Investor-owned electric companies power the lives of nearly 250 million people—nearly 3 in 4 Americans. Every day, they connect more than 3,200 new households and more than 200 new businesses to the grid. They account for 5 percent of U.S. GDP and power the other 95 percent.

It’s no surprise, then, that hundreds of electric company CEOs and senior executives, policymakers and regulators, and technology leaders and innovators traveled to Las Vegas in June for EEI 2026, the industry’s premier conference and thought leadership forum.

At a time when affordability, grid reliability, and rapidly rising demand are dominating policy debates in Washington and across the country, EEI 2026 convened a diverse mix of attendees and leaders to discuss how electric companies are powering the energy of every day while keeping electricity reliable and as affordable as possible.

Happenings in The Hub

From fireside chats to panel discussions and tech talks, The Hub was EEI’s center for networking and technology-driven content. Among the topics on the agenda this year: 

• Powering the Energy of Every Day: Sessions will cover how the industry is delivering customer value and innovating to meet demand growth.
• Generation Landscape: Speakers will discuss America’s generation mix, the role of nuclear technologies, and the potential of virtual power plants.
• Resilience and Reliability: Topics will include grid flexibility, balancing reliability and affordability, and lessons learned from storm seasons past.
• AI+: AI technologies are driving energy demand while reshaping how electric companies serve customers and power the economy.
• Grid-Enhancing Technologies: Panels will focus on innovations that are driving grid intelligence and making the most of existing infrastructure.

Congratulations to Duke Energy, Winners of the 2026 Edison Award!

EEI awarded Duke Energy with the 98th Edison Award for its DeBary Hydrogen Production and Storage System. Presented annually and selected by a panel of former energy industry executives, the Edison Award is the electric power industry’s highest honor. The award was presented in Las Vegas during EEI 2026, the institute’s annual conference and thought leadership forum.

“On behalf of EEI and our member companies, I am proud to congratulate Duke Energy for winning this year’s Edison Award,” said EEI President and CEO Drew Maloney. “By transforming Florida sunshine into stored, on-demand power, this hydrogen project is advancing what’s possible for clean energy storage and helping Duke Energy meet rapidly increasing energy demand while keeping customer costs as low as possible.”

Baltimore Gas & Electric and The AES Corporation were named finalists for the award.

Learn more about this year's winner and finalists.

Dive into part one of the EEI 2025 highlights series on the latest Electric Perspectives podcast episode, featuring EEI Chair Calvin Butler, president and CEO of Exelon; Entergy Chair and CEO Drew Marsh; and Entergy Louisiana President and CEO Phillip May.

Congratulations to the 2025 Edison Award Winners!

Edison International and Southern California Edison are winners of the domestic Edison Award, and Fortis, Inc. has won the international Edison Award.

During EEI 2025, EEI interim President and CEO Pat Vincent-Collawn presented the 97th Edison Award, the electric power industry's highest honor.

The award is selected each year by a panel of former energy industry executives in recognition of distinguished leadership, innovation, and contributions to the advancement of the electric power industry. 

Learn more about this year's winners and finalists.

America’s investor-owned electric companies are in the midst of incredible demand growth and on the cusp of tremendous change. I am excited to be serving as EEI’s interim president and CEO at such a pivotal time, working with the talented leaders at our member companies to build a brighter energy future for all.

Today, electricity demand is growing at its fastest pace in decades, as new technologies and evolving customer expectations are driving rapid transformation. This once-in-a-generation demand growth is creating new challenges for our nation, as well as unique opportunities for our industry to better serve customers and communities and to ensure America is home to the industries, technologies, and jobs of tomorrow. EEI and our member companies are leading the way and are working hard to meet these challenges head-on.

At the same time, we are engaging with a new administration and new Congress on a busy policy agenda. We know that our job of educating policymakers, regulators, and industry stakeholders is more important than ever, and we have developed strategic advocacy plans to advance our priority issues and to achieve favorable results that benefit our customers.

Our efforts are fueled by knowledge that we need a modern energy system for our modern age, particularly as data centers and artificial intelligence technologies, the onshoring of manufacturing, and increased electrification continue to drive energy demand and global economic activity. With a supportive policy and regulatory framework in place, we can build an energy grid that is reliable, responsive, weather-resilient, and ready to meet customer demand today and in the years ahead.

