National Grid New York President Sally Librera Talks Energy Demand and Costs

Summary

---

Bloomberg Talks

Episode: National Grid New York President Sally Librera Talks Energy Demand and Costs
Date: December 15, 2025
Host: Carol and Tim, Bloomberg
Guest: Sally Librera, President, National Grid New York

---

Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Sally Librera, President of National Grid New York, about how New York’s energy utilities are navigating soaring power demand, modernizing aging infrastructure, and managing the tension between necessary investment and customer affordability. The discussion focuses on the causes and implications of rising demand—especially from AI data centers and advanced manufacturing—while exploring how National Grid is balancing regulatory, political, and environmental pressures in a rapidly changing energy landscape.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Current and Growing Power Demand

• Sally Librera confirms surging energy demand across New York due largely to increased interest from AI data centers and large-scale manufacturing such as semiconductors and computer components.
• Quantifying Demand:
  • The New York Independent System Operator (NISO) manages a "large load queue" for significant new connections.
  • The total power needs in the queue for the next five years have tripled in just one year to about 10 gigawatts.
  • For context, the state’s peak demand is roughly three times this number.

    “One year ago, that queue was one third the size. It literally tripled in just one year.” — Sally Librera [03:09]

Breakdown of Demand Sources

• Increase is not all from data centers; significant growth in energy-intensive manufacturing.
• New York’s grid serves a diverse range of customers: upstate, Long Island, and New York City.

---

2. Infrastructure Modernization & Challenges

• Aging Grid:
  • Many assets are nearing 100 years old and require urgent upgrades.
  • Upgrades are overdue but have been delayed to minimize bill impacts.
• Strategic Investments:
  • National Grid is “very strategic and pinpointed” about asset replacements, looking for opportunities to improve both capacity and resilience at once.

    "We have been very careful about balancing the bill impacts which customers bear with the investments that we make in our infrastructure." — Sally Librera [04:56]

Resilience and New Technology

• Infrastructure improvements include replacing wooden poles with steel ones and using more robust materials to withstand storms.
• Not always burying power lines, but strengthening what’s above and leveraging tech for cost efficiency and reliability.

---

3. Affordability vs. Reliability—The Investment Balancing Act

• Affordability is a top concern, especially as living costs rise and political scrutiny increases.
  • National Grid provides bill assistance, energy efficiency programs, and rebates, plus employs consumer advocates in communities.
  • Every infrastructure investment is scrutinized for maximum benefit—more power, more resiliency, and more efficiency.

    “How do you keep your investors happy and the grid reliable without rising bills that make your customers furious and invite regulatory and political pushback? ... That is a hard mandate.” — Carol [05:57]
    “It is a difficult balance, and it's one that we navigate every single day.” — Sally Librera [06:18]

---

4. Energy Policy and Renewables

• "All of the Above" Approach:
  • National Grid supports a diverse energy mix—renewables, natural gas, and nuclear—highlighting the latest New York State energy report that endorses this philosophy.
• Federal Backdrop:
  • Changing attitudes from the federal government toward renewable energy, namely wind power, are noted but do not drastically change National Grid’s infrastructure priorities.
  • National Grid’s key focus is on building the transmission "highways" needed to deliver any energy source from point A to B.
• Case in Point:
  • National Grid supports major pipeline projects like NESSE due to high natural gas dependence in parts of the state, though they are not always direct operators of these projects.

    “We are working on the infrastructure to move power from point A to point B...We work with generators of all kinds.” — Sally Librera [07:42]

---

5. Price Pressures & Short-Term Outlook

• Admitted Reality:
  • National Grid customers are seeing higher bills at the moment, driven mainly by necessary infrastructure investments.

    "There are moments, and now is one of those moments where customers are seeing increases on their bills. ... These investments are necessary to make sure that folks continue to have the safe and reliable energy they need." — Sally Librera [08:42]

• These investments enable the grid to unlock and distribute a wider variety of energy sources, including renewables.

