Microgrid Knowledge 2026: Shaping the Future of Distributed Energy Infrastructure
From a whisper to a roar: The volume of buzz around building the next generation of power generation infrastructure is rising with a few choice catchphrases taking hold, such as behind-the-meter, off-grid, energy parks, distributed energy and microgrids.
Everyone from Energy Secretaries to corporate CEOs are speaking that language in broader tones.
Getting closer and more co-located—by kilowatt, megawatt or gigawatt level—is steadily taking hold as data center, artificial intelligence, commercial and industrial energy customer demand growth outpaces grid interconnection capabilities in the coming years.
And those challenges are the focus of the Microgrid Knowledge Conference happening Monday through Wednesday at the Renaissance SeaWorld hotel in Orlando.
MGK 2026 begins on Monday with a sold-out pre-conference workshop led by microgrid digital modeling firm Xendee. What follows is two more days filled with networking connection opportunities and more than 30 content sessions featuring 60 industry experts from across the microgrid spectrum.
Microgrids are part of a small but focused community—for now. Power generation dynamics are changing rapidly, with growth at the edge helping solve centralized energy problems. The capacity for change seems inevitable.
Curious how to tackle the intricacy of microgrid design? Microgrid Knowledge Conference has it covered. What about project development, design, cost-benefit analysis and siting? Four times yes!
Other topics include utility microgrids, grid services, resiliency hubs for mission critical services, cogeneration for ports, community projects in hurricane-prone regions, military microgrids, fleet electrification power, behind-the-meter interconnection, renewables integration, workforce development, prime power and off-grid demand.
Wednesday starts with a deep dive into powering the next generation of digital infrastructure, featuring VoltaGrid’s David Bell and Microgrid Knowledge Editor Rod Walton. No subject is too big or too remote for Microgrid Knowledge Conference, which also looks at future planning for the moon shot of lunar microgrids and more.
MGK 2026 will be diverse as ever. Presenters include experts from entities as distinct from each other as Duke Energy, Schneider Electric, NASA, INNIO Jenbacher, S&C Electric, Kaiser Permanente, Hover Energy, Cooperativa Hidroeléctrica de la Montaña, Smart Electric Power Alliance, Florida Association of Community Health Centers, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Direct Relief, Bloom Energy, Wood Mackenzie, Arizona State University, ELM Microgrid, Prologis, Orlando Utilities Commission and more.
Microgrid Knowledge exhibitors and sponsors on site include VoltaGrid, 2G Energy, Ameristar Perimeter Security, AMOT, Asplundh Engineering Services, ComAp, CPower Energy, Cummins Power Generation, CyWatt Technik, DEIF, e2Companies, Eaton, ELM Microgrid, Eos Energy Storage, ETAP, Etica AG, Generac, Hover Energy, KNX Utility Services, Matrix Hydrogen, New Sun Road, OPAL-RT Technologies, PayOli Solar, PowerSecure, Reliance Construction, S&C Electric, SC Nexus for Advanced Resiliency Energy, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Shenzhen Smarten Electric Co., Siemens Industry, Spirae, TRYSTAR, Twin Oaks Computing, UL Solutions HOMER Software, Xendee and Xybix Systems.
The microgrid value proposition is expanding as high-end commercial and industrial customers try to battle grid constraints and long interconnection queues. Wood Mackenzie has projected that the U.S. microgrid market will continue growing 19% annually through 2027 and includes more than 4,000 microgrids totaling more than 10 GW of capacity.
Microgrid Knowledge means more than microgrids and covers DERs, nanogrids, behind-the-meter and off-grid prime power for multiple economic sectors. The value proposition is clearly growing, and all are invited to listen in on the buzz.
Registration is still open for Microgrid Knowledge 2026 in Orlando. Click here to find out more.
About the Author
Rod Walton, Microgrid Knowledge Managing Editor
Managing Editor
For Microgrid Knowledge editorial inquiries, please contact Managing Editor Rod Walton at [email protected].
I’ve spent the last 18 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist. I was an energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World before moving to business-to-business media at PennWell Publishing, which later became Clarion Events, where I covered the electric power industry. I joined Endeavor Business Media in November 2021 to help launch EnergyTech, one of the company’s newest media brands. I joined Microgrid Knowledge in July 2023.
I earned my Bachelors degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma. My career stops include the Moore American, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Wagoner Tribune and Tulsa World, all in Oklahoma . I have been married to Laura for the past 36-plus years and we have four children and one adorable granddaughter. We want the energy transition to make their lives better in the future.
Microgrid Knowledge and EnergyTech are focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids. The C&I sectors together account for close to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.
Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.