SPEAKERS
Chris Anderson
General Counsel
Rayburn Electric Cooperative
Lora Anguay
Chief Energy Resource Officer
Sacramento Municipal Utility District
Chris Ayers
Executive Director
NCUC Public Staff
Elaina Ball
Chief Strategy Officer
CPS Energy
Hala Ballouz
Founder, Board Chair, Chief Vision Officer
Electric Power Engineers, LLC
Kelsey Bagot
Commissioner
Virginia State Corporation Commission
Jeff Bladen
Chief Energy & Policy Officer
Verrus Data Centers
Alexander Burster
Commercial Advisor
Embassy of Denmark
Scott Corwin
President & CEO
American Public Power Association
Seth Frader-Thompson
President & Co-Founder
EnergyHub
Sheri Givens
President & CEO
SEPA
Greg Gordon
Senior Advisor
Moelis & Company
Bryan Hannegan
President & CEO
Holy Cross Energy
Scott Harden
CTO for Global Innovation
Schneider Electric
Doreen Harris
President and CEO
NYSERDA
Casey Herman
Board Member
CenterPoint Energy
Lesley Jantarasami
Vice President, Research & Industry Strategy
SEPA
Catherine Jereza
Assistant Secretary, Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity
Sucheta Lakhani
Head of Utilities Practice, NA
Pano.AI
Drew Maloney
President & CEO
Edison Electric Institute
Tommy McFly
Founder / Creative Director
Real Fun Content
Peter Muhoro
Chief Strategy, Technology, and Innovation Officer
REC
Daniella Piper
Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer
New York Power Authority
Heather Reams
President & CEO
Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions
Jeff Ressler
CEO
Clean Power Research
Maria Robinson
Head of Global Incubator
Hitachi Energy
Chris Roe
Head of Energy and Sustainable Operations
Amazon
Kelly Speakes-Backman
Director
Maryland Energy Administration
David Springe
Executive Director
NASUCA
Angela Strickland
Chief Experience Officer
SEPA
Mishal Thadani
CEO and Co-Founder
Rhizome
Emile Thompson
Chairman
Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia
Monica Trauzzi
Chief Communications Officer
SEPA
Michelle Vargo
SVP, Energy Operations
Puget Sound Energy
Clint Vince
Partner
Dentons US LLP
Melissa Washington
SVP, Government, Regulatory
and External Affairs
ComEd
Jon Wentzel
SVP, Communications
Nuclear Energy Institute
Jeffery Wright
President & CEO
Block Island Utility District
NRECA – Rhode Island Director and Chair Business Technologies Committee
NRECA Board of Directors
Robert Yeager
President, Power and Water Solutions
Emerson
WHO'S ATTENDING?
AGENDA
DAY 1: GRID — Stress, Resilience, AI-Era Planning: Monday, May 18
12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Welcome Lunch
1:15 PM – 5:30 PM | EES26 Programming
- Keynote: Energy Evolution: Why This Room Matters — Framing the Grid, Growth, and Globe themes and exploring why this moment demands unprecedented collaboration across the energy ecosystem
- Power Shot: Why I Keep Coming Back to EES
- Panel: Grid Resilience in an Age of Extremes — Federal, IOU, and cooperative leaders on responding to extreme weather and rising customer expectations
- Quick Note: The AI Boom and the Bottom Line — Managing explosive AI-driven load growth while maintaining reliability and affordability
- Panel: Different Models, Shared Mission — What investor-owned utilities, municipals, and cooperatives can learn from each other
- TED-Style Innovation Spotlights Case Studies:
- Grid-enhancing technologies
- DER orchestration
- Breakthrough technology solutions
- Quick Note: If You Only Change One Thing This Year….
- Day 1 Power Close — Interactive round-up of grid challenges and emerging solutions
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM | Opening Reception at Hotel Washington rooftop
DAY 2: GROWTH — Capital, Customers, and New Business Models: Tuesday, May 19
7:30 AM – 8:45 AM | Breakfast
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM | EES26 Programming
- Quick Note: How to Decode Market Signals for the Energy Transition and Next Generation of Growth
- Affordability Panel: Paying for a 25% Demand Surge — Financing massive infrastructure expansion without breaking customer budgets
- Quick Note: The Failure That Made Us Better — A candid reflection on setbacks and how strategic mistakes became catalysts for transformation
- Panel: Resilient Grids in Fire Country — Integrating wildfire detection and response systems to maintain affordable, reliable power in high-risk regions
- Panel: Affording AI: Preparing for the Financial Demands of AI and Data Centers — Exploring how regulators and utilities balance the growing needs of data centers with existing customer needs
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch
1:00 PM – 5:00 PM | EES26 Programming
- Breakout Sessions: Parallel deep-dive tracks
- Maximizing the Existing Grid in a Data-Driven World
- Wildfire Resilience Without Breaking the Bank
- Affordability Strategies for AI and Data Centers
- Fireside Chat: Nuclear’s Second Act in the Energy Evolution
- Lightning Lab: Business Models Under Pressure — A fast-paced exchange among IOU, cooperative, municipal, and hyperscaler leaders on the biggest business model shifts needed
- Day 2 Power Close — Interactive round-up of growth challenges and opportunities
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM | Power Player Awards Dinner
DAY 3: GLOBE — Global Context, Domestic Choices, and Commitments: Wednesday, May 20
8:30 AM – 9:15 AM | Breakfast
9:15 AM – 12:30 PM | EES26 Programming
- Quick Talk: Lessons Learned from Portugal
- Keynote: Global Signals for a Connected Grid
- Panel: What Travels: Global Energy Lessons You Can Actually Import — which international energy innovations actually work in U.S. regulatory and market contexts
- TED-Style Innovation Spotlights Case Studies:
- Cross-Border Grids and Geopolitics
- Virtual Power Plants and their international integration
- How Norway uses EVs and electrification to manage load growth
- Fireside Chat: Powering LA28 – A conversation about what it will take to keep the lights on for both the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the rest of the city.
- Day 3 Power Close & Conference Wrap-Up
12:30 PM | Conference Concludes, light lunch available