15 minutes with: Ethan Paterno

How would you describe your job?

My two boys, who are nine and 11, are starting to take an interest in what I do, so I usually tell them I help people buy and sell power plants. But I do more than that. In reality, I help clients decide where to invest their capital across energy infrastructure, and then support them through the commercial, and economic diligence questions that shape those decisions. What I enjoy most is that the energy markets never stand still. After more than 20 years at PA, I’m still learning, still being challenged, and still excited by the work.

What makes PA stand out in the world of consulting?

We’re not afraid to take on the challenges our clients are facing, no matter how difficult. In the US energy sector, clients are making major investment decisions in a market shaped by volatile prices, policy uncertainty, and unprecedented rising demand for power. Our job is to cut through that complexity, synthesise what matters, and turn it into advice clients can actually use. That combination of depth, execution, and ambition is what makes PA different.

What’s the biggest challenge our clients are facing?

In energy, the biggest challenge is making long-term investment decisions in a market full of uncertainty. Construction costs have risen sharply, energy policy continues to evolve (sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse), and new regulations can materially change investment economics. Our clients are not making short-term bets, they’re investing against 10-, 15-, or 20-year horizons. As such, our role is to help them look through that uncertainty, understand where the market is heading, and deploy capital more intelligently.

How are you using innovation and transformation in your work with clients?

A big focus right now is helping clients power data centers faster and more intelligently. That’s not straightforward in the US, because grid capacity is tight everywhere and the transmission interconnection rules are very complex and vary substantially by region.

Often that means adapting ideas from other markets (both in the US and abroad) and applying them in ways that work in the US. We really see white space in the market to synthesise what others are doing to bring innovative solutions to our US clients.

What’s the biggest trend you're seeing in your area of work right now?

Far and away, data centers are the biggest trend right now and of my entire career. They’re driving huge capital flows into North American energy markets and changing how clients think about power supply, reliability, tariffs, and power plant value.

Data centers present a massive opportunity for PA and Jacobs. Our combined ability offers a truly end-to-end solution from ideation to building to operations to commercial strategies to maximising revenues. We’re a one-stop-shop for clients, and no other consulting firm can say that.

Which of your projects have been particularly impactful, or that you’re really proud of?

One project I’m especially proud of was helping Low Carbon Infrastructure structure and sign a landmark clean energy contract with Google for a Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) power plant in the Midwest. It mattered for two reasons. First, it supported Google’s decarbonisation goals at a time when data-center growth is putting more pressure on the grid. Second, it showed there is a real commercial pathway for lower-carbon firm power technologies like CCS. That kind of work is exciting because it doesn’t just solve one client challenge, it also helps move the market forward and get us one big step closer to a net-zero future.

What is the role of Nuclear in connected energy systems?

Nuclear has an important role to play in building a reliable, net-zero electric grid. As electricity demand grows and more renewable power comes onto the system, you need firm, low-carbon generation to keep the grid stable. Nuclear is one of the few technologies that can do that at scale and around the clock.

We also know the industry still has work to do to turn that potential into reality. In a recent PA survey of senior leaders across the UK nuclear sector, respondents pointed to several actions needed to help the industry move forward. That matters because if we want a grid that is both clean and reliable, nuclear needs to be a big part of the solution.

What is the impact of new tech such as AI on the work that you do?

AI is already reshaping power markets unlike anything I have seen in my career. The surge in data-center demand, and associated increases in electricity demand, is changing how people think about grid capacity, power prices, reliability, and where capital investment will flow next.

At the same time, AI is a massive force multiplier for our teams here at PA. It helps us process more information, stress test more hypotheses to get to better answers faster. This means we can help clients make quicker decisions with more confidence.

What advice would you give to somebody who wanted to get into your area of work and have the impact you have?

You have to be the kind of person who looks something up on Wikipedia and ends up four or five pages deep because you genuinely want to understand how it all fits together. You’ve got to love learning. In this field, that curiosity is what opens the door, and then real impact comes from what you do with it. The people who I’ve seen stand out in my career are the ones that can take complexity, synthesize and structure it quickly, and turn it into clear actionable insight. I like to call that ‘making fruit salad’.

What are your future goals?

I’m looking forward to helping grow our US business. The energy markets are evolving quickly, and clients increasingly need support that spans strategy, commercial insight, and delivery. With Jacobs, we have a genuinely differentiated offering, and I look forward to helping shape how we come together as a joint organization to create more impact for clients across the energy value chain.