Can DERs save the power grid?
About this episode
The episode discusses the potential of distributed energy resources to enhance the power grid and the necessary steps for implementation.
Over 80% of installed DER capacity isn't enrolled in a virtual power plant. The technology is ready. The economics are increasingly compelling. What's missing is the regulatory alignment and system-wide planning to bring it all together. In this episode, host Kinsey Grant Baker sits down with Audrey Zibelman—former CEO of the Australian Energy Market Operator, former Chair of the New York Public Service Commission, and former executive at Alphabet's X moonshot factory—to talk about what it will actually take to get distributed energy resources from promising concept to essential grid tool. From the S-curve of solar adoption in Australia to rethinking how utilities make money, this is a blueprint for what a smarter, more flexible grid can look like. Check out the Pew report Audrey mentions throughout the episode here: https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/reports/2026/04/distributed-energy-can-unleash-the-resilient-affordable-grid-of-the-future
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