Schedule

Leadership Fireside: Research Institutions and Energy Abundance in the Mountain West

Utah and its neighbors are being asked to build more energy capacity in the next decade than the region built in the last seventy years. That build-out depends on things research institutions uniquely supply: the science that makes new generation viable, the testbeds that de-risk first-of-a-kind projects, the workforce that operates them, and the community relationships that let them get built. This fireside brings together the leaders of Utah's two research universities and a senior leader of Idaho National Laboratory to talk about what the region's research enterprise is already delivering — and what it will take to move faster together.

Emy Lesofski Moderator, Director, Utah Office of Energy Development, and Energy Advisor to the Governor

Brad L. Mortensen Speaker, President, Utah State University

Taylor R. Randall Speaker, President, University of Utah

Todd E. Combs Speaker, Director and Chief Research Officer, Idaho National Laboratory Deputy

Plenary Panel: A Field Guide to the Grid

A short primer on how the electric grid balances supply and demand, how energy portfolios contribute to serving demand, and information grounding the rest of the conference. The primer will be followed by an expert panel to discuss the current options and future trends of the electricity landscape.

Plenary Panel: Twelve States, One Grid: What the WestTEC Inititative Means for Western Energy Abundance

How twelve states built a working coalition on transmission and resource adequacy, and what it unlocks for the region.

Plenary Panel: Drilling Toward Baseload: How and Why Geothermal is Accelerating in the West

Researchers and industry leaders from the Mountainwest Geothermal Consortium discuss how academic research has unlocked the geothermal industry and what the private sector needs to do next.

Plenary Panel: Going Critical: Modern Nuclear in Practice

Advanced nuclear is the future of the new fleet of nuclear systems that will provide the capacity to meet our energy needs for years to come. Leaders who are making this a reality today will share insights on the role of nuclear as part of our resilient energy economy, how their companies are leading to build this future, and the role of research to advance innovation.

Charles Musgrave Moderator, Dean, College of Engineering, University of Utah

Timothy Howell Speaker, Director, Nuclear Commercialization, BWXT

Supathorn Phongikaroon Speaker, Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Utah

Greg Barnett Speaker, Director, US New Nuclear Development, Aecon

Plenary Panel: Utah Nuclear Campus

Utah is a finalist for potentially one of the largest energy projects in the nation's history: the Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus, an initiative to co-locate the entire nuclear fuel cycle on an integrated campus. This generational opportunity would make Utah a cornerstone of the nuclear industry within the US, leaders will discuss the drivers of the Campus concept and the current status of the process. 

Utah Office of Energy Development

Utah State University

Rich Walje Moderator, Western Transmission Consortium

Meghan Dovick Speaker, Director, University of Utah Professional Science Masters

Doug Cherry Speaker, CEO (Retired), Monterey Technologies, Inc.

Tyler Dunn Speaker, Industry Engagement Manager, Talent Ready Utah

Breakout Session 4: Navigating Utah's Energy Tradeoffs

Achieving energy superabundance requires strategic planning and a clear understanding of the tradeoffs within Utah’s ‘all-of-the-above’ energy portfolio. This session examines a developing framework for evaluating those tradeoffs as well as current and future strategies the industry is deploying to mitigate impacts on our land, water, and air.

Session 5: Role and Future of Energy Storage

This session will focus on energy storage for grid support, enabling renewables, long-duration storage, and related technology opportunities and challenges. 

Kody Powell Moderator, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Utah

Hailei Wang Speaker, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Utah State University

Ty Hosler Speaker, Gigawatt Fellow, Utah State University Institute for Land, Water, and Air, and Utah Office of Energy Development

Ali Khosravani Speaker, Energy Systems Analyst, ENFRA

Session 7: Geothermal Workforce

Update on Southern Utah University's new partnership with the University of Reykjavik on geothermal workforce development.

Jason Kaiser Speaker, Chair, Department of Geosciences, Southern Utah University

Melynda Thorpe Speaker, Assistant Vice President, Workforce and Educational Opportunity, Southern Utah University

Session 8: Local Engagement in Energy Development

Energy development ultimately happens somewhere—near communities, workers, roads, businesses, schools, tribal lands, and other existing uses—and therefore technical feasibility alone is never the whole question. The harder question is how we make good choices about which opportunities fit which places—and how research, industry, government, tribes, and communities make those decisions together.

Rikki Hrenko-Browning Moderator, President, Utah Petroleum Association

Liza Leonard Speaker, Local Government Affairs and Community Engagement Manager, Idaho National Laboratory

Jade Powell Speaker, Deputy Director, SERDA

Seth Lyman Speaker, Director, Bingham Research Center, Utah State University

Jaron Wallace Speaker, Director, San Rafael Energy Lab

Session 11: Grid Optimization & Building Flexibility: Powering Utah’s Dynamic Energy Future

What if the biggest constraint on Utah's energy future isn't how much power we can generate but how well we use our existing and future power sources?

Jason Grooms Moderator, President, Association of Energy Engineers, Utah Chapter and Director of Energy Storage Design, Torus

Jake DeMann Speaker, Strategic Account Executive, Edo

Addie Wallace Speaker, Demand Flexibility Leader, Kraken