  "We're investing in the ability to unlock those energy sources and be able to bring them onto the grid and move them at a greater frequency." — Sally Librera [09:02]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the tripling of demand:

  "One year ago, that queue was one third the size. It literally tripled in just one year." — Sally Librera [03:09]

• On asset replacement and affordability:

  “We look for those opportunities where we can do multiple things with an investment, where we can replace an aging asset with something that's more modern…and more resilient to storms and better leverage technology, so it's cheaper to maintain.” — Sally Librera [04:56]

• On the complexity of the job:

  "It is a difficult balance, and it's one that we navigate every single day." — Sally Librera [06:18]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:31 — Introduction to National Grid’s modernization efforts and market context (AI data centers, rising investment needs)
• 01:47 — Discussion of current power demand and operational scope
• 02:31 — Quantifying new demand (the NISO large load queue and its rapid growth)
• 03:33 — Beyond data centers: growth in manufacturing and its energy impacts
• 04:20 — Why is the grid old and underinvested? The balance between upgrades and bill impacts
• 05:40 — Building resiliency: infrastructure techniques and storm prep
• 05:57 — The struggle to balance investors, affordability, and politics
• 06:58 — Renewable investments amid political headwinds; energy mix discussion
• 07:42 — National Grid’s focus on transmission and supporting supply projects like NESSE
• 08:42 — Discussion of bill increases and necessity of investments now
• 09:02 — Investing for a more flexible and green grid

---

Tone & Language

The conversation is frank, pragmatic, and technically informative. Sally Librera speaks with a mix of realism and optimism, clearly aware of the tough trade-offs, and emphasizes National Grid’s proactive, customer-conscious approach. Carol and Tim probe for both the root causes of current challenges and tangible implications for everyday consumers and future industry growth.

---

Summary prepared for listeners seeking a comprehensive, clear understanding of this episode’s content and actionable takeaways regarding the future of energy infrastructure and policy in New York.

Transcript

[Indiana University Narrator]

Old playbooks won't solve tomorrow's problems. Indiana University is proving how higher education can create solutions with industry. Our partnerships address future talent and workforce needs, support entrepreneurs and local businesses and create solutions that turn discoveries into dollars. Together, we're building a model for industry partnerships that fuel economic growth. Explore IU's [e-mail] impact.

[Sally Librera]

Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts Radio News it was a report.

[Carol]

In the Albany Times Union and they said over the weekend National Grid and other utilities are spending billions of dollars to prep New York's electric grid for a generational shift. And it includes things like all of those AI data centers that are being built in the state and across the country.

[Sally Librera]

Really?

[Tim]

Yeah. The paper went on to note that New York utilities are spending that much money to modernize the grid for those fac their investments for New Yorkers. Many of them are already struggling with utility costs are going to have to pay for that in the coming years. But the idea is that we're prepping it for the future.

[Carol]

Exactly, exactly. But so how uncomfortable as the build out happens and the stress on the grid continues. Let's see what our next guest has to say. We've been looking forward to this. Sally Librera is president, National Grid New York. It's a subsidiary the publicly held electricity, natural gas and clean energy utility National Grid plc serving millions in New York and Massachusetts. National Grid ADR is trade in the US. They've got about a 75 billion dollar market cap. They're up more than 27% year to date. So nice to have you here. How are you?

[Sally Librera]

Great to be here. Thanks Carol and Tim for having me.

[Carol]

Well, it's great to have you here. How would you describe power demand today and how that demand is growing, surging, use whatever word makes sense so that we understand what's the current situation.

[Sally Librera]

Sure. So at National Grid in New York, we serve more than 4 million customers and we deliver natural gas and electricity to those customers. And our focus is on doing it safely, reliably and affordably. But the reality is there is increasing demand for energy across the entire state. And we serve through upstate, we serve in Long island and we also serve in New York City. And it's our job to deliver that energy to meet that energy demand where, when and how folks need it.

[Carol]

How would you quantify that demand though? Give us some idea, because we're talking nonstop about deals of AI data centers, whether it's New York or elsewhere. Give us an idea. How stressed is the situation?

[Sally Librera]

So we work with our New York independent system Operator. The niso. Yeah, And NISO manages what we call the large load queue. So it's essentially the companies that have indicated wanting to hook into the New York grid that have large power needs. And they estimate that the cumulative power need across those companies that are essentially in line to connect sometime over the next five or so years is about 10 gigawatts of energy. And so just to give you some context, at our peak in New York, we demand about three times that across the entire state. And another really important point is that one year ago, that queue was one third the size. It literally tripled in just one year.

[Tim]

All data centers?

[Sally Librera]

No, not all data centers.

[Tim]

What is it then? Because it does seem like for many years we thought that power demand across the country would actually stay relatively flat. And it did stay relatively flat, but just in recent years we've seen so much of an uptick in demand. What are you seeing on your grids?

[Sally Librera]

Well, there's definitely, there definitely is the impact of data centers. But New York is also very attractive to manufacturing and large scale manufacturing, particularly some of the modern manufacturing we see around semiconductors and computer components. It's very energy intensive and companies with big power needs are drawn to New York. And we are working to make sure that they have the power that they need, not just today, but well into the future.

