Ep. 39: Power Trends 2025 with Rich Dewey & Emilie Nelson

The electric system is undergoing rapid and instrumental change on a scale not experienced since 1892 when Thomas Edison first electrified the Pearl Street station in lower Manhattan. In the NYISO’s latest podcast, President & CEO Rich Dewey, and Executive Vice President & COO Emilie Nelson discuss how these changes are impacting grid reliability, supply resources and planning the electric system for the future. Diving into the NYISO’s recently released Power Trends report with Kevin Lanahan, podcast host and Vice President of External Affairs and Corporate Communications, they highlight how every plausible option and opportunity to bolster reliability and resource needs should be on the table.The conversation includes discussion of the following Power Trends 2025 key messages: Generator deactivations are outpacing new supply additions. Electrification programs and new large-load customers associated with economic development initiatives are pushing projected demand higher. Together, these forces are also narrowing reliability margins across New York and increasing the risk of future reliability needs.As public policy goals seek to decarbonize the grid, fossil-fired generation will be needed for reliable power system operations until the capabilities it offers can be supplied by other resources. Energy efficiency and Demand-Side Management (DSM) will continue to play a key role in reducing energy consumption, lowering costs, and mitigating environmental impacts.Repowering aging power plants can lower emissions, meet rising consumer demand, and provide reliability benefits to the grid that are needed to integrate additional clean energy resources.New York is projected to become a winter-peaking electric system by the 2040s, driven primarily by electrification of space heating and transportation. On the coldest days, the availability of natural gas for power generation can be limited, and interruptions to natural gas supply will introduce further challenges for reliable electric grid operations.Driven by public policies, new supply, load, and transmission projects are seeking to interconnect to the grid at record levels. NYISO's interconnection processes continue to evolve to balance developer flexibility with the need to manage the process to more stringent timeframes. New processes have been implemented to accelerate the process while protecting grid reliability.The competitive wholesale electricity markets administered by the NYISO support reliability while minimizing costs to consumers. Competitive wholesale markets are essential to a reliable, affordable and cleaner grid of the future. Listen now to gain a better understanding of the complex challenges facing New York’s grid.Learn MoreFollow us on X/Twitter @NewYorkISO, LinkedIn @NYISO, Bluesky @nyiso.comRead our blogs and watch our videos