Megatrends repowering the US power industry

A new report from Black & Veatch and Clarion Energy identifies four ‘megatrends’ repowering the US power industry, including decarbonization, electrification, climate change and energy transformation.

The road to net zero

Leveraging a survey of over 200 power industry professionals, the 2022 Megatrends in Power report investigates influential decision-making factors for 2022 and beyond. It hopes to help the power industry position itself strategically for a pending net-zero future.

The report is the third released by Black & Veatch, an engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company. It was developed alongside Clarion Energy, a media leader covering power generation, transmission and distribution.

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The report provides detailed elaboration on:

Decarbonization
The report states that going green doesn’t happen overnight. It requires thoughtful planning, available technologies and, arguably the most important, funding.

Electrification
The topic of electrification is often followed by transportation as a dominant emissions contributor. However, large-scale electrification requires a multi-pronged approach. This would need to include energy production and heavy industries.

Climate Adaptation
Power utilities are heeding the COP26 call to protect customers from the effects of climate change and the widespread blackouts caused by extreme weather events. 57% of respondents are leveraging risk analysis and modelling to help prioritize resilience projects.

Energy Transformation
The energy transition is inevitable, but what this means exactly remains unclear. Sweeping upgrades are required that extend beyond building a diverse portfolio of distributed generation sources. Players are optimistic that the funding allocated by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) will help enable a more resilient, flexible, decarbonized grid.

Mounting pressure

The report comes at a time when US electric utilities face growing pressure to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. It reflects a call to action to integrate cleaner, sustainable energy sources to meet extensive net-zero energy targets.

“US electric utilities face enormous pressure to accelerate the energy transition by investing in new transmission to support renewable growth as well as the critical gird modernization assets that will help the industry meet its aggressive net-zero energy targets,” said Mario Azar, president of Black & Veatch’s Energy and Process Industries business.

“Sustainability is the overarching trend that is driving the transition to a cleaner energy landscape, reshaping the power industry for decades to come,” said Kevin Clark, content director with Clarion Energy. “This report provides industry-leading data and insight to stakeholders as they diligently work to shift from discussion to action.”

The report is available here as a free download.