LAS VEGAS — The electric utility industry looked vastly different at the start of 2024 when Exelon CEO Calvin Butler joined the leadership of the Edison Electric Institute, the industry trade group of investor-owned utilities.
Democrat Joe Biden was in the White House. Utilities and policymakers were only beginning to grapple with an expected surge in electricity demand from power-hungry data centers. And the topic of electric affordability wasn’t part of the national dialogue.
But as Butler, 57, ends his year as EEI chair, data centers and rising electric bills have become campaign fodder, especially in states that are part of PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest electricity market.
And some consumer groups and politicians are increasingly scrutinizing utility profit levels — a topic that hits close to home for CEOs such as Butler, whose utilities serve some of the largest cities in PJM, including Washington, Philadelphia and Chicago.
