Mason Energy Event Speakers
Scott AaronsonVice President - Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
Infrastructure Resilience - Panelist
Scott leads EEI's security and preparedness team where he focuses on industry security and resilience initiatives, establishing collaborative partnerships between government and electric companies—and across critical infrastructure sectors—that enhance security for the energy sector. In addition to his role at EEI, Scott also serves as the Secretary for the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC). The ESCC is the primary liaison between senior government officials and industry leaders representing all segments of the sector. This partnership is held up as a model for how critical infrastructure operators can work with the government, yielding dramatic improvements in security and preparedness for the electric power sector and the nation.
In these roles, Scott has provided testimony before several state legislative and regulatory bodies, both houses of the U.S. Congress, and to the United Nations Security Council. He speaks frequently with national media and has been a trusted source for policymakers on issues of critical infrastructure security, including both the Pentagon’s Defense Science Board and the President’s National Infrastructure Advisory Council.
Prior to joining EEI, Scott was a senior adviser to Members of Congress serving the 12th Congressional District of California, including former House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Tom Lantos. From 2001 to 2007, he served as an economic policy adviser to U.S. Senator Bill Nelson.
Scott received a Bachelor's Degree in journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder for his undergraduate studies, and a Master's Degree from The George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management. He also has received continuing education in executive leadership from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. He lives on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC with his wife, two daughters, and a not-so-Great Dane.
Trent BausermanHead of Federal Affairs, Commonwealth Fusion Systems
Nuclear and Fusion: The Future of Clean Firm Tech - Speaker
Trent Bauserman is head of federal affairs for Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a Massachusetts-based company focused on bringing commercial fusion power to the grid. Prior to that, Bauserman served as senior policy advisor to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, where he advised the leader on energy and environmental policy matters.
He served five years in the the White House under President Barack Obama and five years in the U.S. Senate for senators Jeanne Shaheen and Jim Webb. He began his career in D.C. as an aide to Rep. Rick Boucher and later as a public affairs advisor at Holland & Knight LLP. A Winchester, Virginia, native, Bauserman is a 2000 political science graduate from Virginia Tech. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his husband, Daniel.
Farah BenahmedManager, U.S. Policy & Advocacy - Breakthrough Energy
Nuclear and Fusion: The Future of Clean Firm Tech - Panelist
Farah joined Breakthrough Energy’s Policy and Advocacy team in August 2020, where she works to spur clean energy innovation in the United States. She focuses on grantmaking, policy development and advocacy, coalition building, and furthering BE’s overall mission of getting to net-zero emissions as quickly as possible.
Prior to joining Breakthrough Energy, Farah led Third Way’s clean energy innovation portfolio. She supported and developed innovation policies, managed the team’s federal appropriations work, and led two bipartisan working groups focused on advancing innovation policy. During her time at Third Way, she testified at a House Science Space and Technology Committee hearing focused on how accelerating clean energy innovation and technology transfer can contribute to an economic recovery and a clean energy future.
Farah previously worked in the front office of the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy during both the Obama and Trump Administrations. Farah was a 2019 fellow at the Clean Energy Leadership Institute and holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Maryland College Park.
Farah lives in New York City with her husband Cole and their labradoodle Milo. Apart from family time, she enjoys exploring the city, weekend getaways, and burying her head in fiction novels.
Rob Blackstein Partner; Energy and Cleantech Industry Group Co-Leader
Nuclear and Fusion: The Future of Clean Firm Tech - Panelist
Rob Blackstein is a seasoned corporate and transactional lawyer and co-chair of BLG's Electricity Markets Group in Toronto. Rob is involved in all aspects of the energy and infrastructure industries, from upstream structuring between investors down to the project level, including project development, debt, and equity financings, construction, operations, and mergers and acquisition (M&A) transactions, both domestic and cross-border.
Rob works on a wide range of infrastructure and energy projects and transactions for public authorities, owners, lenders, equity providers, operators, customers, developers, and design-builders. His experience in Canada's energy is extensive and spans transmission, distribution, and generation (solar, wind, hydroelectric, gas, and nuclear), district energy projects, and hydrogen. Rob acts on a number of the sector's most significant and marquee energy and infrastructure transactions, including complex bilateral arrangements as well as many “first of a kind" projects. Rob also acts on the formation and structuring of various project and investment vehicles, including energy and infrastructure funds, and has represented fund sponsors and institutional investors in connection with such transactions. On large-scale infrastructure projects, Rob acts for public authorities, developers, and design-builders in many areas, including hospital projects, toll roads, rail, and ports.
