This May, tens of thousands of utility professionals, engineers, innovators and thought leaders will gather in Chicago for the IEEE PES Transmission & Distribution Conference and Exposition. As the industry’s premier global event, the T&D Show has always been a place where ideas emerge, partnerships form and the future of the grid takes shape. This year, it comes to a city that knows a thing or two about powering the future.
Chicago is home to the most reliable electric grid in the nation. Over the past decade, ComEd has modernized and strengthened the grid—investing in smart technology and infrastructure to support economic growth and clean energy goals. Since 2012, these upgrades have improved reliability by more than 75 percent, helping customers avoid over 27 million outages and saving more than $5 billion in outage‑related costs. In 2025, we were named the most reliable utility in the United States, and we are ready for what comes next.
That’s why Chicago is the perfect host city for the 2026 T&D Show. Our region reflects the challenges and opportunities facing utilities everywhere: rapid electrification, the rise of distributed energy resources and the need for resilient infrastructure in the face of extreme weather. We also understand the importance of building a workforce that can deliver a grid that provides more clean energy, strengthens resilience, and balances affordability for all customers.
As host utility this year, we’re proud to bring together the best and the brightest in our field - with panel sessions featuring utility leaders, regulators, manufacturers, academics and national laboratories to explore cutting edge advancements in grid automation, distribution planning, transmission growth and resilience engineering. Chicago’s diverse communities and world-class research institutions, thriving tech ecosystem and strong manufacturing base make it the ideal setting for these conversations, reflecting a region that is already demonstrating what a clean energy future can look like.
From hosting thought‑provoking sessions on how energy leaders can address resource adequacy, manage rapid data center growth, and navigate workforce and supply‑chain challenges, to exploring the latest advancements in grid technology, this conference brings together the industry’s foremost voices for conversations that matter most. These are the very issues ComEd is tackling through our Long-Range Strategy, and we’re excited to share how this vision is positioning northern Illinois to meet the energy demands of tomorrow.
The challenges before us are significant, but so is the opportunity. I look forward to welcoming you to Chicago this May as we work collectively to shape the future of energy.
