Overview
- The industry-led group launched March 10 with founding members Carrier, Google, Tesla, Renew Home, Sparkfund, SPAN, and Verrus.
- It backs technology-neutral, state policies to deploy battery storage, distributed energy resources, virtual power plants, demand response, and smart controls to manage peaks and accelerate new load connections.
- Academic analyses cited by the coalition report about 53% average grid utilization nationwide and 18–52% use of many Western transmission lines even during peak periods.
- Utilize points to an early foothold in Virginia, where SB 621/HB 434 passed with bipartisan support and awaits Governor Abigail Spanberger’s signature to require utilities to measure and factor grid utilization into planning.
- Members’ business interests align with the push, as data center growth and expanding energy storage markets benefit from faster, lower-cost access to existing grid capacity.