Removing DER Barriers Could Avoid $614B in Costs
Utilities and DER developers face a policy-driven path to cutting grid investment and household bill growth.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Utilities
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The Brattle Group released a report for The Pew Charitable Trusts on November 5, 2026, quantifying the benefits of expanding distributed energy resources (DERs) across the U.S. power grid. The report estimates that removing policy and regulatory barriers could avoid $614 billion in U.S. power system costs through 2050, with utilities and grid operators among the parties most directly affected.
Why it matters
The findings put numbers on the value of permitting reform, interconnection streamlining and DER integration into distribution planning, which are the levers that determine whether homeowners, commercial customers and utilities can add distributed capacity at scale. For utilities and the businesses that serve them, the argument is that enabling DERs reduces the risk of overbuilding the grid while holding down bills.
The study models an avoided $614 billion in U.S. power system costs through 2050 and a 4.5-fold increase in DER capacity over current levels, with the three playbook recommendations delivering 43% of the economic benefits. Projections include adding more than 400 GW of DER capacity by 2050 and an estimated 863 million metric tons of cumulative CO2 emissions avoided.
The players
The Brattle Group
A economic consulting firm that provides energy and utility modeling, regulatory analysis and expert testimony to utilities, regulators and public-interest clients.
The Pew Charitable Trusts
A nonprofit research and policy organization that commissioned the study and has published a DER policy playbook aimed at state and local regulators.
The details
The modeling examines avoided costs and emissions from enabling more DERs among residential, commercial and industrial customers. The three key recommendations are reforming local permitting processes, streamlining interconnection and grid access, and integrating DERs into distribution planning. By reducing the need for new central generation and transmission, the study finds lower grid investment requirements, which in turn reduces the cost burden passed through to ratepayers.
Timeline
November 5, 2026: The Brattle Group releases the report for The Pew Charitable Trusts.
2035: Projected increase in average household electricity bills is roughly halved if barriers are removed.
2030 to 2040: Potential grid overinvestment cost is reduced by $33 billion.
2050: Target year for the DER capacity, emissions and system cost projections.
Market Landscape
The study places distributed energy resources within the broader debate over whether the grid should expand through central generation or through customer-sited capacity. It frames the playbook's permitting, interconnection and planning reforms as a counterpoint to building new natural gas generation and transmission.
Operators in energy, construction and electrical services should track how state and local permitting and interconnection rules evolve, since those rules determine how quickly DER projects can move. Businesses considering on-site generation or storage should consult qualified energy counsel or an accountant before acting on projected savings.
The takeaway
The study's central operating point is that policy barriers, not only technology cost, limit how much distributed capacity the grid can absorb. Operators should monitor state permitting and interconnection reforms as the variables most likely to change the economics of DER projects in the coming years.
Further reading
For context on how grid planning and rate pressures are playing out across the sector, see the Utilities coverage.
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