Rob is involved in a number of industry associations and is the Chair of the Toronto Board of Trade's Energy Transition Committee, a cross-sectoral committee that aims to develop a sustainable, reliable, and affordable energy system in the Toronto Region in order to enable business growth.
Nikki ChiappaAssociate Director of Federal Policy, Climate & Energy - Breakthrough Institute
Platform Reform - Speaker
Nikki Chiappa serves as Associate Director of Federal Policy at the Breakthrough Institute, where she spearheads the organization's efforts on permitting reform. With a dynamic approach that combines rigorous policy research and strategic advocacy, she works to translate BTI’s ecomodernist ideals into policy change. Her recent work has delved into the intersection of NEPA litigation and decarbonization, earning recognition in major outlets like Politico and The Washington Post.
Before joining Breakthrough, she worked in state-level clean energy advocacy at Advanced Energy United and the Chesapeake Solar and Storage Association, a regional affiliate of the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Nikki holds a B.A. in Communications, Legal Institutions, Economics, and Government (CLEG), as well as an M.P.A. in Environmental Policy, both from American University. A native of Richmond, Virginia, and raised in a family of small business owners, she is a strong advocate for market-driven, cost-effective, and bipartisan approaches to decarbonization. She also serves on the Board of the D.C. chapter of Young Professionals in Energy.
Zach ColmanClimate and Energy Reporter - Politico
Michael DorseyChair & Director of the Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Service/Professor of Practice - College of Global Futures at Arizona State University
Solar/Storage 2.0 - Panelist
Dr. M. K. Dorsey is Chair & Director of the Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Service and Professor of Practice in the College of Global Futures at Arizona State University. He is an expert on sustainability, finance, renewable energy, and environmental matters. Dr. Dorsey, an appointed advisor to the US EPA, is also co-founder of the Center for Environmental Health and the Sunrise Movement. He presently serves on the national board of the Sierra Club. Dorsey has published extensively and contributed to the Wall Street Journal. An experienced investor, he is a limited partner of Around the Corner Capital. He holds degrees from the University of Michigan, Yale, and the Johns Hopkins University.
Dorsey’s significant government engagement began in 1992 as a member of the U.S. State Department Delegation to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, “The Earth Summit.” From 1994-96 Dorsey was a task force member of President William Jefferson Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development. From April 2007 until November 2008 Dorsey was a member of Senator Barack Obama’s energy and environment Presidential campaign team. Dorsey’s conservation research has long been in cooperation and collaboration with leading scholars, think tanks, advocacy groups, governments, corporations, multilateral agencies, marginalized communities—and many others.
Robin DuttaExecutive Director - Chesapeake Solar & Storage Association
Grid Innovation - Moderator
Robin Dutta is the Executive Director of the Chesapeake Solar and Storage Association. A solar industry veteran, Robin has dedicated his career to promoting policies geared toward creating an affordable, reliable, resilient, and clean energy grid by integrating distributed solar, energy storage, and large-scale solar projects into our communities. He has worked on federal energy policy and on state solar and storage policies across the country. A native of New Jersey, Robin currently resides in Washington, D.C.
Sarah FittsPartner, Energy & Clean Tech Industry Group Co-Leader, ArentFox Schiff LLP
A.I., Data Centers, and Clean Energy - Moderator
Sarah advises clients on private mergers and acquisitions, development projects, joint ventures, financings, sustainable investing, environmental, social, and governance (ESG), and restructurings, with a focus on the energy and infrastructure industries. She represents US and global clients, including Japanese companies doing business in the United States and around the world. Her clients include power developers, investors, and private equity across a broad range of industries, such as power generation, publishing, biotech and medical devices, and automotive.
Enjoying both business and the practice of law, she often acts as outside general counsel for clients without legal departments, in addition to advising on transactions.
Sarah is also Co-Leader of the firm’s Energy & Cleantech Industry Group.
