Tufts research suggests regional collaboration may support cost-efficient electricity expansion

Energy systems are constantly evolving. As electricity use continues to rise, many countries are simultaneously looking to mitigate the impact of climate change through reducing carbon emissions. As a result, it can be challenging for decision-makers to choose the best path forward. In areas where electricity is generated from many different sources, how can regions balance supply with a growing demand while maintaining and supporting their decarbonization goals? Ph.D. student Jacob Wessel and Associate Professor Jon Lamontagne of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering aimed to answer that question in a recent Nature Communications paper, titled “Regional coordination can alleviate the cost burden of a low-carbon electricity system.”

Alongside researchers from the University of Maryland and the University of Wisconsin Madison, Wessel and Lamontagne studied the potential benefits of centrally coordinated electricity grid planning in the Mercosur region of South America, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Countries in this region have historically collaborated in the economy and the energy sector. The paper details why cross-country regional grid collaboration is key to achieving lower electricity emissions at lower costs.

Current research does not fully capture the impact of uncertainty on larger-scale regional infrastructure decisions and coordinated grid outcomes. Lamontagne and Wessel’s work addresses three main gaps in understanding. First, they examine how location-constrained resource availability may impact the system as a whole. Second, they acknowledge the unknown future evolution of technology and its potential effect on the current energy economy. Finally, they consider how the costs and benefits of regional coordination may be distributed among participating countries. 

The team used an open-source modeling framework to examine 80 different scenarios, which explore varying cost and performance trajectories of different energy types (wind and solar photovoltaics). They simulated each scenario under both full coordination and no coordination, as well as under a “deep decarbonization” emissions policy. While more work is needed to fully understand the implications of each option, their research offers a compelling path forward that prioritizes both economic benefit and decarbonization.

According to their results, full regional coordination could help all areas to manage uncertainty more efficiently as the energy transition progresses. They suggest that without regional coordination, the added cost of building out a clean grid versus a dirty one could cost three times as much as coordinated scenarios. With modest investment in transmission expansion and full regional collaboration, the participating countries could save money while reaching their emissions targets.

Although their work focused on South America, the authors believe their findings could be widely applicable to other regions around the world, especially those with underdeveloped electrical grids or electricity access. They also explored topics for future research, such as the impacts of integrated systems on a country’s relative bargaining power.

First author Jacob Wessel earned his Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Tufts University in 2025. He is currently a postdoctoral research associate at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Lamontagne joined Tufts in 2017. He runs the Lamontagne Lab, where researchers aim to improve decision making for multisector systems confronting uncertainty, including climate change, population growth, and technological innovation. His integrated, multi-sector approach captures the connections between water, energy generation, and agriculture. 

Learn more about Associate Professor Jon Lamontagne.