Energy researchers, engineers, and industry leaders gathered at NETL Sept. 21-23, 2026, for the annual Low Emission Advanced Power (LEAP) Workshop. Hosted at NETL's Morgantown campus, the three-day event served as a critical platform to unleash American energy innovation, directly supporting the Department's priority to expand energy production, lower costs for families, and strengthen national grid reliability and security.

The workshop capitalized on NETL's role as a world-class scientific hub, focusing on how high-performance computing, super intelligence, and advanced cyber-physical systems can optimize and extend the life of America's vital power generation assets.

The event kicked off with a deep dive into digital engineering, exploring how machine learning can automate upfront design screening, manage complex system economics, and expand intelligent "digital twins" for real-time power management. The focus shifted beyond theoretical modeling into physical reality, detailing how real-time physics-based simulations can seamlessly interface with physical grid controllers. Attendees also got a first-hand look at these applications in action during lab tours, including a direct demonstration of NETL's advanced UltraLab facility.

A major focal point of these sessions was the use of the Institute for the Design of Advanced Energy Systems (IDAES), an open-source computational platform that supports tightly coupled, multiscale optimization of processes within the broader power system. By integrating IDAES platform capabilities into simulations, researchers showed how developers can successfully bridge the gap between rapid controller sampling frequencies and highly complex, physical hardware-in-the-loop systems. These presentations underscored a collective push toward highly autonomous, self-optimizing cyber-physical environments.

Experts also discussed strategic methodologies for supporting existing generation capacity - focusing on retrofitting existing baseload generation assets to enhance their resilience rather than subtracting vital capacity. Working within a secure, collaborative framework, workshop participants mapped out immediate research priorities for realizing autonomous power.

This collaborative roadmap ensures that America remains a global leader in scientific breakthroughs while guaranteeing affordable, reliable, and secure energy to power the nation's economic prosperity.

NETL is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory dedicated to innovating and accelerating the nation's energy solutions in hydrocarbons, geothermal energy, and critical minerals production. The Lab further strengthens its impact by engaging with industry, academia, and other stakeholders through four strategically located Centers of Excellence: Coal, Critical Minerals & Advanced Alloys, Oil & Gas, and Geothermal. With research sites in Albany, Oregon; Morgantown, West Virginia; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, NETL operates as one laboratory to create advanced energy technologies that support DOE's mission and enable affordable, reliable, and secure energy to fuel human prosperity.