Andrew GilliganSenior Director, Fluence
Solar/Storage 2.0 - Panelist
Andrew Gilligan is a Senior Director at Fluence, the global leader in energy storage. In this role, he leads key strategic initiatives and is responsible for Fluence’s view of the storage market. Prior to Fluence, Andrew worked for over a decade at Sol Systems where he helped lead Sol Systems from a start-up to one of the leading solar development and finance firms in North America. Andrew is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University teaching a course on the energy industry and was named to Forbes 30 under 30 for the Energy Industry
Bill HedermanVice President for External Affairs - QCoefficient
Geopolitics: Net Zero Supply Chain - Panelist
Bill Hederman is an Adjunct Professor of Energy and Climate Geopolitics for the CSIS-MaxwellSchool joint program in international relations. He is a senior Fellow at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and Former Senior Advisor to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, with service in Ukraine in 2014 and 2015. Other professional roles include: Managing Director of Deloitte Energy Regulatory Compliance program and Eminence Fellow at Deloitte, Executive Director of the Morgan Lewis Energy Resources Program, Founding Director of the Office of Market Oversight and Investigations at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Executive Director and COO of the IEA Gas Technology Centre Mr. Hederman led the DC office of Rudden Associates and other consultancy responsibilities. He is a member of the Technical Staff at Bell Laboratories and The RAND Corporation and VP for Strategic Initiatives and Business Development for Columbia Transmission Companies.
In 2021 he was awarded the IEEE 2021 Global Award for Distinguished Ethics Practices and is the first recipient of the CBO Director's award. Hederman has engineering degrees from Notre Dame and MIT and an MPP degree from Cal Berkeley. He is also the Commissioner of the Collegiate Robotic Football Conference.
Patrick HughesSenior Vice President, Strategy, Technical, and Industry Affairs - National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA)
Grid Innovation - Panelist
Patrick E. Hughes is Senior Vice President of Strategy, Technical, and Industry Affairs at the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), the industry-leading trade association and ANSI-accredited standards developing organization. NEMA represents more than 300 electrical equipment manufacturers that make safe, reliable, and efficient products and systems serving four market sectors: grid, buildings, industrial, and mobility. NEMA members contribute more than $240 billion to the U.S. economy, accounting for 1% of GDP and more than 450,000 American jobs.
Patrick leads a team of technical experts working together to drive the adoption of electrical technologies used in renewable energy generation, power transmission and distribution, energy storage, high-performance buildings, electric and connected transportation, and industrial systems. Patrick applies his expertise in energy technology and policy to position NEMA and electrical equipment manufacturers for long-term success and sustainability.
Patrick serves on the Board of Directors of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), as well as President of the Board of Directors of Americans for a Clean Energy Grid (ACEG), a public interest advocacy coalition focused on the need to expand, integrate, and modernize the North American high-voltage grid.
Sarah HuntPresident - Rainey Center
Grid Innovation - Moderator
Sarah E. Hunt is a leader in conservative energy policy and a social entrepreneur. As President of the Joseph Rainey Center for Public Policy, she leads public policy research and leadership development programs by and for women, minorities, and mavericks. She concurrently serves as Director, Policy & Strategy at the Rob and Melani Walton Sustainability Solutions Service at Arizona State University.
Prior to the Rainey Center, Hunt launched a clean energy program at the American Legislative Exchange Council and a climate change program at the Niskanen Center.
She holds a JD from Willamette University College of Law, an LLM from Georgetown University, and an MPS from George Washington University. She is admitted to the bar in Washington, D.C., Oregon, and the 9th Circuit.
Abby Ross HopperPresident & Chief Executive Officer - Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)
2024 Elections - Panelist
Abigail Ross Hopper is the President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, the national trade organization for America's solar energy industries. She oversees all of SEIA's activities, including government affairs, research, communications, and industry leadership, and is focused on creating a marketplace where solar will constitute a significant percentage of America’s energy generation.
Before joining SEIA, Abby served as Director of the Department of Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Director of the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA), Energy Advisor to Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, and Deputy General Counsel with the Maryland Public Service Commission. Before embarking on a career in public service, Abby spent nine years in private practice.
Abby graduated Cum Laude from the University of Maryland, School of Law and earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Dartmouth College. She is the very proud mom of three children and loves to read and run.
Augustus JohnsonVice President, Grid and Technical Solutions - Dominion Energy, Virginia
Grid Innovation - Panelist
Augustus “Gus” Johnson IV is vice president–Grid and Technical Solutions, Dominion Energy Virginia.
He leads the company’s grid modernization efforts and is responsible for the technical and engineering aspects of Dominion Energy Virginia’s electric distribution business unit, including design, project management, grid planning, reliability and resiliency, advanced metering, end-use technologies, and renewable energy integration.
