WFER IX Article: Finding Balance in a Rapidly Changing Energy World

Energy regulators everywhere are confronting a challenge that is easily stated but extraordinarily difficult to solve: how to transform energy systems without sacrificing the reliability, affordability, and public confidence on which those systems depend. 

New technologies must be integrated at scale. Aging infrastructure must be replaced and expanded. Consumers must be protected from unacceptable cost increases, even as unprecedented levels of investment are required. Energy security, cybersecurity, and resilience have moved to the center of regulatory decision making, while increasingly interconnected energy markets require institutions created for domestic purposes to work effectively across borders.

These challenges drive the theme of the ninth World Forum on Energy Regulation. From September 21–24, 2026, the global energy regulatory community will gather in Tbilisi, Georgia, for WFER IX under the theme “When Balance Is Achieved.” The Forum will be hosted by the Georgian National Energy and Water Supply Regulatory Commission under the auspices of the International Confederation of Energy Regulators (ICER).