People in Power – A NewsData Podcast

Nicole Hughes talks about her path from archaeologist to energy advocate, and reflects on how renewable energy has changed over the past 20 years.

Travis Kavulla, the new CEO and administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration, talks with Steve Ernst and Abigail Sawyer about regional market-choice considerations as he recently laid out in a letter to the Regional Organization for Western Energy; his plans for accelerating the expansion of BPA transmission; load and resource pairing; his preparation and philosophy for leading the federal...

In this episode of People in Power, California Energy Markets Managing Editor Jason Fordney interviews Ziad Alaywan, founder and CEO of ZGlobal Inc. Ziad details what his firm does and also provides a fascinating history of his experiences helping stand up the California Independent System Operator and witnessing the California energy crisis of the early 2000s. Ziad, who had a front-row seat to th...

Crystal Ball tells all about her background at the Bonneville Power Administration, PNUCC’s Northwest Regional Forecast, gas-electric coordination, and how power is all about people.

Chair Tawney discusses her path to being a regulator, the challenges and opportunities of meeting rising demand in Oregon, and how it relates to knitting!

This episode of People in Power features Danielle Hughes, a long-time resident of Lake Tahoe and CEO of Tahoe Spark (Supporting Permanent Affordable Residential Kilowatts). Tahoe Spark is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit regional energy and public policy organization focused on energy affordability, climate resilience, infrastructure transparency, and regulatory oversight in Liberty Utilities’ California ser...

Energy and Environmental Economics Partner talks with CEM Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer about the changing shape of resource adequacy in the Desert Southwest as utilities try to thread the needle on reliably meeting a new level of "baseload demand" while striving for affordability and meeting state clean energy goals. 

In this episode of People in Power, California Energy Markets Staff Writer Linda Dailey Paulson dives into Western energy prices, which due to a variety of factors have seen extreme volatility, including negative prices in the triple digits. Along with CEM Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer and CEM Managing Editor Jason Fordney, Linda takes a general look at real-time and 15-minute day-ahead power pr...

In this episode of People in Power, Kelly Fukai talks about her new role as CEO of the Northwest Gas Association, the role of natural gas as a firm resource in an era of growing demand, and baseball!

Greg Mason, Associate Editor of Clearing Up, interviews Larry Bekkedahl, senior vice-president of advanced energy delivery at Portland General Electric, about his retirement from the energy industry after 40 years, his perspective on the region’s load projections, and his advice to grid operators on maintaining reliability.

In this episode of People in Power, Abigail Sawyer talks with Peter Ferrell, senior director of government relations for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, about supply chain challenges and how they are affecting the buildout and modernization of the U.S. electric grid. From tariffs, trade and immigration policy to workforce shortages and natural disasters, supply chain concerns ar...

Ayla Burnett and Abigail Sawyer chat with Sarah Edmonds and Rebecca Sexton of the Western Power Pool on their backgrounds and the paths that led them to be leaders in the Western energy world. They also discuss the inception of two groundbreaking initiatives: the Western Resource Adequacy Program and the Western Transmission Expansion Coalition.

People in Power Episode 20: Abigail Sawyer talks with Carrie Simpson, vice president of markets for the Southwest Power Pool, about her experience in energy, which goes back to the early 2000s when she worked as an energy trader for Enron. Since then Carrie has been involved in power markets in both the Western and Eastern Interconnection. She is anticipating the expansion of SPP’s RTO—which will...

Abigail Sawyer and Brian Turner of Advanced Energy United and the West Wide Governance Pathways Initiative launch committee discuss the renewed possibility of a seamless, westwide power market that would be governed by a regional organization. The recent passage of California's Assembly Bill 825 cleared the way for California entities to participate in such a market, which, with the load and resou...

Abigail Sawyer and Quinn Nakayama, senior director of Grid Innovation and Development for Pacific Gas &Electric, discuss the role of innovation and partnerships in solving California problems that include load-shifting, load management and utility undergrounding. Recorded live at PG&E's Innovation Pitch Fest 2025 in Oakland.

In this episode of People in Power, we hear from Mark Groves, vice-president of program development and innovations at the Northwest Lineman College. Mark, also a member of the International Lineman Hall of Fame, discusses with California Energy Markets Editor Jason Fordney his background as a lineman; what he looks for in lineman candidates; the rewards and challenges of this work, including its...

The latest episode of People in Power features a conversation with Arne Olson, a principal at Energy and Environmental Economics, or E3. This episode was recorded in front of a live audience on Aug. 22 at NewsData's 2025 Western Energy Summit in Boise, Idaho. CEM Managing Editor Jason Fordney and Associate and Southwest Editor Abigail Sawyer discussed a broad range of topics with Arne, including r...

California Energy Markets Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer and Dan O'Brien, senior modeling analyst for Energy Innovation, discuss the implications of the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act and other federal policy shifts on the Western energy landscape. Will the earlier end of tax credits for renewable energy make a difference, or have renewables already won in the marketplace? How will ne...

The latest episode of People in Power provides an up-to-the-minute update on the extended day-ahead market with Kathleen Staks, chair of the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative Launch Committee. Staks and California Energy Market’s Jason Fordney and Abigail Sawyer discuss new governance structure for EDAM with the official joining of the market by Public Service Company of New Mexico; the sta...

On this episode of People in Power , California Energy Markets Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer talks with Mark Toney, executive director of The Utility Reform Network, about California's unprecedented rate increases over the past several years, the factors driving those increases and what can be done to keep power bills from continuing to rise. Toney doesn't hold back in offering his opinions on r...

New Mexico Public Regulation Commissioner Gabriel Aguilera discusses how his 15 years at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission prepared him for his role as a state utility regulator with California Energy Markets' Southwest Editor, Abigail Sawyer.  Aguilera also offers his take on the emergence of competing day-ahead markets and regional transmission organizations in the Western U.S., the impli...

On this edition of People in Power California Energy Markets Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer discusses the role of community choice aggregation in California with Beth Vaughan, CEO of CalCCA. In their 15-year history in California, CCAs have presented a model for innovation and contributed to the radical reshaping of California’s electricity generation, delivery and consumption. With affordability...

Transmission in the West is a huge topic nowadays, with many more lines and additional infrastructure needed to meet renewable-energy goals and maintain grid reliability in the face of significant load growth. This episode of People in Power features Neil Millar, vice president of transmission planning and infrastructure development at the California Independent System Operator, the man who guides...

Hear from the nation's top reliability official as he and California Energy Markets Editor Jason Fordney explore the topic of grid reliability. Generation retirements, load growth through data centers and electrification, and more frequent extreme weather are among the challenges facing grid planners and reliability officials. This episode digs deep into the issues, including the challenges of mor...

People in Power Episode 8: NewsData Reporter Roundtable! Looking to update your knowledge of emerging Western wholesale energy markets? This episode of People in Power features three experts on the topic, California Energy Markets Managing Editor Jason Fordney, Clearing Up Editor Steve Ernst and California Energy Markets Associate Editor and Southwest Editor Abigail Sawyer. They discuss both the C...