Clean Energy Leaders Building the Infrastructure for America’s Energy Transition

Discussions about America’s energy transition often focus on climate goals, electric vehicles, solar power, and new technologies. Yet the transition will ultimately depend on physical infrastructure: power plants, transmission lines, battery systems, charging stations, manufacturing facilities, and digital tools that help the grid operate reliably.

The need for this infrastructure is growing as electricity demand rises. Data centers, artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, transportation, and building electrification are placing new pressure on the country’s power system. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, American electricity consumption is expected to reach record levels in 2026 and 2027.

Meeting that demand will require a broad mix of resources. Renewable generation must be supported by stronger transmission networks, reliable storage, firm power sources, and local energy systems. Conventional generation and nuclear power will also continue to play important roles while new capacity is developed.

Across these areas, several executives and founders are turning energy ideas into large-scale projects. Their work illustrates how business leadership, technical innovation, financing, and patient infrastructure development are shaping America’s energy future.

John Ketchum: Expanding Energy Capacity at NextEra Energy

John Ketchum serves as chairman, president, and chief executive officer of NextEra Energy, one of the largest electricity infrastructure companies in the United States. The company operates Florida Power & Light and NextEra Energy Resources, a major developer of wind, solar, battery storage, transmission, and other energy assets.

NextEra’s position gives Ketchum responsibility across two critical parts of the market. Florida Power & Light must maintain a reliable system for millions of customers in a fast-growing state. NextEra Energy Resources develops projects that supply utilities, businesses, and communities across North America.

This combination is valuable because the energy transition cannot be separated from grid reliability. New generation needs to be connected, managed, and supported by equipment that can withstand growing demand and severe weather.

In April 2025, NextEra reported that its energy resources division had added approximately 3.2 gigawatts of renewable and storage projects to its backlog during the first quarter. That brought the unit’s total backlog to about 28 gigawatts at the time, according to Reuters.

Ketchum has also argued that the United States needs a diverse range of energy resources. Solar and wind can be built faster than many traditional power projects, while natural gas, nuclear energy, and storage can provide additional reliability. 

Michael Skelly: Connecting Regional Power Markets With Grid United

America can build large amounts of new generation, but that electricity has limited value if it cannot reach the places where it is needed. Transmission is therefore one of the most important—and most difficult—parts of energy development.

Michael Skelly, co-founder and chief executive officer of Grid United, has spent much of his career working on this challenge. His company develops long-distance transmission projects designed to connect regions, improve grid resilience, and allow electricity to move between markets.

Regional power systems in the United States are not always strongly connected. During extreme temperatures or unexpected outages, one area may have available electricity while a neighboring region faces shortages. Additional connections can give grid operators more options and allow diverse resources to support one another.

The Department of Energy’s National Transmission Needs Study found a growing need for both regional and interregional transmission. Building that capacity, however, requires coordination among landowners, regulators, utilities, communities, investors, and multiple levels of government.

Skelly’s work demonstrates why infrastructure leadership requires persistence. Transmission projects can take years to plan, permit, finance, and construct. Progress depends not only on engineering but also on building agreements among groups with different priorities.

For executives outside the energy industry, there is a wider lesson here. Some of the most valuable business opportunities exist in removing the bottlenecks that prevent an entire market from growing.

Mateo Jaramillo: Developing Multi-Day Storage at Form Energy

Short-duration batteries are already helping utilities balance the grid, particularly during periods of high electricity demand. However, the country also needs storage systems that can supply power for much longer periods.

Mateo Jaramillo, co-founder and chief executive officer of Form Energy, is working to address this requirement. The company is commercializing iron-air batteries designed to provide electricity for approximately 100 hours. These systems use a reversible rusting process involving iron, air, and water.

A multi-day battery can store electricity for extended periods, helping utilities maintain supply when demand rises or renewable energy production falls. It is not intended to replace every other form of storage. Instead, it gives grid planners another option for maintaining dependable service across several days.

Under Jaramillo’s leadership, Form Energy has moved from laboratory development toward manufacturing and utility deployment. The company completed its first high-volume production facility, Form Factory 1, in Weirton, West Virginia, in 2024 and began trial production there.

Form Energy says it employs nearly 1,000 people across West Virginia, Massachusetts, and California. It also has projects under development with utilities and energy organizations around the United States. Its official company timeline states that the business deployed its first iron-air system for commercial demonstration in partnership with Great River Energy in 2025, with the complete project expected to come online in 2026.

