GridWise Alliance Establishes Advisory Council To Aid Drive For Investments In Power System

WASHINGTON, April 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- GridWise Alliance Board Chair Gil C. Quiniones today announced the formation of a 29-member Grid Infrastructure Advisory Council (GIAC) to support the Alliance's call for at least $50 billion in federal spending to modernize the nation's electric power transmission and distribution systems.

"A strong and secure electric grid is essential to creating jobs and driving economic growth, meeting clean energy goals and fighting climate change," said Mr. Quiniones, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York Power Authority, the largest state-owned electric utility in the United States. 

"GridWise Alliance's new Advisory Council will be a vital asset as we work to build support in Congress and throughout the country for grid modernization and for President Biden's ambitious and potentially historic infrastructure plan—the 'American Jobs Plan.'  The council includes leaders from the electric utility industry, environmental groups, labor unions and other interested parties in the public and private sectors.  It is diverse, but also united in its firm belief that the power grid must be significantly upgraded."

Mr. Quiniones will lead the GIAC, whose other members are:

• Keith Alexander, Chairman of the Board, Founder and Co-CEO, IronNet
• Anthony Allard, Executive Vice President, Country Managing Director, USA Hitachi
• Lisa Barton, Executive Vice President and COO, American Electric Power (AEP)
• Calvin Butler, Senior EVP of Exelon; CEO of Exelon Utilities
• Patrick Byrne, CEO, GE Digital
• Tim Cawley, President & CEO, Con Edison
• Tom Deitrich, CEO, Itron
• John Di Stasio, President, Large Public Power Council
• Joy Ditto, President, American Public Power Association (APPA)
• Julia Hamm, President & CEO, Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA)
• Colette Honorable, Partner, Reed Smith LLP
• Arshad Mansoor, President and CEO, EPRI
• Jim Matheson, CEO, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, (NRECA)
• Yvonne McIntyre, Director, Federal Electricity & Utility Policy, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
• Rose McKinney-James, Managing Principal, McKinney-James Associates
• Phil Moeller, Executive Vice President, Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
• Drew Murphy, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development, Edison International
• Maria Pope, President and CEO, Portland General Electric (PGE)
• Jackie Sargent, General Manager, Austin Energy
• Kevin Self, SVP Strategy, Business Development & Government Relations, Schneider Electric
• Tom Siebel, CEO, C3 ai
• James Slevin, President, Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA)
• Lonnie Stephenson, President, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)
• Mahesh Sudhakaran, General Manager, Global Energy, Environment and Utilities Industry, IBM
• Sue Tierney, Former Assistant Secretary Policy, U.S. Department of Energy; Senior Advisor, Analysis Group
• Bert Van Hoof, Partner, Microsoft
• Elizabeth Yeampierre, Steering Committee Co-Chair, Climate Justice Alliance
• Audrey Zibelman, Vice President, X, Alphabet's moonshot factory
  

"This Advisory Council represents the most diverse group of leaders to form a collective voice on the critical need for electric grid investments," said Lisa Barton, GridWise Alliance Vice Chair and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of AEP. "United through a shared understanding that these aspirational, clean energy goals to reduce our carbon footprint are achievable if we make smart investments now to expand, strengthen and modernization our T&D networks."

Mr. Quiniones said GridWise Alliance commends the Biden Administration on the infrastructure plan's proposed $100 billion investment in upgrading the electricity grid and promoting clean energy and $50 billion for resilient infrastructure  He noted that this complements the Alliance's Grid Investments for Economic Recovery initiative, launched earlier this year, which focuses more specifically on urging a $50 billion federal investment in modernizing and upgrading the transmission and distribution networks.

The GIAC and GridWise Alliance will work collaboratively with the Biden Administration to define areas where investment in the electric grid would be most beneficial to the economy and the communities in most need. The Council will amplify the best practices of Alliance members; put a spotlight on key policy and appropriation recommendations; and utilize its utility executives, grid equipment manufacturers, and vendor members to advocate funding for grid modernization.

"A modern grid is critical for meeting clean energy and climate goals," said GridWise Alliance CEO Karen Wayland. "Every year our members invest in grid-enhancing technologies for integrating renewable energy, increasing reliability, protecting the grid from cyberattacks, and keeping electricity affordable.  We now have a significant opportunity to accelerate the deployment of grid modernization with substantial federal support."   

About GridWise Alliance
The GridWise Alliance (GWA) represents the broad and diverse stakeholders that design, build, and operate the electric grid.  Since 2003, the GridWise Alliance has been at the forefront of educating key industry stakeholders on the critical need to modernize our nation's electricity system. For more information about the GridWise Alliance, visit: www.gridwise.org.

Media Contact:
Richard O'Neill
Executive Director
GridWise Alliance
[email protected]
(202) 530-9740 

SOURCE GridWise Alliance