With society becoming more and more dependent on electricity, upgrading the electric grid is an urgent challenge. In this episode of Grid Talk, host Marty Rosenberg talks with Andrew Phillips who is the Vice President of Transmission and Distribution Infrastructure for the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The conversation focuses on what it will take to ensure the reliable delivery of electricity in an age of electrification.

“We have the opportunity and to build new transmission lines and not build them to the same specs and standards that we used in the ‘80s and ‘70s but to think of new ways of doing it that have higher power flow, higher reliability, and are more compatible with the environment,” said Phillips.

Phillips says the transmission system needs to expand exponentially, and there are several limitations that need to be addressed.

“It’s going to be supply chain, workforce, and permitting; those are going to be the three things.”

Andrew Phillips has been with EPRI for more than 25 years. In 2018 he became Vice president of Transmission and Distribution Infrastructure. His work has focused on transmission and distribution asset research.  Prior to joining EPRI, Mr. Phillips managed research of insulation, aging equipment and lightning for J.A. Jones Power Delivery company and performed research for the South African electric power industry at the University of Witwatersrand - the university where he earned bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering.