PowerLines joined governors, state legislators, regulators, utilities, and other energy stakeholders in Utah this month for two back-to-back events focused on how states can modernize the electric grid while keeping energy affordable for households and businesses.

PowerLines sponsored the Operation Gigawatt Summit, hosted by Utah Governor Spencer Cox, which brought together leaders from government, utilities, and industry to examine how states can respond to rapidly growing electricity demand and the infrastructure challenges facing the grid.

The summit followed the Western Governors Association’s (WGA) Energy Superabundance Initiative Workshop, during which Western governors and stakeholders discussed how states can work together to strengthen grid reliability, improve energy planning, support economic growth, and maintain affordability.

“Governor Cox has elevated one of the most important energy challenges facing states and is bringing together people from across the political and policy spectrum,” said PowerLines Founder and Executive Director Charles Hua. “PowerLines is proud to support Operation Gigawatt and the Western Governors Association’s work to advance practical, bipartisan solutions that strengthen the grid, improve energy planning, and keep affordability at the center of the conversation.”

Hua participated in a panel discussion at the WGA workshop focused on the growing challenges facing the electric grid, including rising electricity demand, infrastructure investment, and affordability pressures on consumers. During the panel, Hua shared that utilities are telling investors they expect to spend the equivalent of roughly 2,000 Hoover Dams over the next five years to expand and upgrade the grid.

The discussions come as electricity demand increases across much of the country, driven by manufacturing growth, data centers, and electrification. At the same time, utilities are planning historic levels of infrastructure investment, raising questions about affordability, oversight, and how those costs will affect consumers’ monthly bills.

PowerLines is a nonpartisan consumer education nonprofit organization that aims to modernize the utility regulatory system for American energy consumers to lower utility bills and grow the economy.