In the face of rising energy costs, more and more Alaskans are talking about the need to bring the Railbelt utilities together and more efficiently operate the grid that serves nearly 75% of the state’s residents.

As part of our 2026 Spring Energy Speaker Series, REAP hosted a webinar introducing the concept of Unified Economic Dispatch (UED). That discussion (available to re-watch here) offered a basic understanding of:

• What Unified Economic Dispatch is and how it differs from the way Alaska’s Railbelt grid is currently operated;
• How the Railbelt came to be operated that way and the longstanding conversation around moving toward a more unified grid;
• Models for how UED has been utilized elsewhere in the U.S.; and
• Estimates of the benefits that UED could bring to Alaska ratepayers.

At the end of that discussion, we teased a continuation of the conversation which we are pleased to bring to you now as this first installment in REAP’s 2026 Fall Energy Speaker Series!

Please join us for this virtual lunchtime conversation with Julie Estey, Matanuska Electric Association’s Chief Strategy Officer, and Antony Scott, REAP’s Director of Economic and Regulatory Analysis, about:

• What it could practically look like to adopt Unified Economic Dispatch in the Railbelt; and
• Actions being taken now – and decisions about to be made – that could impact the value that UED would bring to Alaskan ratepayers.

Email REAP’s Outreach Director, Donovan Russoniello, at drussoniello@realaska.org with any questions.

Event Details

Who: This free webinar is open to the public.

What: An in-depth conversation with Alaska energy experts about the concept of Unified Economic Dispatch, the value it can bring to Alaska ratepayers, and potential steps toward adopting it in the Railbelt electric grid.

Where: This event will be broadcast live as a Zoom webinar (register to attend here)

When: This free public event will be held from Noon to 1:00pm on Wednesday, October 7, 2026.