Why the energy transition is a communications challenge

Utilities are entering one of the most consequential periods of transformation in decades. Driven by AI, electrification, advanced manufacturing, and hyperscale data centre growth, US electricity demand is accelerating at a pace the industry has not experienced in years.

According to Goldman Sachs, power demand from data centres alone could increase by as much as 160% by 2030. At the same time, utilities are pursuing billions of dollars in grid modernisation, transmission expansion, and generation investments to keep pace with reliability needs and economic growth.

Together, utility companies and developers are responsible for building a reliable, resilient energy grid of the 21st century that keeps homes, businesses and the economy moving forward. But alongside this infrastructure boom, another challenge is growing just as quickly and that is public scepticism.

Project opposition and stakeholder resistance are no longer peripheral risks; they are major financial liabilities for energy developers and utilities.

Delays driven by uncertainty, community opposition, and ineffective engagement can cost millions, with project cancellations averaging roughly $2 million for solar projects and $7.5 million for wind developments, underscoring why strategic communications and stakeholder engagement have become critical infrastructure investments themselves.

A recent study reveals that for every $1 billion investment in transmission that is delayed, it costs consumers approximately $150 million to $370 million in lost net benefits for each year of delay.

Customers are increasingly asking a fundamental question: Who is paying for the grid of the future?

As utilities seek approval for large capital investments and rising rate cases, many communities are questioning whether residential customers will ultimately absorb the costs of serving large-load corporate users.

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In areas where transmission projects, substations, and generation facilities are concentrated, concerns around affordability, land use, environmental impact, and fairness are becoming deeply personal and politically charged.

This is no longer simply an engineering or regulatory issue. It is a communications challenge and increasingly, a business risk.

Poor stakeholder engagement can delay projects, intensify opposition, and materially impact infrastructure timelines and costs. In the renewable energy sector, project delays tied to permitting and community opposition have been estimated to cost developers hundreds of thousands of dollars per megawatt in added expenses, financing pressure, and lost development time.

Similar dynamics are beginning to emerge around transmission expansion and data centre-related infrastructure development.

Utilities that continue treating communications as secondary will struggle in this environment.

Stakeholder engagement is not negotiable

Utilities that navigate this moment respectfully and credibly will launch early communications and transparency ahead of any opposition.

Utilities must clearly explain:

• How infrastructure investments are funded;
• Whether large-load customers are paying proportionately for new demand;
• How reliability and affordability are being balanced;
• What economic benefits communities will see;
• What protections exist for host communities;
• How public input is influencing planning decisions.

But information alone is no longer enough. The delivery of those messages matters just as much as the content itself.

For years, many utilities approached stakeholder engagement through formal hearings, project notices, public comment periods, and compliance-driven outreach campaigns.

Those approaches are increasingly insufficient in a world where trust is shaped in real time across digital platforms, local media, community networks, and peer-to-peer conversations.

Utilities need to move beyond transactional communications and adopt a more sustained, community-centred engagement strategy.

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This can be achieved through the following strategies:

Engage earlier than feels necessary

Communications should begin before routes are finalised, before permits are filed, and before opposition groups organise. Communities are far more likely to support projects when they feel engaged during the decision-making process rather than after decisions appear predetermined.

Localise the impact

Customers do not experience infrastructure projects through corporate strategy. They experience them through monthly bills, neighbourhood disruption, land use concerns, and local economic opportunity.

Utilities must communicate at the community level, using localised messaging that addresses specific regional concerns rather than relying solely on broad corporate narratives.

Use trusted messengers

In many cases, local leaders, community organisations, workforce partners, and municipal stakeholders carry more credibility than energy leaders alone. Effective engagement strategies increasingly require coalitions of trusted voices who can help communicate community benefits and address concerns authentically.

Prioritise two-way dialogue

The most effective stakeholder engagement strategies are not built around presentations. They are built around listening. Communities want evidence that feedback is being incorporated into planning processes not simply collected as part of a procedural requirement.

Communicate across multiple channels

Traditional public meetings remain important, but they cannot be the only engagement tool. Utilities and developers should be using a coordinated mix of community meetings, social media, local media outreach, digital education campaigns, stakeholder briefings, customer communications, and direct neighbourhood engagement to build understanding over time.

Treat transparency as a long-term strategy

Silence creates a vacuum and that vacuum will increasingly be filled by speculation, misinformation, and distrust.

Utilities that communicate candidly about trade-offs, cost pressures, project impacts, and long-term benefits will build significantly more credibility than organisations that communicate only when required. The stakes are extraordinarily high.

As AI-driven energy demand, electrification, and large-scale infrastructure development continue reshaping the grid, utilities are operating in an environment where public acceptance can directly influence regulatory outcomes, project timelines, political support, and long-term growth strategies.

Public trust must be established, maintained and carry energy development.

As CEO and head of the Energy Practice at Mower, I believe this moment requires a fundamental shift in how utilities engage with stakeholders. Communications strategy is becoming one of the defining factors in whether critical energy projects pass or fail.

The utilities that lead successfully through this transformation will be the ones that build public confidence with the same urgency they are building the grid itself.