Agenda Day 1

9:00 am

Introduction & Overview

Greg Patterson, CPA, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
Arizona Competitive Power Alliance / Phoenix, AZ

Thorvald Nelson, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
Holland & Hart / Denver, CO

9:15 am

Federal Update

Department of Energy: A major pivot towards strengthening grid reliability, accelerating transmission expansion, and managing the integration of large-scale renewable projects

Suedeen G. Kelly, Esq.
Jenner & Block / Washington, DC

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission: Regional transmission planning to build backbone grid infrastructure under Order 1920 and data center load management initiatives to minimize cost impacts for residential customers

Marc L. Spitzer, Esq.
Steptoe & Johnson / Washington, DC

10:30 am

Break

10:45 am

The 2026 Super El Niño: Extreme Heat, High Demand Spikes, Wildfires, and Other Impacts on Utility Operations and that Threaten Grid Reliability in the Southwest

Impacts on the grid: Surging power demand, reduced renewable efficiency, infrastructure stress, water shortages, and other operational contingencies

Michael Patten, Esq.
Osborn Maledon / Phoenix, AZ

Update on Rocky Mountain Power's request for approval of a Utah Fire Fund pursuant to SB 224 (PUC Hearing Docket No. 25-035-61): Parties, issues, and what to expect during the upcoming hearings

Phillip J. Russell, Esq.
James Dodge Russell & Stephens / Salt Lake City, UT

11:45 am

The Balancing Act for State Regulators

How New Mexico's regulatory policy is evolving to ensure grid reliability in an era of rapid load growth and operational challenges from a super El Nino

The Hon. Patrick J. O'Connell , Chair
New Mexico Public Regulation Commission / Santa Fe, NM

12:15 pm

Lunch Break

1:30 pm

Aspirational State Renewable Energy Policy Goals Meet Federal Promotion of Fossil Fuels and Demand Growth form New Large Loads: The Push vs. the Shove

Given federal discouragement of renewable projects on federal land, are the goals achievable or will the region need to add gas capacity and possibly convert retiring coal plants to gas? How can interstate utilities balance conflicting state policies?

Jake Brown, Esq. , Assistant General Counsel
Southwest Public Service Company / Austin, TX

Cydney Beadles, Esq. , Clean Energy Manager
Western Resource Advocates / Santa Fe, NM

2:45 pm

Break

3:00 pm

Powering AI Data Centers

Factors a developer considers in selecting a site, including state regulatory approaches to cost recovery, and negotiating a power supply contracts

David Matusiak , Strategic Energy Supply Negotiator
Google / San Francisco, CA

Factors a utility considers in determining the optimal resource mix: Examples such as 2 GW of new clean energy and a 300 MW, 100-hour iron-air battery system for Google's Pine Island, MN, data center and 4,000 MW across 11 projects in TX and NM

Jake Brown, Esq. , Assistant General Counsel
Southwest Public Service / Austin, TX

The conflict between (1) the mix, including traditional, energy sources necessary to meet projected AI/data center load growth while ensuring grid reliability and on-demand power availability and (2) state carbon goals and competing demands for water

H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D.
Heartland Institute / Schaumburg, IL

5:00 pm

Reception for On Site Faculty and Attendees

Graciously sponsored by the Arizona Competitive Power Alliance and the New Mexico Independent Power Producers Association

Tuesday, September 22, 2026

9:00 am

Cost Recovery and Competing Frameworks for Allocating Costs

Adverse rate impacts as a source of local opposition: Update on regional utility tariff/special contract proceedings seeking to ensure that data center operators pay the full cost of the facilities they use

Matthew J. DeCourcey , Vice President
Charles River Associates / Boston, MA

Utility perspective on the optimal cost allocation framework including the proposed federal Ratepayer Protection Act and similar state level legislation

Jeffrey Allmon , Associate General Counsel
Pinnacle West Capital Corporation / Phoenix, AZ

10:15 am

Break

10:30 am

State Regulatory Updates

Overview: A state-by-state look at regulatory responses to demand growth from large growth and climate-related supply shortfall risks

Greg Patterson, CPA, Esq. , Program Co-Chair, Moderator
Arizona Competitive Power Alliance / Phoenix, AZ

Arizona

Thomas V. Van Flein, Esq. , General Counsel
Arizona Corporation Commission / Phoenix, AZ

Colorado

Seamus Crowley, Esq.
Holland & Hart / Denver, CO

Utah

Sarah Puzzo, Esq.
Attorney & Policy Consultant / Salt Lake City, UT

12:15 pm

Lunch Break

1:30 pm

Load Growth from Hyperscale Data Centers: What can We Really Expect?

AI as a potential speculative bubble: If it turns out to be a bubble, what are the regulatory and energy supply consequences?

Lance D. Kaufman, Ph.D. , Principal Economist
Western Economics / Corvallis, OR

2:15 pm

Market Adaptaton to New Large Loads and Climate-Related Risks: Energy Trading and Grid Management within the Western Interconnection

How market managers (SPP, WPP, & CAISO) are changing their management tools (Markets +, EDAM, WEIM, WEIS, WRAP, & WWGPI or Pathways) for more rapid, automated, and cost effective processes to meet soaring demand

Becky Robinson, Esq. , Director, Market Policy Development
California ISO / Folsom, CA

Carrie Simpson, Esq. , Senior Director, Seams & Western Services
Southwest Power Pool / Denver, CO

3:30 pm

Evaluations and Adjourn

Faculty Bios

Thorvald Nelson, Program Co-Chair, is a partner at Holland & Hart where his clients include large electric consumers and electric consumer coalitions, independent power producers, renewable energy developers, and independent transmission developers. Before practicing law, he served as an economist with the Colorado Office of Consumer Counsel, where he served as a testifying expert on regulatory law and policy.

