Americans think about the electric grid when they pay their utility bill or lose power during a storm. What many don’t think about is how deeply the electric grid is intertwined with national security and every other aspect of the modern nation state. From military installations and emergency response networks to hospitals and water infrastructure, reliable electricity underpins nearly every critical function in modern American life.
In a world defined by increasing geopolitical competition, more frequent severe weather events, and advancing technological threats, protecting and strengthening the electric grid is not simply a policy priority; it is a national security necessity. America is the world’s most prosperous and powerful nation, thanks to our electrical power capabilities. That means the utilities responsible for maintaining and modernizing the grid must be treated as essential national security partners, not political targets.
The United States depends on one of the most reliable electric systems in the world, delivering power with approximately 99.95% reliability. That level of reliability did not happen by accident. It’s a result of decades of planning and investment by electric utilities across the country. Americans may think about electricity when prices rise or severe weather causes outages, but extraordinary reliability is often taken for granted. We assume that our lights will stay on, military systems will work, and hospitals will remain operational; all without considering the source of it all. Reliability has become so routine that we often forget how much of our daily lives and national security depends on it. People living in other countries (guests or citizens) are seldom “shocked” by power outages or infrastructure problems. Americans are not just shocked by them but also pretty darned upset because of their infrequency.
That reliability cannot be taken for granted. Severe weather has become one of the greatest threats to grid resilience in the United States. According to a recent report by Concentric Energy Advisors, approximately 80% of major power outages are driven by severe weather, and the number of billion-dollar weather disasters has increased substantially, moving from 1.5 annually in the 1980s to 23 annually during 2020-2024. From hurricanes, winter storms, wildfires, and extreme heat to more, the threats facing the power grid are growing as America’s dependence on electricity increases. Protecting and investing in the grid is no longer just about keeping the lights on; it’s about ensuring the resilience of the systems that underpin our economy, security, and way of life.
Maintaining reliability in the face of these growing challenges requires more than just realizing the problem. Grid modernization is a long-term investment in economic and national security. According to the report, every dollar invested in transmission infrastructure saves customers between $1.60 and $1.80 in future system costs. That finding matters because delaying infrastructure investment does not make costs disappear. It often turns planned upgrades into emergency repairs, avoidable outages, higher operating costs, and greater risk to customers.
Utilities are uniquely positioned to make these investments because they plan over decades, maintain direct obligations to serve customers, and operate under public utility commission oversight. Their investments are scrutinized through formal regulatory processes, including engineering analysis, financial modeling, public filings, and review by regulators and consumer advocates. That process exists to ensure projects are prudent, necessary, and tied to reliability. Undermining that investment framework may sound appealing in a political moment, but it risks weakening the very system America depends on.
The urgency of this challenge is only growing. The race for technological leadership is increasingly tied to energy security. Data centers and AI are not problems to be feared; they are signals that America’s economy is growing and that our infrastructure must grow with it.
Our adversaries understand this reality; nations such as China are executing massive upgrades to their energy infrastructure, highlighted by China's state-run utility announcing a record-breaking $574 billion investment plan to build out ultra-high-voltage transmission lines across the country. They recognize that economic power, technological innovation, and national security are all driven by energy production and resilience. The United States cannot afford to fall behind. A modern physical and digital economy and a capable 21st-century military all depend upon access to abundant, reliable electricity. Falling behind also increases our national security vulnerability to cyberattacks and other threats targeting critical infrastructure.
The consequences of falling behind go far beyond higher costs or slower economic growth; they are a serious threat to America’s security and resilience. The utility companies responsible for maintaining and modernizing our grid are proven partners, and we shouldn’t use these companies as political punching bags if we are serious about winning the future economy.
Steve Bucci, who served America for three decades as an Army Special Forces officer and top Pentagon official, is a visiting research fellow at The Heritage Foundation.