Jaramillo’s approach connects clean technology with domestic manufacturing. The company is not only designing a battery; it is building the workforce, factory capacity, supply relationships, and utility partnerships required to deploy that product commercially.

Tim Latimer: Bringing Advanced Geothermal Into the Mainstream

Solar and wind generation depend on weather conditions, while geothermal energy can provide power throughout the day. Historically, its development has been limited to locations with easily accessible underground heat. Fervo Energy is working to expand where geothermal projects can be built.

The company was co-founded by Tim Latimer, a former drilling engineer who recognized that techniques developed by the oil and gas sector could be applied to geothermal resources. Fervo uses horizontal drilling and other engineering methods to access underground heat in areas that may not support conventional geothermal projects.

The company’s Project Red in Nevada demonstrated that its enhanced geothermal system could supply electricity to the grid. Fervo is now developing Cape Station in Utah as a much larger commercial project.

Unlike an early laboratory technology, geothermal development requires extensive drilling, power-generation equipment, land agreements, financing, and connections to the electrical network. Latimer’s achievement has been bringing these pieces together while attracting customers seeking continuous carbon-free electricity.

Fervo describes itself as a developer, owner, and operator of next-generation geothermal assets. Its company information emphasizes geothermal’s ability to complement wind and solar production with around-the-clock power.

This work is becoming increasingly important as data centres need a reliable electricity supply while continuing to meet their environmental goals. Could geothermal become a major source of dependable power for America’s digital economy? The answer will depend on whether companies such as Fervo can reduce drilling costs and repeat their model across additional locations.

Mary Powell: Turning Homes Into Distributed Energy Resources

Large power plants and transmission networks are only part of the infrastructure story. Homes can also produce, store, and share electricity.

Mary Powell, chief executive officer of Sunrun, is advancing this distributed approach through residential solar panels and battery systems. 

During periods of heavy electricity demand, participating home batteries may supply stored power to support the local grid. Customers can retain backup capacity while utilities gain access to a flexible network of distributed resources.

This model may reduce pressure during peak hours and improve resilience without waiting for one large facility to be completed. It also places consumers directly within the country’s changing energy system.

Sunrun reports that it has served more than one million homes. Its business includes solar installations, battery storage, subscription options, monitoring, maintenance, and related home-energy technology, according to the company’s official overview.

Powell’s leadership highlights the importance of customer experience. Residential energy involves financing, permits, installation, utility approval, monitoring, and long-term service. Companies must make that complicated process understandable if distributed power is to reach a wider market.

Badar Khan: Increasing Access to Fast EV Charging

Electric vehicles require more than improved batteries and appealing models. Drivers need dependable charging in cities, along highways, and near the places where they work, shop, and travel.

Badar Khan, chief executive officer of EVgo, leads one of America’s major public fast-charging networks. The company builds and operates EV charging stations in partnership with automakers and travel-centre operators.

In December 2024, EVgo closed a $1.25 billion loan guarantee from the Department of Energy to support the construction of approximately 7,500 additional fast-charging stalls. The planned expansion is expected to take place over several years.

Building a charging network involves more than installing equipment. Each location requires suitable real estate, utility coordination, grid capacity, permitting, construction, maintenance, payment systems, and reliable software. Stations must also support changing vehicle standards and deliver a consistent experience.

Khan’s challenge is therefore both operational and strategic. The company must expand carefully, select locations with long-term demand, and keep existing chargers working. A large network has little value if drivers cannot depend on it.

What Business Leaders Can Learn From the Energy Transition

These leaders operate in different markets, but their strategies share several qualities.

They focus on removing infrastructure barriers that limit progress rather than only developing products for consumers. They understand that innovation must move from a demonstration project to repeatable commercial deployment. They are also creating partnerships across industries, government agencies, utilities, communities, and capital providers.

Most importantly, their work treats reliability and clean energy as connected goals. Customers expect a reliable and affordable electricity supply, even as utilities shift to different energy sources.

America’s energy transition will not be completed by a single company or executive. It will be built through thousands of projects involving generation, storage, transmission, manufacturing, charging, and digital management. The leaders who succeed will be those who can turn ambitious technology into infrastructure that people and businesses can rely on every day.