ERCOT Announces Strategic Organizational Changes to Support Grid Reliability, Rapid Demand Growth, and Innovation

(Austin, TX) - The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, Inc. (ERCOT) today announced a series of strategic organizational changes designed to accelerate innovation, strengthen grid reliability, and support the unprecedented growth in electric demand across Texas. Two new ERCOT organizations — Interconnection and Grid Analysis and Enterprise Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) — will formally launch in January 2026.

“Texans expect a grid that is reliable, resilient, and ready for the future,” said Pablo Vegas, ERCOT President and CEO. “By strengthening our data foundation, modernizing our interconnection processes, and aligning our teams around emerging technologies, ERCOT is building an organization that is faster, innovation oriented, and better positioned to serve Texans for years to come.”

Interconnection and Grid Analysis
ERCOT continues to be at the forefront of a worldwide transformation in how electric grids produce and deliver electricity. The new Interconnection and Grid Analysis organization will better support the rapid increases in large loads and generation resources seeking grid interconnection and enable further advancements in grid analytics.

To lead this effort, Jeff Billo has been promoted to Vice President of Interconnection and Grid Analysis. Jeff will oversee generation interconnection, large load interconnection, stability analysis, and stability model validation efforts. Jeff will report to Woody Rickerson, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

Enterprise Data and Artificial Intelligence
High-quality, well-governed data is the foundation of effective analytics and AI — without trusted, consistent, and secure data, AI models cannot deliver reliable or actionable insights. Further, as companies around the world, including ERCOT vendors, deliver AI-based products, there is a need to leverage the potential of AI, not just for groups working on data, but across the entire enterprise. To prioritize this, ERCOT has created the Enterprise Data and AI organization, which will be led by Venkat Tirupati as Vice President and Chief Technology Officer. He will oversee Grid Research, Innovation, and Transformation (GRIT) and Data Governance and Platform Technology as well as Data Products and AI Strategy. Venkat will report directly to ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas.

The new Enterprise Data and AI organization will improve the speed of AI adoption across ERCOT, fully leverage the recently enabled Data Analytics and AI Platform, and ensure a strong focus on data governance, data product management, and data operations. 

Changes in Digital
ERCOT has been focused on enabling cloud technologies, opening new ways of designing and delivering innovative solutions. To support this, Bryan Hanley has been promoted to Vice President of IT Infrastructure reporting to Jayapal Parakkuth, Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer. Bryan will oversee Infrastructure Operations, Database Services, and IT Systems Reliability. Bryan has more than 27 years of experience in infrastructure, data systems, and IT leadership.

With Tirupati’s transition to lead the new Enterprise Data and AI organization, Ajay Mannepalli is being promoted to Vice President of DevOps and Architecture also reporting to Jayapal Parakkuth. He will oversee IT Architecture and Strategy, Grid and Market Solutions, Settlements and Credit, Retail and Metering, Digital Services as well as Corporate IT Services.

Large Load Integration Program Optimization
Additionally, ERCOT has contracted with McKinsey and Company to assist with improvement of the Large Load Interconnection process originally developed in 2022, which now has more than 225 gigawatts (GW) of Large Loads going through the process. ERCOT and McKinsey will work with Large Load customers, including data centers, utilities, and other stakeholders to develop a framework expected to identify short- and mid-term solutions to interconnection queue issues in early 2026 — with a goal of providing a streamlined, transparent, and consistent interconnection process for reliably connecting Large Loads later in the year. 

“As we work to address current and future Large Loads connecting to the ERCOT grid, we want to provide the best solution to serve this growing area while also protecting the reliability of the grid,” said Woody Rickerson, ERCOT Sr. VP and COO. “McKinsey’s experience in complex program management will help facilitate this important work.”

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