:

Generation Capacity: Comeback for Fossil Fuels? Fuel Cells for Data Centers; Better Generators

• Jason Wortendyke, Cantor (moderator)
• Tak Ishikawa, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
• Paul Osenar, Upstart Power
• Adam Simpson, Mainspring Energy

Power Management: Large-Scale Batteries and Energy Storage; Enhancing the Grid

• Aaron Haubert, CMS Energy (moderator)
• John Emery, CTC Global
• John King, LS Power

Long Term Solutions:

The Nuclear Option -- Generation IV and Small Modular Reactors

• Valerie Gardner, Nucleation Capital (moderator)
• Clayton Scott, NuScale Power
• Leah Crider, Westinghouse

The Race for Fusion

• Matt Trevithick, Leitmotif  (moderator)
• Joe Paluska, Commonwealth Fusion Systems
• Carrie von Muench, Pacific Fusion

Fireside Chat: Financing the Future

• Sean McGann, Cantor (moderator)
• Tal Sheynfeld, Energy Impact Partners
• John Skjervem, Utah Retirement Systems
• Anil Tammineedi, Angeleno Group