The Daily Mine — Monday, February 23, 2026

SOFTBANK BETS $33 BILLION ON US GAS POWER — LARGEST SINGLE ENERGY INVESTMENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY...
WebProNews / TechCrunch
Masayoshi Son is going all-in. $33 billion for a massive US natural gas plant — a vertically integrated play to ensure SoftBank's AI ambitions are never bottlenecked by electricity access.

SUPREME COURT TAKES UP BACK-TO-BACK ENERGY CASES THIS WEEK...
E&E News
Two pivotal cases with major implications for utility regulation, state authority over energy infrastructure, and federal agency powers.

CLEAN ENERGY BANS SKYROCKET UNDER TRUMP...
USA Today
State and local bans on wind and solar have accelerated dramatically since Trump took office — complicating the narrative that surging demand will drive clean energy buildout.

SHOW ME STATE WINS: MISSOURI SUPREME COURT BARS HOA SOLAR BANS — 'A DECISIVE WIN FOR PROPERTY RIGHTS'...
The Cool Down / Solar Power World
Unanimous ruling upholds SB 820 (2022), prohibiting HOAs from blocking or effectively blocking solar installations. "Not only is this a victory for solar, but this is a decisive win for property rights." — Renew Missouri. Disclosure: The Daily Mine's founder worked on the passage of Senate Bill 820.

THREE MILE ISLAND RESTART CLEARS KEY HURDLE — NRC PANEL MOSTLY SUPPORTIVE...
Pennsylvania Capital-Star
NRC advisory panel found more support than opposition for TMI Unit 1 restart. Constellation's plan to power Microsoft's data centers is gaining regulatory traction.

'PAY FOR YOUR OWN POWER': SHAPIRO DIGS IN ON DATA CENTER ENERGY COSTS...
Politico
Pennsylvania's governor draws a hard line — joining Sanders and DeSantis in a widening bipartisan coalition demanding Big Tech pay for its own grid infrastructure.

VIRGINIA SHOWDOWN: DATA CENTER COST BILLS COME TO A VOTE TUESDAY...
PECVA.org
SB619 and SB339 hit the floor tomorrow. Virginia has 70 GW contracted with Dominion — nearly triple the grid's peak. $28 billion or more in ratepayer costs at stake. Tuesday's vote is the signal.

TRUMP EPA KILLS BIDEN'S COAL PLANT EMISSIONS RULES AS GRID STRAINS UNDER AI LOAD...
RTO Insider
MATS updates rolled back just as grid operators are under pressure to keep coal plants running longer for AI demand — a tension the administration has not publicly acknowledged.

13 STATES SUE TRUMP OVER $7.6 BILLION ENERGY GRANT FREEZE...
RTO Insider
California-led coalition sues over rescinded clean energy and grid upgrade funding. Legal action came swiftly after the White House pulled commitments with little notice.

AS STATES REVOLT, ALTMAN CALLS AI WATER CONCERNS 'FAKE'...
CNBC
OpenAI CEO dismisses water concerns at a summit — on the same day seven states are moving legislation to force data centers to pay their own costs, and farmers are rejecting million-dollar buyouts. Altman's dismissiveness is likely to fuel, not defuse, the backlash.

'I'M NOT FOR SALE': US FARMERS TURNING DOWN MILLIONS FROM BIG TECH...
The Guardian
Farmers across the US are rejecting eye-popping land offers — citing water, community character, and agriculture. The data center opposition movement just went rural.

PA DATA CENTER TAX BREAK COULD COST STATE BILLIONS — AND SHAPIRO KNOWS IT...
PennLive
New analysis: Pennsylvania's DC incentive structurally underprices its fiscal cost to taxpayers — direct context for why Shapiro is drawing a hard line.

COLORADO REPORT: DATA CENTER TAX BREAKS WOULD RAISE TAXES ON THE POOR...
Colorado Sun
Proposed DC incentives would shift burden onto lower-income Coloradans. The class dimension enters the debate: it's not just ratepayers, it's taxpayers — regressively.

FERC APPROVES COMED DATA CENTER GRID DEALS — AS ILLINOIS TRIES TO SLOW GROWTH...
RTO Insider
Federal regulators greenlight 4 Illinois transmission deals even as Gov. Pritzker proposes a moratorium on DC tax incentives. Federal vs. state tension on full display.

AEP OHIO: 'OUR DATA CENTER TARIFF IS WORKING' — CRITICS DISAGREE...
10tv.com / Columbus Dispatch
AEP defends its rate structure; consumer advocates say costs are still being socialized. Bipartisan legislation advancing to require long-term contracts before grid buildout.

SOUTH CAROLINA ENTERS THE FIGHT — 7TH STATE TO PUSH BACK ON DATA CENTERS...
WLTX
SC joins IL, OH, VA, NJ, New Brunswick, and CO. The wave is national, bipartisan, and shows no signs of stopping.

EIA: RECORD 86 GW OF NEW POWER COMING IN 2026 — BUT WILL IT BE ENOUGH?...
RTO Insider
The most new capacity in a single year in American history. Solar leads, followed by storage and wind. Analysts question whether supply can keep pace with data center load growth.

GOOGLE, TOTALENERGIES SIGN 1 GIGAWATT SOLAR DEAL FOR TEXAS DATA CENTERS...
Energies Media
One of the year's largest clean energy PPAs. Big Tech is actively buying its own clean power — not just pulling from the grid.