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How is Southern managing booming power demand? 

We’re seeing unprecedented load growth, driven largely by data centers and advanced manufacturing, and we’re approaching it with a balanced, system-wide strategy. The number of requests and volume required is meaningfully different than growth opportunities our utilities have traditionally evaluated. To respond, we’ve adjusted our intake and evaluation processes to move at customer speed, developed tools to help customers understand the natural gas delivery system and established internal committees to address this new load opportunity. At the same time, we’re structuring contracts to ensure reliability and affordability is maintained for our existing customer base. 

Grid resilience is a key challenge. How are you positioning your infrastructure to support "behind-the-meter" natural gas generation for data center operators who cannot afford to wait for utility-scale grid upgrades?

Behind-the-meter solutions can be critical to the success of data center prospects as speed remains a top priority. Our focus has been on being a constructive partner, helping customers evaluate where on-site natural gas generation makes sense and identify any hurdles around delivery. When structured correctly, these solutions can provide near-term service while preserving flexibility for longer-term grid integration as infrastructure expands.

Data center tenants require 24/7 uptime but are often bound by strict Net Zero mandates. How are you helping these clients reconcile the need for reliable baseload gas power with their long-term carbon reduction commitments?  

This remains an important topic of conversation we’re having with customers today. Reliability and decarbonization are not mutually exclusive, but they do require pragmatic sequencing. For many customers, natural gas provides a dependable baseload that enables growth now, while longer-term strategies—such as increased renewable procurement, efficiency improvements, and emerging low-carbon technologies—continue to evolve. Our role is to help customers design solutions that meet today’s operational realities without losing sight of their long-term sustainability goals.

Given your background in external affairs, what are the primary regulatory or zoning obstacles slowing the deployment of power specifically for the data center sector?

The biggest challenges tend to be around speed and coordination. Permitting, zoning, and siting processes were not designed for the pace and scale of today’s data center demand. From an external affairs perspective, a major focus is engaging early with regulators, local governments, and communities to align expectations, address concerns transparently, and avoid delays that can impact both reliability and economic growth. 

Finally, you are a speaker at the EPC Show. Why are you excited to participate in this event, and why is it important to you? 

The EPC Show brings together the people who are actually building and enabling this infrastructure, and that makes the conversation more grounded and more productive. I’m excited to participate because it’s an opportunity to exchange practical insights—not just policy or theory—about how we deliver reliable, scalable energy in a rapidly changing environment. For me, it’s important to be part of forums like this where utilities, developers, and policymakers can have honest discussions about tradeoffs and solutions.