In the coming Energy Cloud future, traditional electric utilities will be challenged to reinvent themselves. Their traditional monopoly role as the sole regional provider of electric power will evolve into one where the grid becomes a critical, two-way network for energy services. These services may include integrated solar and wind, transactive energy markets,Microgrids, energy storage, and other disruptive technologies. In order to fulfill this new role, utilities will increasingly depend upon the Energy Superhighway. This is the robust, ubiquitous, high bandwidth, low latency communications backbone that will be necessary to support the many software- and hardware-based systems that will ultimately power the Energy Cloud. Without the Energy Superhighway, the Energy Cloud paradigm for utilities cannot become reality. But with the Energy Superhighway, utilities may find themselves positioned to not only evolve with the industry, but to actually drive industry evolution. The importance of this critical communications backbone cannot be understated. Massive economic growth, such as that which resulted from the buildout of the Interstate Highway System in the United States in the 1950s, may very well be the outcome of a concerted effort to develop the Energy Superhighway. This Navigant Research white paper provides a far-reaching view of the connectivity needs of electric utilities?today and tomorrow. The report examines the reasons why a network-centric approach?rather than a silo-based, application-centric strategy?is imperative for power utilities today. It also explores which connectivity technologies are best positioned to be future-proof and provides several case studies of visionary utility projects designed to develop the Energy Superhighway. Each of the topics in this white paper is examined more deeply in research reports and ongoing research from Navigant Research?s Grid Networking and Communications Research Service.