Lions and tigers and decarbonization
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29 October 2026 • Supported by
Good morning! The Trump administration just keeps showing up for nuclear power. In its latest atomic move, the DOE has offered Constellation Energy a conditional $5 billion loan to uprate 15 of its reactors — a move that’ll get generation online far more quickly than building new nuclear plants. Brian Martucci has more.
Next up, Maria Gallucci has a positively wild story of decarbonization at work in Michigan. The Detroit Zoo is studying how to reduce and clean up the energy it uses to heat and cool its animal habitats with the help of a state grant program, which is also funding similar work at four other institutions.
And over in PJM Interconnection’s grid region, a fix is finally on the way to get much-needed battery capacity online. Jeff St. John digs into reforms that could let existing solar and wind farms add storage capacity.
NEW FROM CANARY MEDIA
by Brian Martucci
by Maria Gallucci
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TODAY'S TOP NEWS
PERMITTING BILL
The Trump administration is letting select onshore wind projects move forward as a concession to Democrats to advance the permitting bill, though at least some of the Defense Department-approved projects are low level, essentially representing uprates of existing wind farms at their same locations. (Bloomberg, Punchbowl News)
A coalition of transmission, nuclear, geothermal, and other energy developers and funders signs on to a letter endorsing the permitting bill, saying it’s essential to keeping America competitive in their industries. (letter)
DATA CENTERS
The Sierra Club estimates the U.S. power sector would emit 2.1 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2030 if planned data centers projects are built, canceling out 15 years of power-sector emissions declines, though the future of many of those AI projects remains cloudy. (Bloomberg)
Some data center developers who have built their own behind-the-meter gas turbines are struggling to keep the power flowing, as they lack on-site mechanics to maintain and fix systems, and face the heat of rising fuel prices. (Latitude Media)
CLIMATE
- A new global assessment from the Lancet finds climate-related health threats, including extreme heat and drought, increased more rapidly in the past decade than the decade before, even as countries accelerated their climate and clean energy plans. (Bloomberg)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
- Vessev, an all-electric hydrofoil boat company that’s transporting passengers in New Zealand, is expanding to the U.S. with a service on Lake Tahoe. (The Guardian)
BATTERIES
- A small group of startups are developing thermal battery systems that store large amounts of heat, then release it on demand to replace the need for fossil fuel burning in industrial processes. (New York Times)
MATERIALS
- Fortera signs a multiyear agreement with Meta to provide environmental attribute certificates for 200,000 tons of its low-carbon cement, a deal that will support construction of Fortera’s Missouri cement plant. (Carbon Herald)
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With the dust settling on the November election, Charles Hua of PowerLines and Canary Media’s Julian Spector will dig into how the big issues of the day – affordability, data centers, and clean energy – helped to shape the outcomes.
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