Johnson joined Dominion Energy as an engineer in Electric Transmission and Substation Engineering. During his career, he has managed substation reliability projects, project controls in Electric Transmission’s Rights-of-Way group, Electric Transmission’s Energy Management System, Electric Distribution Grid Planning, DEV’s AMI deployment, and the integration of Distributed Energy Resources. He was promoted to director– Electric Distribution Grid Solutions in 2020. In 2022, he was named director– Electric Grid Planning and Asset Management, where he was responsible for developing strategic planning and investments in the electric distribution grid to improve performance and operating efficiencies. He assumed his current position in June 2024.
Johnson serves on the board of directors for Partnership for the Future, a Richmond-area community-driven college preparation and workforce development program dedicated to providing training and educational opportunities for young people that will fuel their future success. He also is an alumnus of the United Way Emerging Leader program and has previously served on the board of directors at a Grace Place Adult Care Center.
A licensed Professional Engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Johnson received his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Delaware, and his master's in business administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Steve LevineEditor - The Electric by The Information
Geopolitics: Net Zero Supply Chain - Panelist
Steve is editor of The Electric, a publication on batteries and electric vehicles owned by The Information. He is author of The Powerhouse: America, China and the Great Battery War, and a senior fellow with SAFE, a renewable energy think tank.
Previously, Steve was a foreign correspondent in the former Soviet Union, running a bureau covering the Caucasus and Central Asia for The Wall Street Journal, and before that covering the region for The New York Times. Prior to that, he was based as a correspondent in Pakistan for Newsweek, and before that was posted to the Philippines. Before launching The Electric, Steve conceived and launched the Future newsletter at Axios.
The Powerhouse is Steve's third book, and was long-listed for FT Book of the Year in 2015. Previously, his book The Oil and the Glory, chronicling the struggle for fortune and power on the Caspian Sea, was selected by BusinessWeek as a Top 10 book for 2007. In 2008, Random House published Putin's Labyrinth, a profile of Russia through the life and death of a half-dozen Russians.
Ed MaibachMason Distinguished University Professor and Director, George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication
2024 Elections - Panelist
Ed Maibach is a public health communication professional who for the past 17 years has focused exclusively on climate change and air pollution. Ed co-leads the Yale/George Mason Climate Change in the American Mind polls, co-led the development of Climate Matters (a climate reporting resources program that now supports nearly half of America’s TV weathercasters in their efforts to report the local impacts of global climate change), and co-developed the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health (an alliance of 60 medical societies working together to address the health harms of climate change). He is a Member of the National Academy of Medicine, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and he serves on the Board of Directors of the Global Climate and Health Alliance.
George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication
Walter McLeodFounder, Mason Energy and Managing Director, Monarch Strategic Ventures
Opening and Final Remarks
Walter L. McLeod is the Managing Director of Monarch Strategic Ventures at Monarch Private Capital and Founder of Mason Energy. With over two decades of executive experience in business development, strategy, and government relations in the energy and environment sectors, Walter is a recognized expert and thought leader in cleantech policy, finance, and development.
Walter is also the Founder and Managing Director of Eco Capitol Energy, a cleantech holding company with multiple subsidiaries and solar projects across the seven-state Mid-Atlantic Region. He has successfully developed or permitted a portfolio of utility-scale solar projects with a capacity exceeding 700 megawatts (MWac) and valued at more than $850M.
In addition to the private sector, Walter serves as a Professor of Practice at George Mason University. He is the author of the award-winning book, “The Carbon Creed,” published by New Degree Press. He has served on several boards and advisory committees, including Advanced Energy United, Black Owners of Solar Services (B.O.S.S.), George Mason University Alumni Association, Chemical Angels Network, and the MIT Climate Energy Prize to name a few.
Walter earned his MS in chemistry from the College of Science at George Mason University, a BA in chemistry from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and completed the Executive Education Program at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.
Scott MoskovitzVice President of Market Strategy and Industry Affairs, Qcells
Solar/Storage 2.0 - Panelist
Scott Moskowitz is the Vice President of Market Strategy and Industry Relations for Qcells where he works in support of the company’s policy and business development goals. Scott is widely regarded as a leading expert on the global renewable energy industry with a specific emphasis on supply chains, competitiveness, and technology. His work for Qcells has focused on building consensus to grow the U.S. solar manufacturing sector, which culminated in passage of the landmark Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act in August 2022 as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Scott also sits on the board of directors for the Solar Energy Industries Association and Georgia Solar Energy Association, and he has been regularly cited in national publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post.
