# Making DERs work for load growth

- Show: [Catalyst](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst)
- Published: 2025-01-09
- Length: 38m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth

## Summary

Pier LaFarge, co-founder and CEO of Sparkfund, argues that utilities should adopt 'distributed capacity procurement' (DCP) to address AI-driven load growth by procuring customer-sited solar and storage rather than relying solely on large centralized plants. He explains that while distributed energy resources (DERs) have lower Effective Load Carrying Capability (ELCC) and higher per-megawatt costs than centralized generation, their speed of deployment and ability to defer transmission and distribution infrastructure upgrades create a compelling value stack. LaFarge contends that high-load customers, such as data centers, should bear the incremental cost of this faster, more expensive capacity to unlock economic growth and onshoring benefits in the United States.

## Chapters

- [0:01](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=1) Introduction: The speed of distributed vs. centralized generation
- [5:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=357) The rapid shift in load growth drivers from EVs to data centers
- [10:24](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=624) Defining Distributed Capacity Procurement (DCP) and customer-sited assets
- [14:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=892) DCP vs. Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) and host agreements
- [22:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=1351) ELCC, capacity value, and the cost-speed tradeoff
- [27:01](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=1621) Value stacking: Deferring T&D infrastructure and transformer costs
- [33:12](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth#t=1992) Scalability thought experiment: Replacing Three Mile Island with distributed assets

## Topics

- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Sparkfund (company)
- Energy Impact Partners (company)
- EnergyHub (company)
- Three Mile Island (product)
- Microsoft (company)
- PJM (other)
- MISO (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Managing Energy At The Edge: Navigating The Modern Grid With Itron](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2024-09-05-managing-energy-at-the-edge-navigating-the-modern-grid-with-itron) (Over the Air)
- [Renewable Energy Policy with Ari Gerstman](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman) (The Amp Hour)
- [Powering EVs: Microgrids & DC Charging Solutions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2025-08-19-powering-evs-microgrids-dc-charging-solutions) (Moore's Lobby)
- [Smart Electrical Panels: Avoiding $25K Upgrades to Enable Home Electrification with Arch Rao](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2025-10-16-smart-electrical-panels-avoiding-25k-upgrades-to-enable-home-electrification-wit) (Hardware to Save a Planet)
- [259: Data Centers, Modularity, and Mission Critical Manufacturing featuring Keith Hutchens of BW Design Group](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2025-10-28-259-data-centers-modularity-and-mission-critical-manufacturing-featuring-keith-h) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-01-09-making-ders-work-for-load-growth. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Catalyst.