DOE Secretary Wright’s Federal Power Act Section 403 direction to FERC calls for a sea-change in the way large energy users — especially data centers — interconnect to the power grid.

In the ninth episode of Accelerating Energy, host and Sidley partner Ken Irvin is joined by colleagues Terence Healey, a partner in Sidley’s Energy practice, and Peter Bruland, a senior managing associate in the firm’s Supreme Court, Appellate, and Litigation Strategies practice. Together, they examine how this rulemaking may affect the cooperative federalism balance and change the large load interconnection process, transmission planning, capacity markets, and the pace of new infrastructure deployment. Hear what to expect and how to stay positioned for what’s next in the power-hungry data economy.

Executive Producer: John Metaxas, WallStreetNorth Communications, Inc.

Demand for electricity is surging in America, driven largely by AI data centers and other energy-intensive users powering the digital economy. This rapid growth has heightened concerns among businesses and consumers over rising costs and grid reliability. In response, Texas lawmakers passed Senate Bill 6 (SB6), a sweeping overhaul of how the state regulates large power users and behind-the-meter projects such as solar, battery storage, and data centers.

These changes could significantly influence the state’s energy future. But what does SB6 mean for renewable energy project financing in Texas? How might it affect solar, storage, and other emerging projects? And how can investors position themselves to take advantage of the new opportunities?

In the eighth episode of Accelerating Energy, host and Sidley partner Ken Irvin welcomes Chris Panaro, Executive Director and Assistant General Counsel at Nomura, a global leader in wealth management, investment management, and investment banking. Together, they discuss how SB6 is reshaping the financing and infrastructure development landscape in Texas. Their conversation examines the structural shifts investors are seeing in project financing, the evolving allocation of risk to developers, and whether these policy changes are encouraging new capital to flow into Texas energy projects.

Executive Producer: John Metaxas, WallStreetNorth Communications, Inc.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) is now law, marking a major shift in U.S. energy policy and the beginning of a broader effort to rewire America’s energy future. With its passage, the OBBBA rolls back many key clean energy tax incentives and reestablishes a focus on fossil fuel development. This seismic shift comes just as the stakes for U.S. leadership in climate and technology continue to rise.

How can policymakers and businesses keep pace with an evolving energy landscape? As AI drives unprecedented demand for reliable power, could current policies send investment abroad? And can the U.S. lead on both decarbonization and innovation?

In the seventh episode of Accelerating Energy, host and Sidley partner Ken Irvin speaks with Mark James, interim director of the Institute for Energy and the Environment and associate professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School. Together, they unpack what made it into the OBBBA, assess its impact on U.S. competitiveness in the global AI race, and explore the federal government’s role in meeting the demands of new and emerging energy-intensive technologies.

Executive Producer: John Metaxas, WallStreetNorth Communications, Inc.