Many forms of energy have changed the face of the planet: light bulbs, machines, transistors, resistors, microprocessors, robotics, and computers. The evolution of modern society has become intertwined with electricity for both survival and enhanced quality of life (entertainment, telecommunications, and manufactured goods). Electricity is the lifeblood of a progressive civilization….yet electricity is still in its infancy.

Electricity began flowing over short distances with direct current (DC) in 1881. In that same year, Nikola Tesla had a vision of the future wherein AC current would have the capacity to travel long distances. By 1893—thanks to Telsa’s work with electricity—the first modern power plant became operational. In 1914, 55 electrical transmission systems were operating and by the 1930s, reliable power was becoming available to the U.S. rural population. It wasn’t until 1960 that electric utilities began working together to reduce blackouts, leverage supply-and-demand allocations, and share energy from one region to another and from one local area to another.

Power transmission is 100 years old. Remote distribution is 75 years old and the electrical grid is only 40 years old. The electrical grid was not a planned occurrence, but rather a inevitable outgrowth of providing reliable energy through the high and low cycles of demand. This jury-rigged solution is still in its current, non-optimized form. Due to declining investment funds, overuse of lines, congestion, lack of clear ownership, and confusion about who pays for line upgrades, the entire infrastructure is in need of a serious overhaul and therefore investment.

The U.S. has over 160,000 miles of high power transmission lines in need of upgrading. These are divided among 500 property owners and companies—clearly, this complex problem cannot be solved independently. It will require the involvement of government. Any successful innovation in clean energy will have to tap into and depend on the current infrastructure. The inherent flaws in the network will become more and more apparent with increased demand--especially during the peak energy months of December, January, July and August. Specific corridors in the infrastructure have the effect of bottlenecking; this includes coastal regions from New York to Virginia.

However, given the high stakes and the necessity for governmental intervention in the electrical grid, there is an abundance of opportunity forward-thinking innovators. This issue will not only affect baseline connections to the grid and the limitations of transmission congestion, but it will also play into how reliable the network is for any energy provider--including nuclear, coal, and natural gas power plants—to carry out their operations. Any clean energy initiative will have to tackle the grid’s connectivity issues and its limitations. However, overcoming the glaring issue of lack of infrastructure access will require clean energy production to meet cost-competitive energy targets. The energy gateways of transmission will become accessible when cheaper energy is available. When it is, clean energy will displace the coal and nuclear energy titans.