The Bill Lane Center for the American West, the Hoover Institution, and the Precourt Institute for Energy host the State of the West Symposium: Powering the American West: Affordability, Technology, and Policy in the Western Energy Landscape on Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 12:00pm PT in Shultz Auditorium.
With its abundant renewable energy resources, major centers of oil and gas production, pioneering geothermal energy development, rich mineral resources, and vast transmission infrastructure, the American West is a powerhouse of the U.S. energy landscape. The region is at the vanguard of energy transitions, and plays a vital role in the country’s energy security and economic development. Yet rapidly rising demand, increasing costs, aging infrastructure, and complex permitting processes pose formidable challenges to the region’s energy ecosystem and well-being.
This year’s State of the West symposium will consider the state of energy in the West, from ensuring affordable energy in the age of AI, to opportunities for permitting reform and the future of nuclear energy.
| Thursday, May 28, 2026 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Time | Content | Speaker |
|
12:00–12:30 PM |
Check-in and lunch buffet opens |
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|
12:30–12:40 PM |
Opening remarks |
Condoleezza Rice |
|
12:40–1:20 PM |
Lunch keynote |
Ron Wyden, Senator, Oregon |
|
1:20–2:35 PM |
Panel #1: Powering Growth Without Breaking the Bill: Affordability in an Era of Surging AI Energy Demand |
Jerry Fenn, Chair, Utah Public Service Commission Tracey LeBeau, Administrator, Western Area Power Administration John Reynolds, President, California Public Utilities Commission Liang Min, Stanford, moderator |
|
2:35–2:45 PM |
Break |
-- |
|
2:45–4:15 PM |
Panel #2: Permitting Reform for Energy Abundance in the West |
Michael Bennon, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford Madeline Silva, Senior Director, Economic Development, Pacific Gas & Electric Company Ben Serrurier, Fervo Energy David Fedor, Stanford, moderator |
|
4:15–5:30 PM |
Panel #3: Reinventing Nuclear in the West: Next-Generation Nuclear Technology and Policy |
Rachel Slaybaugh, DCVC V.A. Stephens, Texas consultant Matt Rogers, Stanford Graduate School of Business, moderator |
|
5:30–6:30 PM |
Reception |
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