The Latest
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Deep DiveEfforts to curb data center speculation gain ground across the US
Large-load tariffs and other measures to weed out speculative projects are taking shape. Public backlash to data centers, shifting state-level policies and the utility profit model are complicating those efforts, stakeholders say.
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Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images
FERC rejects ComEd’s cancellation of PowerHouse Hillwood data center contract
A 1.8-GW, $20 billion data center planned by PowerHouse Hillwood was underpinned by a $1 letter of credit — “less than the price of a cup of coffee” — that drew skepticism from FERC Commissioner David LaCerte.
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Permission granted by Esme Howland
OpinionFERC has options for modernizing PJM’s governance
The commission’s jurisdiction over transmission governance allows it to modify filing-rights allocations and adjust the PJM Interconnection’s nominating committee, writes Harvard Law’s Ari Peskoe.
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Retrieved from U.S. Department of Energy.
Lower energy costs, community benefits drive 30% battery growth rate: RMI
The report arrives as the energy storage industry faces headwinds from tariffs, Treasury regulations and new White House restrictions on foreign-made bulk electrical components.
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North Carolina regulators deny Duke Energy gas turbine request over ‘staggering’ cost, uncertain need
The order called out Duke’s commitment to the White House Ratepayer Protection Pledge, saying the utility had not established the specific extent to which the proposed facility is intended to serve data centers.
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Other New England states back Maine’s RTO adder complaint
The complaint at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is part of a trend of states seeking to end an extra 0.5% return utilities can earn for voluntarily joining a transmission organization.
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Mario Tama/ via Getty Images
California tightens oversight of data center energy use, grid costs
Bills signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom include regulations aimed at ensuring data centers pay for infrastructure needed to serve them and bear a larger share of wildfire mitigation and liability costs.
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Joe Raedle/Getty Images via Getty Images
OpinionIt’s time for utility bill reform
Programs that serve broad public purposes should be financed through state general funds rather than hidden in your electric bill, writes Marc Brown at the Consumer Energy Alliance.
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Federal judge restores $7B Solar for All program, says EPA illegally axed it
A Trump-appointed judge said the One Big Beautiful Bill Act did not convert the funding into “a lump-sum amount subject to EPA’s discretion.” Defendants acted contrary to Congress’ intent and with “no other statutory authority.”
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Brandon Bell via Getty Images
Texas PUC adopts softened rules on data center interconnection
The Public Utility Commission of Texas backed off the standards it proposed in March, eliminating a non-refundable interconnection fee and extending energization milestone deadlines.
Updated Sept. 21, 2026 -
Courtesy of New York State Energy Research and Development Authority
New York regulators approve 90-mile transmission line
The $3.3-billion project aims to improve downstate power delivery by 2030. It is being developed by New York Transco and the New York Power Authority.
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Heather Diehl via Getty Images
Newsom vetoes bill to create California PUC inspector general
On Monday, Newsom signed a package of laws aimed at data centers, including strengthening energy reporting requirements and requiring regulators to create new rate structures.
Updated Sept. 21, 2026 -
Courtesy of Hitachi Energy
Hitachi to double US production of small and medium-sized power transformers
A Mississippi facility will produce transformers in the 10 MVA to 160 MVA range, designed for voltages up to 230 kV. The additional capacity “is expected to help alleviate industry-wide supply constraints,” a Hitachi official told Utility Dive.
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Zach Gibson / Stringer via Getty Images
Microsoft ‘preserving its ability’ to challenge data center transmission costs decision
It has until November to formally appeal the Virginia State Corporation Commission’s order to directly assign some costs of transmission. Dominion Energy has an October deadline to propose compliant policy changes.
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Courtesy of Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Meta, Apex Clean Energy agree to 144-MW Texas solar PPA
Meta will receive “exclusive rights to all environmental attributes associated with energy” from the project, including all renewable energy credits, according to Apex.
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Daphne Howland/Utility Dive
Burlington advances on-site solar strategy across distribution network
The off-price retailer is planning installations at upcoming facilities in Arizona and California, as well as an existing warehouse in Georgia.
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Courtesy of Meta
House passes ratepayer protection bill to limit data center cost shifts
The bill would “largely reinforce” a transition that is already underway as more states adopt large-load tariffs and is unlikely to pass the Senate before the midterm elections, according to ClearView Energy Partners.
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Utilities, schools see growing value in electric buses for virtual power plants
By participating in programs that ease grid congestion, school districts can recoup thousands of dollars from the price of electric school buses.
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Alex Wong via Getty Images
OpinionTrump is stalling EV adoption. Here’s how states can step up.
While President Trump attacks electric vehicles, a few states are charting a path to expand electric transportation and reduce residents’ costs, writes the Sierra Club's Katherine García.
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Mario Tama via Getty Images
Investment tax credit glut gives corporate buyers more leverage, report says
More clean energy tax credits are hitting the market. Credits tied to electricity production are holding their value, while investment tax credits based on the cost of building face price pressure as buyers weigh uncertainty over new federal rules.
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Courtesy of New York State Energy Research and Development Authority
State-led planning could advance clean energy in deregulated markets: report
States should step in with new long-term planning processes to bolster nuclear, offshore wind and other technologies that face major barriers, according to the Clean Air Task Force.
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Rick Loomis via Getty Images
Climavision offers expanded weather forecasting to data centers
The company says it can help large loads better respond to changing weather conditions as data centers are asked to play a more active role in grid management.
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Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
Utility costs could put pressure on cities’ finances, S&P experts warn
Rates are high compared to household income in many places, and over time, this could reduce flexibility for public finance entities, say S&P Global analysts. This isn’t currently leading to significant bond rating actions, but it’s a “simmering risk.”
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Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images
PJM faces 2030 reliability crisis if data center load growth continues: report
In a worst-case scenario, the modeled loss of load expectation is “over 100 times worse than PJM’s planning criterion,” indicating an expectation of “more than 13 days with loss of load events per year,” said the study commissioned by the Pennsylvania PUC.
Updated Sept. 16, 2026 -
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
‘Second-life’ battery project is B2U’s second in ERCOT, with more on the way
A strategic supply agreement with Waymo and rising EV adoption rates will expand the company’s access to older batteries still fit for use in stationary storage, CEO Freeman Hall told Utility Dive.
