Director Grid Interconnections

Cipher names former ERCOT executive as Head of Grid Strategies. By TheEnergyMag AI AI-generated image: synthetic visual, not an actual depiction of events, people, or locations. Key takeaways. * Bill Blevins appointed Head of Grid Strategies at Cipher Digital. * Blevins has over 30 years of experience in power systems and grid operations. * Previously served as Director of Grid Coordination at ERCOT. * Played a significant role in ERCOT's transition to the Nodal Market in 2011. * Worked at NERC and Duke Energy before ERCOT. * The Blevins Solar Project was named in his honor in 2024. * Blevins will report to Cipher's Co-President and CLO, Will Iwaschuk. * Appointment strengthens Cipher's power sourcing and data center development capabilities. Cipher Digital (NASDAQ: CIFR) has appointed former ERCOT executive Bill Blevins as head of grid strategies, adding a senior power-systems operator as the company scales its industrial data center pipeline in Texas and other US markets. Blevins will lead Cipher's grid strategy, including efforts to source and secure power and support the company's development pipeline, the New York-based company said Tuesday. He will report to Will Iwaschuk, Cipher's co-president and chief legal officer. The appointment comes as power access, interconnection timing and grid operations have become central to the data center industry's expansion. Cipher, previously known largely as a bitcoin miner, has increasingly positioned itself as a developer, owner and operator of industrial-scale data centers serving high-performance computing and AI workloads. That shift has made power strategy a core part of execution, particularly in Texas, where Cipher has built much of its operating base and development pipeline. Blevins joins Cipher from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, where he served as director of grid coordination. During his time at ERCOT, he also held roles including manager of operations support and manager of operations planning, and was involved in grid operations as ERCOT transitioned to its nodal market in 2011. Before ERCOT, Blevins worked at the North American Electric Reliability Corporation and Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK). His background spans more than three decades across grid operations, reliability and nuclear power, according to Cipher. In 2024, the Blevins Solar Project, a campus with 270 megawatts of solar generation and 180 megawatts, or 360 megawatt-hours, of battery storage, was named in his honor. The role highlights how data center developers are increasingly competing not only on access to land, capital and customers, but also on their ability to navigate grid constraints. AI and high-performance computing campuses can require hundreds of megawatts of power at a single site, turning power procurement, transmission planning, curtailment capability and market participation into core commercial functions. Cipher's appointment of Blevins also follows a series of financing and development moves aimed at expanding its data center business. Earlier this month, the company priced an $810 million senior secured note offering through its Stingray Compute subsidiary to help finance the Stingray data center. That followed a broader push to convert Cipher's power-backed site portfolio into contracted data center capacity for hyperscale and high-performance computing customers. This article was generated with the support of our AI agent, which has been rigorously trained under the supervision of well-qualified journalists. While we strive for the highest quality in every article, if you find anything amiss, please contact us to let us know.

ERCOT and University of Texas partner to research next-generation energy technologies. (Austin, TX) - The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, Inc. (ERCOT) today announced a collaboration with The University of Texas (UT) at Austin to study how fast-growing inverter-based technologies, like those used in solar, wind, and battery storage systems, can enhance grid reliability. Today's announcement is part of ERCOT's ongoing efforts to utilize emerging technologies and innovation to meet growing electric demand. Inverter-based technologies generate electricity as Direct Current (DC) - the same type of power stored in a household battery - which must be converted to Alternating Current (AC) before it can flow into the grid. This conversion is handled automatically by an electronic device called an inverter. As these technologies become an increasingly larger part of the grid, understanding their impact is critical to maintaining reliable power for Texas homes and businesses. As part of ERCOT's Grid Research, Innovation, and Transformation (GRIT) program, UT will help ERCOT anticipate challenges related to simulation platforms, control interactions, and power quality issues that may come with very high penetrations of inverter-based resources on the Texas electric grid. "Given the complexity and rapid development of this technology, this collaboration will help us look into the future, anticipate challenges, and identify solutions while we still have some time to prepare," said Prashant Kansal, ERCOT Director of Grid Transformation. "By combining ERCOT's operational insights and UT's research expertise, Texans will benefit from a stronger, more reliable grid." Under this partnership, UT researchers will build computer simulations and models of inverter-based resources interconnected with the electric grid to test reliability in a range of potential real-world scenarios. "Inverter-based resources are emerging rapidly and are very promising. However, their controllers introduce new behavior in grids and must be carefully coordinated," said Professor Brian Johnson of UT's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. UT Professor Surya Santoso noted, "By studying their behavior under a wide variety of control and operating conditions, reliability, harmonics, and other power-quality-interaction risks can be better understood and managed." The findings will help determine whether these risks warrant additional monitoring and guide the implementation of mitigation strategies. Fred Huang, ERCOT Senior Director, Grid Stability Analysis, said, "The ability to identify potential issues before they arise and develop practical solutions applicable to real-world grid operations helps ERCOT create a more reliable grid to serve Texans and meet the state's evolving power needs." About Grid Research, Innovation, and Transformation (GRIT) ERCOT's Grid Research, Innovation, and Transformation (GRIT) initiative utilizes research and collaboration to identify and test emerging technologies that will better prepare the grid to meet increasing demands. Visit the GRIT webpages to learn more. ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, manages the flow of electric power to more than 27 million Texas customers, representing about 90 percent of the state's electric load. As the Independent System Operator for the region, ERCOT schedules power on an electric grid that connects 55,000+ miles of transmission lines and 1,460+ generation units, including Private Use Networks. ERCOT also performs financial settlement for the competitive wholesale bulk-power market and administers retail switching for more than 8 million premises in competitive choice areas. ERCOT is a membership-based 501(c)(4) nonprofit corporation, governed by a board of directors and subject to oversight by the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Texas Legislature. Post Views: 4