Financing US Power Conference

• Hill Vaden, Executive Director, Financial and Capital Markets, S&P Global Commodity Insights

• Gregory A. Beard, Director, U.S. DOE, Office of Energy Dominance Financing (EDF)

Power demand is accelerating, but not all growth signals carry the same weight. Data centers remain a leading driver, with AI reshaping the size, timing, and location of new load, while reshoring, manufacturing expansion, electrification, LNG, and population growth add new layers to the demand picture, raising critical questions around where demand is actually emerging, which sectors are creating the most bankable load growth, and where capital should follow.

• Moderator: Pervez Siddique, Chief Development Officer, Prime Power Inc.
• David Bellman, Vulcan Project Lead, Synmax
• John Daily, Managing Director, Mercuria
• Don Dimitrievich, Portfolio Manager & Global Head of Energy Infrastructure Credit, Nuveen
• Morgan Steacy, VP Connections & Strategic Accounts, MA, National Grid

Renewables remain one of the lowest-cost sources of new power, but their growth is changing the economics of the resources needed to back them up. As wind and solar gain market share, dispatchable assets may run less often, earn less energy revenue, and become harder to finance even as their reliability value increases. This panel will examine how developers, lenders, investors, and off-takers are evaluating the true cost of dependable power, including firming, storage, gas backup, contract design, and capacity value.

• Sam Eaton, Chief Development Office, U.S. Flexible Generation, RWE
• Samuel Scroggins, Head of Renewables & Sustainable Infrastructure, Lazard
• Kevin Telford, Principal, Hull Street Energy
• Gordon Drake, Director Market Design & Analysis, ERCOT

The capital is there, but delivering the grid buildout remains one of the biggest constraints on U.S. power growth. As transmission needs expand and infrastructure timelines stretch, this panel will examine how regulated utilities, developers, investors, and large customers are thinking about execution risk, cost recovery, permitting, supply chains, and the practical realities of turning capital availability into steel in the ground.

• Raj Mahagaokar, CFO, Grid United
• Vandan Divatia, Vice President Transmission Policy, Interconnections & Compliance, Eversource
• Eliecer Viamontes, Chairman, President, CEO, Texas, Entergy

Gas has moved back to the center of the power reliability and infrastructure conversation, and recent multibillion-dollar pipeline approvals signal that momentum is building. This panel will examine where new gas infrastructure is most needed, how utilities, developers, midstream companies, and investors are approaching project bankability, and what it will take to deliver the fuel systems needed to support the next wave of power growth.

• David Brast, President, U.S. Natural Gas Pipelines, TC Energy  
• George Millas, Executive Vice President, Commercial, WTG Energy
• Kenneth Yagelski, Director, Gas Supply, Gas Control, Southern Company

As electricity demand surges, the U.S. power market is facing a growing storage shortage that could define the next phase of grid investment. This panel will examine where storage is most urgently needed, how batteries, long-duration storage, hybrid projects, and flexible resources can close the gap, and what it will take to turn that need into bankable growth for utilities, developers, investors, and offtakers.

• Jonathan Tijerina, Vice President, Corporate Development, CPS Energy
• Lance Titus, CCO, Gridstor
• Robert Birdsey, Co-Founder, Managing Director, GreenFront Energy Partners

• Aneesh Prabhu, Managing Director, Sector Lead, Energy Infrastructure, S&P Global Ratings

• Hill Vaden, Executive Director, Financial and Capital Markets, S&P Global Commodity Insights

• Paul Gruenwald, Global Chief Economist, S&P Global Ratings

The race to serve growing load is not only being built project by project, it is also being bought through platforms, portfolios, and development pipelines. This panel will examine how strategic buyers and financial sponsors are using M&A to gain scale, secure development opportunities, and reposition for the next phase of power growth, and where deal flow is most likely to accelerate.

• Darren Olagues, Chief Development Officer, Talen Energy
• Gregory Hort, Head of North American Power, Utilities and Infrastructure, Lazard

As grid timelines stretch and large load customers seek faster access to reliable power, behind-the-meter solutions are becoming a more serious part of the U.S. power investment story. This panel will examine how data centers are approaching onsite and dedicated power needs differently than in previous colocation projects for industrials and other large energy users. Panelists will discuss where these projects are gaining traction, how customers are weighing cost, speed, reliability, and emissions, and what the shift means for utilities, developers, lenders, and infrastructure investors.

• Chris Joseph, Managing Director, Blackstone
• Dado Slezak, Executive Vice President, Energy Infrastructure Investments, QTS

As demand for 24/7 power grows, nuclear is returning to the investment conversation. This panel will examine where nuclear projects are gaining traction, including SMRs and reactor restarts, as well as life extensions and potential new builds. Panelists will discuss what makes these projects bankable, how offtake and risk-sharing structures are evolving, the role of federal support, and whether nuclear can scale quickly enough to help meet rising baseload demand.

• Dr. Ashley Nunes, Director, Office of Policy, U.S. Department of Energy
• Benton Arnett, Senior Director, Markets and Policy, Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI)
• Ashley Black, Director of Retail Generation Development and System Planning Solutions, Southern Company
• Matthew Guyton, Director, Energy & Power, Piper Sandler

Power projects are facing a new bankability test as demand growth, market volatility, rising capital costs, and shifting offtake structures reshape how deals are underwritten. This panel will examine how lenders, investors, developers, offtakers, and ratings agencies are evaluating counterparty risk, contract durability, merchant exposure, and credit quality, and what it now takes to move projects from opportunity to financeable investment.

• Vimal Chauhan, Managing Director, Power and Development Leader, GE Vernova
• Richard Tabors, Vice President, Fundamental Analytics, Yes Energy
• Brian Callahan, Senior Vice President, Investments, Infrastructure, Brookfield
• Okwudiri Onyedum, Head, Strategic Bank Capital, CRUX

Private equity is playing a larger role in U.S. power, but the story is not just about funding new projects. This closing conversation will focus on how investors are buying platforms, aggregating assets, creating value, and considering exits in a market characterized by rising demand, infrastructure constraints, and higher execution risk. The discussion will offer a candid look at where valuations are stretched, where opportunities remain, and what kind of power businesses are most attractive now

• James Berner, Partner, Global Infrastructure Partners
• Nick Hertlein, Managing Director, Stonepeak
• Jacob Sandry, CEO, Euclid
• Himanshu Saxena, Chairman, CEO, Lotus Infrastructure Partners