This week’s legislative fly-in of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) reminds me why I love the co-op business model. Not only are cooperatives member-owned, not-for-profit, and community-oriented—they are also increasingly innovative, growth-minded, and sophisticated.

Only 10% of rural households in the U.S. had electricity before the Rural Electrification Act of 1935. Its lending programs were designed for traditional utilities to extend service to more sparsely-populated areas, but a different model emerged. Farmers banded together to create not-for profit entities that could take advantage of the loans, and the cooperative utility was born.

Today, nearly 900 electric cooperatives provide power to 42 million people nationwide. They’re pioneering new technologies and innovating energy delivery. And the co-ops in Northern Virginia and other data center hotspots are confronting challenges and demonstrating leadership in accommodating skyrocketing demand, while protecting their members from rate increases and stranded costs.

The co-op model is so versatile, it could be a game-changer in other ways, too. In fact, a cooperative’s focus on member equity could make it the ideal structure to build out and aggregate consumer-owned distributed energy resources (DER). And the “nesting doll” strategy can help insulate customer classes to ensure everyone pays their fair share. Worth a look.

Big News:

• Willie Phillips is stepping down from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) following pressure from the President, who demoted Phillips from Chair earlier this year. Phillips’ departure leaves the panel with a 2-2 partisan split as it continues to examine issues like co-location of generation and data centers. (Politico)

• Utilities and energy technology companies discuss tariffs, market volatility, and ballooning demand in their first quarter earnings calls, outlining how they are adapting to changing economic conditions. Multiple tech companies are set to report this week. (“Tariffs Are Dominating Clean Energy Earnings Calls,” Heatmap)

• Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R-ND) continues her campaign to educate the public about AI’s energy demands in a new op-ed. (“Powering the Future: Why AI Can’t Succeed Without Reliable American Energy,” Washington Times)

Big Deals:

• Solar developer Silicon Ranch has secured a $500 million investment from AIP Management. The company anticipates significant growth in its Tennessee Valley backyard, driven by increasing data center demands and bolstered by its strategic decision to onshore its supply chain several years ago. (“Why One Major Solar Developer Isn’t Worried About Tariffs,” Canary Media)

• Duke Energy and GE Vernova inked a deal for 11 turbines to support a major expansion of gas generation across the utility’s southern footprint. (press release)

Big Ideas:

• Utilities can overcome barriers to virtual power plant deployment, says Franklin Energy in a punchy slide deck. Spoiler alert: customer education is key. (via Canary Media)

• Let’s embed AI in smart meters. Utilidata has raised $60.3 million in a new round of funding that includes Nvidia and Renown Capital Partners to explore how the next generation of grid-edge devices can be optimized. (“Can AI Chips Make the Grid Smarter? Utilidata Raises $60M to Find Out,” Canary Media)

  

Big Challenges:

• Data centers are vulnerable to Chinese espionage, points out a new report from Gladstone AI. In addition to supply chain components, the paper highlights energy supply as a constraint and suggests simply suspending environmental regulations to get more power built.

• Municipally-owned utilities are meeting the challenges of data center load growth and are seen as attractive host utilities for hyperscalers willing to invest in the communities where they locate. (“Smaller, public utilities see growth potential in data centers, but there are risks: APPA,” Utility Dive)

Big Questions:

• Should we restart shuttered coal plants? Ready interconnections and the Trump administration’s deregulatory actions and emergency orders are setting the stage for reversing the trend away from the grid’s most carbon-intensive baseload resources. (“Big Tech’s Soaring Energy Demands are Making Coal-Fired Power Plant Sites Attractive,” Associated Press)

• Are state tax breaks for data centers worth it? Data enter development can bring economic development, but tax incentives may not pencil out once all is said and done. (“Why Tax Breaks for Data Centers Could Backfire on States,” Time)

That’s all for this week. Safe travels to our co-op brethren headed home from Washington, D.C., and thanks for all you do!