This session addresses the dual challenge facing today’s data center developers: securing reliable power in an increasingly constrained utility landscape, and transforming that power infrastructure into a strategic, flexible asset. With demand driven by artificial intelligence (AI), high-density computing, and hyperscale expansion, the traditional model of simply requesting utility service and waiting for delivery is breaking down. This webinar brings together two expert perspectives—infrastructure engineering and energy optimization—to map the full critical path from megawatts to market.

Roger Copeland, PE, Power & Utilities Practice Lead at Burns Engineering, examines the physical realities of power delivery, from grid interconnection queues and substation capacity limitations to transformer shortages and long-lead electrical equipment that now define project schedules. The session then shifts from infrastructure to operations as Joe O’Brien of GridBeyond explores how battery energy storage systems, real-time energy orchestration, and virtual power plants are enabling data centers to move beyond passive consumption toward active grid participation—unlocking faster interconnection, new revenue streams, and a fundamentally different relationship with utilities and grid operators.

Together, the two perspectives reveal why infrastructure decisions and operational flexibility strategies can no longer be treated as separate workstreams. Attendees will gain practical insight into how on-site and hybrid power architectures, early vendor engagement, and software-driven energy dispatch work in concert to de-risk timelines, reduce costs, and position data center operators not just as energy consumers, but as grid partners.