Teri Viswanath

U.S. gas-fired generation capacity development has more than tripled over the past two years, but the power industry’s hard pivot will not deliver the quick or inexpensive relief of earlier gas booms.

Oil market aftershocks could keep rural America exposed to higher fuel, power, farm and supply-chain costs for months or years.

CoBank energy economist Teri Viswanath interviews energy risk expert Jack Weixel about LNG pull, basis blowouts and conflict risk.

Decades after stranded assets bruised local communities, electricity utilities and regulators are revisiting how to interpret “cost responsibility” for new large loads.

The long-held expectation of “stable, cheap, domestic” natural gas is reaching the end of its lifecycle. At the core of this shift is the growing role of LNG exports in U.S. price formation. A growing winter premium and sharper price swings for U.S. buyers are being driven not by local weather forecasts but by global LNG competition. Infrastructure is not adding certainty. Much of the recent pipeline buildout is designed to move gas toward LNG facilities rather than broadly rebalancing regional U.S. supply.

Even with historic domestic production, U.S. fuel prices still react quickly to disruptions abroad — especially in the Middle East, the world’s leading region for proven oil reserves and spare production capacity.

CoBank experts Jeff Johnston and Teri Viswanath outline the details behind key issues they’re watching in 2026.

The rise of large commercial and industrial consumers has decisively shifted the balance of bargaining power in the marketplace, raising questions whether attitudes toward service obligations need to adapt, consumer protection policies need to evolve and possibly, which regulator should be in the driver’s seat for developing and overseeing new industry guardrails.

In the contemporary energy landscape, few developments have stirred as much discussion and concern as the expansion of data centers and other significant electricity-consuming entities.

How G&Ts and distribution co‑ops can coordinate upstream cost allocation for data centers—balancing reliability, affordability and member protection.

This digital guide is a practical resource to help electric cooperatives address the unique challenges of integrating large loads. Based on candid interviews, market research and analysis, this guide shows how cooperatives are earning new business and delivering value to their communities—while adopting robust contract structures to protect members from bearing the costs of serving large loads.

A practical guide for electric cooperatives on serving large loads—featuring case studies, rate design insights and strategies to manage cost, risk and grid reliability.