Greg Patterson, CPA, Prog ram Co-Chair, is Director of the Arizona Competitive Power Alliance and the New Mexico Independent Power Producers Association. He served two terms in the Arizona House of Representatives and served as Director of the Residential Utility Consumer Office as well as Chief of Staff at the Arizona State Senate. He is a licensed attorney in Arizona and New Mexico.

Jeffrey Allmon is Associate General Counsel at Pinnacle West Capital Corporation. He formerly worked as an environmental attorney in private practice.

Cydney Beadles is New Mexico Clean Energy Manager at Western Resource Advocates. Prior to that, she served as a managing attorney at the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission and its predecessor, the New Mexico Public Utility Commission, including serving as Legal Division Director.

Jake Brown is Assistant General Counsel at Xcel Energy Services focusing on representation of Southwest Public Service Company (SPS). He has been involved with development of data center power supply strategies both within SPS's service area and for other Xcel distribution utilities.

H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D. is the director of The Heartland Institute's Arthur B. Robinson Center on Climate and Environmental Policy. Prior to joining The Heartland Institute, he worked at the National Center for Policy Analysis and served as a member of the Environment and Natural Resources Task Force for the Texas Comptroller's e-Texas commission.

Seamus Crowley, Holland & Hart, assists clients with public utility regulation matters throughout the Mountain West, advising on energy policy initiatives and ratemaking compliance. Clients include both energy consumers and independent project developers.

Matthew J. DeCourcey is a Vice President in Charles River Associates' Energy Practice. He focuses on services to utilities, investors, and institutional stakeholders on a wide range of matters that include ratemaking and rate design, alternative regulation, policy, and the recovery of costs from investments made on behalf of utility customers. Before joining CRA, he led the regulatory department for a utility holding company where he was responsible for all elements of regulation and ratemaking.

Lance D. Kaufman, Ph.D., Founder and Principal Economist at Western Economics, specializes in forensic economics and consulting for regulated utility proceedings. He currently is working on new large load issues in Oregon and Idaho with an eye towards creating a framework for large loads to access energy without placing costs or risks on existing utilities and customers.

Suedeen G. Kelly co-chairs the energy practice at Jenner & Block. She formerly served as a commissioner with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, chairwoman and commissioner for the New Mexico Public Service Commission, and as a lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council and the US Environmental Protection Agency.

David Matusiak spearheads Google's energy strategy and regulatory advocacy across the Western United States. He is charged with ensuring that Google's data centers remain among the cleanest and most efficient in the world. Prior to joining Google, he worked on energy policy issues at the California Public Utilities Commission and Pacific Gas and Electric Company.

The Hon. Patrick J. O'Connell is Chair of the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. He also is the Secretary/Treasurer of the Western Conference of Public Service Commissioners, New Mexico's voting member of the Southwest Power Pool's Regional State Committee and sits on the Committee on Regional Electric Power Cooperation and the National Association of Regulatory Commissioners Energy Resources and the Environment Committee. After a career working in utilities and prior to joining the NMPRC, he led the Clean Energy program at Western Resource Advocates.

Michael Patten focuses his practice at Osborn Maledon on public utility and energy regulatory law. He appears regularly before the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) on matters involving electricity, transmission and generation facilities, renewable energy, solar energy, energy storage, battery storage, interconnection, and energy efficiency.

Sarah Puzzo represents utilities and renewable developers before the Utah Public Service Commission. This includes serving as counsel for Utah's first municipal net-100% renewable energy opt-out program, and first district energy utility. She formerly served as staff attorney for Utah Clean Energy.

Becky Robinson is Director of Market Policy Development at the California ISO. She previously worked as the Director of PJM Market Policy for Vistra Energy and as Deputy Director of FERC's Division of Economic and Technical Analysis.

Phillip J. Russell is President of James Dodge Russell & Stephens. He represents a broad spectrum of energy clients, including industrial and commercial energy users, municipal and cooperative utilities, and renewable energy project developers. He also represents the Community Renewable Energy Agency in its efforts to develop a program with Rocky Mountain Power to enable residents in numerous Utah Communities to receive 100% of their electricity needs from renewable resources.

Carrie Simpson is Vice President, Markets for the Southwest Power Pool (SPP). She rejoined SPP after working as Director of Western Markets for Xcel Energy, Director of Market Operations & Assistant Counsel at Guzman Energy, and Manager of Regulatory Affairs at Invenergy.

Marc L. Spitzer is a partner at Steptoe & Johnson. He represents utilities and energy companies before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), at state utility commissions, Congress, federal agencies, and state legislatures. He formerly served as a FERC commissioner, as Chairman of the Arizona Corporation Commission, and in the Arizona State Senate.

Thomas V. Van Flein is General Counsel for the Arizona Corporation Commission. In that role he supervises the Office of General Counsel, handles the appellate cases, and supervisors eight attorneys. He previously served as Chief of Staff and General Counsel for a congressional caucus and a member of Congress.

Continuing Education Credits

Live credits: This program qualifies for 11.0 NM MCLE credits plus AZ MCLE, 11.25 CA MCLE, 13.0 CO MCLE, 11.0 UT MCLE, 11.00 NV MCLE, 11.0 WA MCLE, and 11.0 ABCEP environmental professional credits. Upon request, we will help you apply for CLE credits in other states and other types of credits.

I appreciate LSI's seamless segue from registration, an informative seminar, to end result.

In-Person Location

La Fonda on the Plaza Hotel

100 E. San Francisco Street in Santa Fe, NM 87501
(505) 982-5511

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