Promoting Supportive Public Policy

We all know that electricity is the energy that powers our increasingly digital economy, and our industry is integrally linked to the success of our nation. As a whole, our industry supports more than 7 million jobs across the country and accounts for at least 5 percent of U.S. GDP.

More than ever, it is vital that public policies support energy security by prioritizing the buildout of more critical energy infrastructure and by allowing electric companies to maintain a diverse, domestic, and dispatchable energy
mix. Natural gas, renewables, storage, and new and existing nuclear are all important parts of this equation.

EEI’s member companies have the expertise needed to build the necessary infrastructure. What we don’t have is time—specifically, time for inefficient government review processes to drag on and on.

We must streamline permitting requirements, align policy requirements, and encourage capital investment to rapidly build out the grid and the other critical infrastructure needed to power data centers, bolster domestic manufacturing, and support the electrification of other sectors of the economy. We also must continue to lead efforts to develop, demonstrate, and deploy grid-enhancing technologies that are helping to bolster grid resilience and get more out of the infrastructure that we already have.

Favorable tax policy is particularly important, and we are engaging with members of Congress and their staff on where and how policies like the energy tax credits are driving innovation, creating new American jobs and economic opportunities, and helping electric companies meet the rapidly growing demand for electricity reliably and affordably. During the year ahead, we will work to protect the energy tax credits, secure a repairs fix in the Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax, and continue to advocate for provisions within the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that benefit electricity customers.

Environmental regulations also remain front and center, and EEI is committed to working with policymakers and regulators to support policies that better accommodate member company fleet transition plans and reflect the challenges of building new generation. We are committed to getting the energy we provide as clean as we can as fast as we can, and we are working to find solutions that drive innovation and the deployment of new energy technologies, allowing our member companies to meet demand growth reliably while helping to keep customer bills as low as possible.

Addressing Wildfire Risk

Among EEI’s priorities this year is advancing a comprehensive national strategy that addresses wildfire risk, with a focus on community protection, prevention, responsible investment, and rapid recovery. The recent fires in Southern California, exacerbated by hurricane-force winds and severe drought conditions, offer a grim reminder of the devastation that these events can inflict. We are grateful for the brave firefighters and first responders who worked around-the-clock to contain the blazes.

EEI and our member companies were actively engaged at the highest levels of industry and government through the CEO-led Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC) to ensure that impacted electric companies had the resources and equipment needed for the response, restoration, and rebuild efforts that are essential to the recovery.

The threat of wildfires is a societal problem that requires societal solutions. We are committed to working with Congress to advance legislation that will help mitigate risks and support our efforts to protect the customers and communities that we serve. And, we will continue to work with our partners in Washington to ensure that the ESCC remains the center of gravity, where industry and government come together to strengthen our shared responsibility of protecting the grid against all threats.

The growing frequency and intensity of wildfires and extreme weather events of all kinds reinforces just how important it is to invest in resilient infrastructure and a more weather-resilient grid, as few regions were spared Mother Nature’s wrath over the past year. EEI’s member companies invested more than $171 billion in 2023 alone to make the grid stronger, smarter, cleaner, more weather-resilient, and more secure, and these efforts will continue in 2025 and beyond. Securing our grid against threats both natural and manmade is critically important to the success of our industry, as well as to our nation’s role as a global energy leader.

Leading the Way

This will be a busy year for us all. As the leader of an EEI member company myself, I recognize and appreciate the important work that is underway across our industry on behalf of the hundreds of millions of Americans who depend on us to power their lives. I am also grateful for the high levels of engagement from my CEO colleagues on these and so many other critical issues.

We will face no shortage of opportunities, challenges, and change in 2025 and beyond. What will remain the same is our commitment to delivering a secure, reliable energy future that benefits everyone. Through the Power by Association^SM that EEI represents, we will meet the evolving needs and expectations of our customers, and we will engage with partners in industry and government to ensure we have the infrastructure, technologies, and policies in place to power our economy and our lives for decades to come.