Prior to Qcells, Scott spent five years at GTM Research (acquired by Wood Mackenzie), the leading market intelligence firm in the U.S. clean energy industry. There, he led a five-person team researching technology trends and market competitiveness in the solar, battery storage, and wind industries. He earned his master's degree in environmental engineering from the University of California, Davis and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and mathematics from Vanderbilt University. Scott lives in Decatur, Georgia with his wife and two daughters.
David OwensChief Executive Officer, Da'Vision and Strategies
Infrastructure Resilience - Moderator
David K. Owens is an accomplished executive with extensive experience in public policies surrounding utility operations, strategic planning, technology development, rate making, and regulation. Mr. Owens is a graduate of Howard University with Bachelor's and Masters of Engineering degrees. He also has a Master in Engineering Administration degree from George Washington University.
He is recognized as one of the foremost authorities on electric utility issues, industry restructuring, and transformation. His experience in the electricity sector spans four decades and includes leading the Edison Electric Institute’s (EEI’s) efforts over a broad set of issues that affect the future structure of the electric industry and new rules in evolving competitive markets. He was responsible for the strategic areas of energy supply and finance, environment, energy delivery, energy services, state regulatory issues, and international affairs.
Neal PatelManaging Partner, Patel Partners LLC
Grid Innovation - Panelist
Neal Patel founded Patel Partners after serving as a Vice President at the Alpine Group, a premier government relations consulting firm in Washington ranked in the Top 20 by Bloomberg Government, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and as a senior staffer in both the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives.
Prior to joining the Alpine Group, Neal served at the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), serving as the Chief of Staff to the Deputy Director for Management. Prior to this role as senior staff, Neal served as the Deputy Associate Director for Legislative Affairs under OMB Director Mick Mulvaney. As the Director’s primary liaison to the United States Senate and the Congressional Black Caucus, Neal worked intimately with colleagues within the Executive Office of the President, principals and civil servants across federal Cabinet agencies, and members and staff of the Senate and House. Neal also served as Director Mulvaney’s primary liaison to the business community and industry stakeholders.
During his tenure at the White House, Neal also concurrently served at the Office of Personnel Management as the federal agency’s Acting Chief of Staff.
Before his political appointment to the executive branch, Neal spent seven years in the legislative branch in both the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives as Counsel and Communications Director for two United States Congressmen and one United States Senator serving on the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance and the Senate Banking Committees. His primary focus was on policy issues pertaining to financial services, banking, digital payments, blockchain/cryptocurrency, tax, energy, commerce, healthcare, and appropriations/budget.
Neal is also a co-founder of the Asian American Pacific Islander Leadership Association, a 501(c)(6) dedicated to empowering public policy and public affairs professionals of the AAPI community in Washington, D.C.
Neal is a native of Nichols, South Carolina, and a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in Business Administration. He attained his law degree from the Charleston School of Law. Neal resides with his wife and two children in Arlington, Virginia.
Adam PenqueVice President of Business Development / Energy - Meridiam
Infrastructure Resilence - Panelist
Adam Penque possesses extensive experience in business development within the energy sector, currently serving as Vice President of Business Development for Energy at Meridiam since November 2022. Prior roles include Vice President of Project Development at BayoTech Hydrogen and Director of the Energy Storage Business at Gotion Inc. Adam has held several leadership positions, including Business Development Director for Centrica and Business Development Leader at Lockheed Martin. Previous roles also encompass Vice President of Business Development at Plasco Energy Group and Associate Director at Scotiabank. Adam began a career in project management and business development at EcoSecurities and PenChem Technologies. Adam holds a Master's degree in Environmental Engineering from Columbia Engineering and a Bachelor's degree in Chemistry from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
Antonio J. RiveraPartner; Energy and Cleantech Industry Group Co-Leader - Arent Fox Schiff
Antonio’s experience with international trade rules and global supply chain strategies is honed through years of work advising clients across all sectors, and as a former US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) attorney in Washington. He works with companies ranging from small producers to large multinationals in various sectors, including the automotive, manufacturing, healthcare, and food and beverage industries, and helps their company executives ask the right questions and build the right answers.
Antonio leads the firm’s Electric Mobility Group. His comprehensive understanding of US trade rules, including free trade programs (e.g., USMCA) and special U.S. tariffs (e.g., Section 301 and Section 232), translate into an important resource for clients engaged in the development, manufacturing, and distribution of electric vehicles (EVs), from critical minerals and battery components to the finished vehicle and charging station infrastructure.
