A Decarbonized Electric Grid is a Mix of Gas Turbines, Low-Carbon Fuels, Renewables

In our final video from PowerGen 2025 with Jeffrey Benoit, Vice President of Clean Energy Solutions at PSM - a Hanwha company, and Bobby Noble, Senior Program Manager, Gas Turbine R&D – EPRI, the duo talks about the future of and what a decarbonized electric grid may look like, how OEMs are answering the call to create more power to satisfy demand coming from data centers, and availability versus sustainability.

TURBO: In 10 years, what may the decarbonized electric grid look like?

Noble: Ten years from now seems like a long time, but it's really not. Many projects take five to 10 years to develop and actually come full circle. It's one of those deals where, 10 years from now, we really need to start today. We're seeing capabilities being extended for utilizing low-carbon fuels, and we are starting to see some of these examples. When we think about the mix and what the future looks like, we have to think about gas turbines, low-carbon fuels, and carbon capture. Still, we also need to think about how renewables will continue to grow—wind and solar— and energy storage options and how those play into the mix. Lastly, nuclear, advanced nuclear, and small modular reactors —all these advancements that we need to be working on and focusing on today must be part of that mix in the future.

Benoit: Gas turbines are playing an even more crucial role in ensuring the reliability and flexibility of our power-production landscape and portfolio in the United States. When we look at decarbonization on an overall basis, tremendous quantities of renewables are being put in place that can destabilize the grid. And gas turbines can provide that underpinning of reliability. Battery storage will also be very important in handling the microvoltage variations in various parts of the grid. Hydrogen for power production will be enabled mostly by the oil and gas industry. Here we are in Dallas, but right here in Texas, there are tremendous investments by the oil and gas industries and by those moving hydrocarbons, ammonia, and natural gas around. This is where I believe the genesis of the decarbonized power for gas turbines is going to happen.

Check out our first two videos with Jeff and Bobby! Gas Turbines are Centerstage in the Energy Future and Gas Turbines Evolving to Reduce Technical Barriers, But Go-to-Market Challenges Remain.