Welcome
to a new week! This
year is set to be a big one for
solar power in Texas. The clean
energy source is set to beat out
coal generation throughout 2026 —
and blue states can learn a thing
or two from how Texas got here, Julian
Spector reports.
Next up,
Kathiann
M. Kowalski takes a look
at Ohio utilities that are failing
to meet state standards for
preventing power outages and
getting the lights back on
quickly. Now, regulators are
mulling whether to lower the bar
even further.
And
whether you’re in Ohio, Texas, or
somewhere else in the U.S.,
through-the-roof gasoline prices
are ubiquitous. But while
Europeans are turning to EVs to
escape, Americans aren’t. I
break down what’s holding us
back.
|
UTILITIES
- Dominion
Energy and NextEra Energy
announce they will merge to form
the world’s largest regulated
utility, serving approximately
10 million customers in Florida,
Virginia, North Carolina, and
South Carolina. (CNBC)
COAL
-
A
federal appeals court panel
hears Midwest states’
arguments that the Trump
administration’s orders to
keep a Michigan coal plant
online are illegal and based
on a manufactured energy
emergency. (MLive)
-
The
Trump administration meanwhile
argues that it alone has the
authority to decide whether an
energy emergency exists. (Inside
Climate News)
SOLAR
- A
study finds pollution from coal
plants can block sunlight and
jeopardize solar power
production, especially when
panels are located next to the
fossil fuel facilities. (Bloomberg)
- Chinese
solar exports were up 60% in
April compared to the same month
last year. (Reuters)
ELECTRIC
VEHICLES
- Automakers
fear a little-noticed change to
how the DOE calculates fuel
economy standards may have
unintentionally created a
mandate to scale up EV
production. (E&E
News)
- A
federal highway funding bill
includes a fee on electric and
hybrid vehicles that’s likely to
turn most Democrats against the
legislation. (E&E
News)
OVERSIGHT
- The
DOE disbursed just 2% of its
budgeted funding in fiscal year
2025, down from 38% the year
before, with an analysis
attributing the shortfall to the
department’s staffing shortages.
(Heatmap)
DATA
CENTERS
- The
U.S. Justice Department
considers intervening to support
Elon Musk’s xAI as the NAACP
sues the company, alleging it is
illegally operating a gas-fired
power plant in Mississippi to
support a Tennessee data center.
(New
York Times,
Utility
Dive)
NUCLEAR
- Opponents
of an Ohio bill that would
restore utilities’ ability to
build and own nuclear plants say
the plan mirrors the
customer-backed utility model
that led to the state’s largest
public corruption scandal. (Cleveland.com)
CRITICAL
MINERALS
- Lithium
Americas says tariffs on steel
and rising oil prices could
increase the cost of building
its Thacker Pass mine in Nevada
by as much as $120 million. (Mining)
HYDROGEN
- More
startups are drilling deep
underground to search for
naturally occurring hydrogen,
which could be critical for
decarbonizing heavy industry. (New
York Times)
|
Your
clean energy fire protection
roadmap is here.
|
This
guidebook examines how abnormal
conditions emerge, how they can
escalate into fire events, and
how layered protection
strategies—focused on
prevention, early detection, and
targeted suppression— can
significantly reduce both the
likelihood and severity of
incidents. Brought to you by
Fireaway, Stat-X®
and UltraSense™.
|
Canary
Media is an
independent, nonprofit newsroom
covering the transition to clean
energy and solutions to the
climate crisis. Donate
to support us.
|
|