[Carol]

So it's interesting, right, because we think about this White House, right, and encouraging investment from foreign companies to build here. I mean, I guess, you know, that's the good thing, right? We want to see other companies investing into the United States. But there's a power grab on that too, right. As a result of that, in order to meet that, well, or potentially, I.

[Sally Librera]

Think it is important to note that even if we weren't at this unique moment in time with, with rapidly increasing demand for power, we still have a grid in New York. And this is true across many places in the country. We have a grid that needs investment. We have assets that are close to 100 years old.

[Carol]

Why? Right, Tim. Like how many people? Like, why? If it's 100 years old, why 20 years ago?

[Sally Librera]

Right.

[Tim]

Why didn't we make the investment then?

[Sally Librera]

Yeah, we've been politics, I'm guessing part of it.

[Carol]

That was a long poll.

[Tim]

Please you answer the question.

[Carol]

Trying to understand, because it's important.

[Sally Librera]

We have been very careful about balancing the bill impacts which customers bear with the investments that we make in our infrastructure. And even today, where we look at assets that are 70, 80, 100 years old, we're very strategic and pinpointed about which of those assets, which of those parts of infrastructure we replace because we want to keep customer bills low. So we look for those opportunities where we can do multiple things with an investment, where we can replace an aging asset with something that's more modern and something that can carry more energy, something that can unlock more energy, that our generators have to connect into the grid, and something that's going to be more resilient to storms and better leverage technology so it's cheaper to maintain.

[Tim]

Does more resilient to storms, meaning bearing power lines, Is that the way to do it?

[Sally Librera]

In some cases we do that, but it's also the type of infrastructure that we, that we put up. We are, we are replacing in places, sometimes wooden poles with steel poles. Just much stronger infrastructure.

[Carol]

Well, you know, and I think about how do you balance all of that, like affordability, as you know, has become quite the word that we are hearing a lot, certainly in the political environment. So how do you keep your investors happy and the grid reliable without rising bills that make your customers furious and invite regulatory and political pushback? I mean, that is a hard mandate.

[Sally Librera]

It is a difficult balance, and it's one that we navigate every single day. We do it through a number of avenues. We certainly work closely with our customers to help them manage costs, and we do that through a variety of bill assistance programs and energy efficiency programs and rebates. And we work, we have consumer advocates whose job it is to specifically work with folks in communities to help them manage their costs. We also, as I mentioned before, are very careful about where and how we invest in assets. And we make sure that if we're investing in an asset, that we're going to get more power from investing in that asset, that we're going to get more resiliency, and then we're going to get more efficiency from investing in that asset.

[Tim]

The president has been outspoken about his disdain for certain renewables, especially wind power. Your investment in renewables or sourcing energy from renewables, has that changed under this administration?

[Sally Librera]

Well, we certainly support the all of the above energy approach and are pleased with the most recent version of the state energy report that's just come out today that leans into an all of the above approach. Given the rate at which demand for energy is increasing, we need to be utilizing all of those opportunities, from renewables to natural gas to nuclear, to make sure that.

[Tim]

But is that more difficult if the federal government is not supportive of certain renewables?

[Sally Librera]

We are working on the infrastructure to move power from point A to point B. So while we Support projects like, say, the NESSE pipeline. That's a supply project. It's not our project, but we support it because we know how critical it is to the downstate community and how reliant New York City and Long island are on natural gas and how thin that reserve margin is. And their energy demand for energy is growing as well. So we support NESSE for those reasons. The other side of our business is about building transmission. It's about building the highway over which the power moves. So the sourcing as to where it's coming from isn't a national grid decision. We work with generators of all kinds.

[Carol]

You know, bottom line, though, does this potentially, as you guys are very careful about when you invest, so that power prices don't go up. But are there going to be moments where prices are just going to go up just because of the environment? And it's hard to kind of predict everything and forgive me, just got about 30 seconds.

[Sally Librera]

There are moments, and now is one of those moments where customers are seeing increases on their bills. And that's for a number of reasons, but primarily it's to be investing in infrastructure that is necessary. Those investments are necessary to make sure that folks continue to have the safe and reliable energy that they need.

[Carol]

And those investments include renewables, green, all of it.

[Sally Librera]

Well, we're investing in the ability to unlock those energy sources and be able to bring them onto the grid and move them at a greater frequency.

[Okta Advertiser]

These days, it seems like AI agents are just about everywhere. You turn every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, OKTA helps you get identity right by securing your AI agents identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Okta, you'll turn risk into opportunity. Secure every agent, secure any agent. Okta secures AI.