Distribution Investment Prioritization and Justification

Distribution system operators (DSOs) face mounting pressures from electrification, rapid data center load growth, integration of distributed energy resources (DERs), ageing infrastructure, and increasing reliability and resilience expectations—all under constrained budgets. These challenges make consistent, objective, and transparent approaches to prioritising and justifying distribution investments increasingly critical. The goal of this paper is to provide a structured understanding of current industry practices, challenges, and opportunities for improving investment prioritisation to support DSOs in making defensible, data-driven decisions.