Antonio advises US and foreign manufacturers, importers, and exporters on various international trade matters affecting their production and supply chains. His multidisciplinary coverage of import compliance matters (e.g., origin, classification, valuation, drawback, audits, and penalties) and crossover regulatory issues (e.g., Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Craft Beverage Modernization Act (CBMA), Buy America Waivers, Partner Government Agency requirements for FDA, EPA, NHTSA, TTB, among others), provides his clients with a holistic comprehension of the supply chain dynamics. His goal is to help companies achieve a competitive advantage while minimizing legal and regulatory risk exposures that are attendant in a global supply chain.
Earlier in his career, Antonio served as an attorney-advisor in the Office of Trade for CBP. Antonio received his J.D. from the George Washington University Law School, and has bachelor of science degrees in Chemistry and Economics. Antonio is also fluent in Spanish.
Arushi SharmaFounder & Principal, Luminary Strategies
Grid Innovation - Panelist
Arushi Sharma Frank is the founder of Luminary Strategies, a consulting firm that helps utilities, retail electric companies, storage developers, and technology vendors work better together and with their regulators to drive electrification readiness, grid modernization, virtual power plant, backup power, and wholesale-integrated programs. Most recently, she supported the program proposal of Together New Orleans and Alliance for Affordable Energy to create solar-battery microgrids and virtual power plant programs for the City of New Orleans.
Sharma Frank has been an industry leader at prominent national trade associations in Washington, DC (American Gas Association and Electric Power Supply Association) from 2011-2016, the lead in-house counsel for compliance of the Exelon Generation power plant fleet with all U.S. technical ISO/RTO rules from 2016-2020, and the policy and market entry lead for Tesla's US energy wholesale and retail businesses from 2020-2024.
She has launched several tech-utility-grid programs and has represented utilities and merchant generators in major initiatives before the Obama White House, federal agencies (CFTC, DOE, DOI, EPA, FERC, NERC, SEC, USACE), local and state agencies, and U.S. and Canadian grid operators. In her trade association roles, Sharma Frank worked with Washington, DC energy sector trade groups, coalitions, and Congressional affairs teams on major issues like Dodd-Frank implementation and FERC dockets such as price formation, capacity market reform, and gas-electric coordination.
Sharma Frank is also an expert in utility and grid operator dispatch, wholesale and retail metering, device and premise telemetry, settlement, and grid balancing service rules. She is responsible for the foundational work on grid-integrated residential storage participation mechanics, which enabled ERCOT to compensate load-serving entities for residential customer device export participation in the day-ahead ancillary services markets. Her work at Tesla led to the creation of the Public Utility Commission of Texas ADER Task Force, on which she served as its Vice Chair from 2022 to April 2024. She currently serves as an independent expert on this task force. She has also effectuated two major electric grid policy changes to enable Tesla Megapack batteries to engage in microgrid applications and participate in wholesale energy markets.
Materials from Sharma Frank's academic seminars and industry lectures
Her energy sector speaking engagements include: DERVOS 2022 & 2024, DEPLOY23, Duke University, Edison Electric Institute, Energy Bar Association, EPRI CEO Summit, Georgetown University, Greentown Labs Houston, Gulf Coast Power Association, Houston Climate Week, Johns Hopkins University, New York Climate Week, PJM Annual Meeting, Powerhouse Texas Energy Academy, and University of Texas.
Check out her recent podcast interviews:
Tom StarrsVice President, Government and Public Relations - EDP Renewables, North America
Solar/Storage 2.0 - Moderator
Tom Starrs is Vice President for government and public affairs at EDP Renewables, North America. He oversees policy analysis and policy advocacy, PAC management, trade association and NGO engagement, marketing, and corporate communications. Tom has nearly 30 years of experience in renewable energy, including senior management positions with SunPower Corporation, Iberdrola Renewables (now Avangrid), PPM Energy, the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, and RWE Schott Solar. Tom is widely recognized as a leading strategist on renewable energy market development and public policy. He serves on the board of directors of the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, the Center for Resource Solutions, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, and the Solar Energy Industries Association. Tom holds a Ph.D. from the Energy and Resources Program at the University of California, Berkeley; and a J.D. from the School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley. When he’s not traveling for EDP, he splits his time between Vashon Island, Washington and Portland, Oregon.
