Show Notes
This week on Energy Unplugged, Julia Hoos, Aurora’s Head of USA East, is joined by Lizzie Bonahoom, Senior Associate - North America Tech & Policy, and Jack Graham, Senior Associate - PJM Research at Aurora. Together, they explore the challenges of supplying data centers with power in the U.S., and how surging AI demand, interconnection constraints, and market dynamics are reshaping the electricity system. Lizzie leads Aurora’s analysis of where new data centers are locating and how they interact with generation technologies, while Jack provides insight into PJM’s grid and capacity market, including lessons from Northern Virginia - the historic epicenter of U.S. cloud infrastructure. Together they discuss the complexities of forecasting large, concentrated loads, the growing role of behind-the-meter solutions, and the implications of regulatory interventions from FERC and federal authorities. The conversation examines key trends affecting the U.S. power market today: rapid electricity demand growth from data centers, grid congestion and localized price impacts, the increasing importance of flexible interconnection strategies, and the political and regulatory pressure to accelerate large load access. Lizzie and Jack highlight how uncertainty in load forecasting, market design, and capacity procurement creates both challenges and opportunities for grid operators, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. You will learn:
Why data center clusters and AI-driven load growth are transforming regional electricity demand.
How PJM and other ISOs are navigating transmission constraints, capacity market volatility, and political scrutiny.
Why behind-the-meter and gas-bridging solutions are emerging as short-term strategies for large loads.
How federal and state interventions could influence interconnection, market design, and grid reliability over the next decade.
More from Energy Unplugged by Aurora
This week on Energy Unplugged, Emma Woodward, Principal in Aurora Energy Research’s GB & Ireland Advisory team and GB Flexible Energy Lead, is joined by Peter Kavanagh, CEO of Harmony Energy. Britain has built one of Europe’s most mature battery markets, largely without subsidy. But success brings its own complications. As batteries scale, the debate is shifting from whether the technology works to whether the market around it does. Merchant revenues remain volatile; projects can spend years waiting for grid and planning approvals, and batteries are still not always fully utilised when they could provide a cheaper alternative for balancing the system. At the same time, support for long-duration storage raises a more uncomfortable question: could policy designed to accelerate storage end up distorting a market that has already proved it can compete? For Peter, the message is increasingly simple: batteries have demonstrated their value. Now the challenge is removing the barriers that stop them delivering more of it. Main topics include:
This week on Energy Unplugged, Emma Woodward, Principal in Aurora Energy Research’s GB & Ireland Advisory team and GB Flexible Energy Lead, is joined by Peter Kavanagh, CEO of Harmony Energy. Britain has built one of Europe’s most mature battery markets, largely without subsidy. But success brings its own complications. As batteries scale, the debate is shifting from whether the technology works to whether the market around it does. Merchant revenues remain volatile; projects can spend years waiting for grid and planning approvals, and batteries are still not always fully utilised when they could provide a cheaper alternative for balancing the system. At the same time, support for long-duration storage raises a more uncomfortable question: could policy designed to accelerate storage end up distorting a market that has already proved it can compete? For Peter, the message is increasingly simple: batteries have demonstrated their value. Now the challenge is removing the barriers that stop them delivering more of it. Main topics include:
This week on Energy Unplugged, Jose Munoz, Market Lead for Spanish-speaking South America at Aurora Energy Research, and Melissa Carreño, Product Manager for Peru and Colombia, are joined by César Butrón, Chairman of the Board of COES, Peru's national system operator. For two decades, Peru has benefited from some of the cheapest electricity in Latin America, supported by abundant low-cost gas from Camisea. But the conditions that shaped that success are beginning to change. Demand is rising, cheap gas can no longer be taken for granted, and investors are struggling to finance new renewable projects despite strong resources and significant interest in the market. At the same time, policymakers face difficult decisions around gas infrastructure, battery storage, transmission expansion, and system reliability. Drawing on decades of experience at the centre of Peru's power sector, César explains why the country is not facing a shortage of electricity, but a potential shortage of affordable electricity, and what that means for Peru's next phase of development. Peru's challenge is no longer keeping the lights on. It's deciding what will power them next. Main topics include:
This week on Energy Unplugged, Jose Munoz, Market Lead for Spanish-speaking South America at Aurora Energy Research, and Melissa Carreño, Product Manager for Peru and Colombia, are joined by César Butrón, Chairman of the Board of COES, Peru's national system operator. For two decades, Peru has benefited from some of the cheapest electricity in Latin America, supported by abundant low-cost gas from Camisea. But the conditions that shaped that success are beginning to change. Demand is rising, cheap gas can no longer be taken for granted, and investors are struggling to finance new renewable projects despite strong resources and significant interest in the market. At the same time, policymakers face difficult decisions around gas infrastructure, battery storage, transmission expansion, and system reliability. Drawing on decades of experience at the centre of Peru's power sector, César explains why the country is not facing a shortage of electricity, but a potential shortage of affordable electricity, and what that means for Peru's next phase of development. Peru's challenge is no longer keeping the lights on. It's deciding what will power them next. Main topics include:
This week on Energy Unplugged, Richard Howard, Global Research Director at Aurora Energy Research, is joined by Michael Tobin CBE, one of the pioneers of the European data centre industry, former CEO of TelecityGroup and Non-Executive Director at Five Nines Group, alongside Sebastian Murphy, Director of Development & Innovation at Five Nines Group, to explore what it really takes to deliver data centre projects in Europe. Driven by AI, cloud computing and digitalisation, data centres are becoming one of the fastest-growing sources of electricity demand worldwide. But as power constraints, permitting challenges and supply chain bottlenecks intensify, can Europe remain competitive in the global race to build the infrastructure that will underpin the next generation of AI? Michael and Sebastian pull back the curtain on the realities of delivering data centres at scale, from securing scarce grid connections and navigating planning hurdles to managing supply chains, construction risk and ever-tightening sustainability requirements. They discuss why Europe's established data centre hubs are running out of room to grow, how regional markets are emerging as the next frontier for investment, and why access to power has become the industry's defining challenge. The episode also examines the shift towards AI inference facilities, the rise of behind-the-meter power solutions, and whether Europe has the regulatory framework needed to compete with the US and China. Along the way, the guests share firsthand insights from the front line of data centre development and make the case for what needs to change if Europe is to remain a serious player in the global AI race. You will learn: