Webinar: Advancing Distribution System Planning for a Changing Grid

Featured Speakers: Jesse Fallick, Vice President at Integral Analytics; Jeremy Laundergan, Senior Director of Distribution Technology and Planning, Energy and Environmental Economics, Inc. (E3); Sean Morash, Principal at PowerGEM; Cody Davis, Associate Technical Director of Grid Modernization, Electric Power Engineers (EPE) Moderator: Leo Jiang, Engineering Fellow, ESIG About the Webinar: As utilities face accelerating electrification, distributed energy resource (DER) growth, and evolving reliability and affordability challenges, regulators and stakeholders are demanding greater transparency, rigor, and engagement in distribution system planning. Integrated Distribution System Planning (IDSP) and Distribution Resource Planning (DRP) have emerged as key frameworks to meet these expectations, but in many cases, current filings and processes are falling short of what regulators and stakeholders are seeking. This ESIG webinar will bring together perspectives from leading practitioners to explore how IDSP can better deliver on its promise. Panelists will include Cody Davis (EPE), Sean Morash (PowerGEM), Jeremy Laundergan (E3), and Jesse Fallick (Integral Analytics). The discussion will begin by examining the growing expectations from regulators and stakeholders for more transparent, actionable, and decision-relevant distribution planning. Panelists will highlight the key questions regulators are asking, including how IDSP can inform investment decisions, and support more coordinated planning across distribution, generation, transmission, and customer programs. The panel will then assess where current IDSP and DRP efforts are succeeding and falling short, drawing on real-world experience across multiple jurisdictions. Topics will include gaps in transparency, limitations in modeling approaches, challenges in stakeholder engagement, and misalignment between planning outputs and regulatory decision-making needs. The webinar will conclude with practical recommendations for utilities and regulators to advance more effective IDSP and DRP processes. Panelists will share lessons learned and best practices for improving analytical rigor, stakeholder engagement, and the integration of planning processes, ultimately supporting more cost-effective, reliable, and equitable grid outcomes.