Good morning. Ohio is testing whether 17.8 GW of promised data-center demand is real, Wisconsin has ordered Meta's load projections into the open and Washington is clearing the regulatory path. Everyone wants to know which gigawatts are actually coming.
Top Stories
OHIO ASKS IF 17.8 GW OF DATA-CENTER DEMAND IS REAL
Canary Media
AEP Ohio's forecast reflects signed contracts through 2035, but state staff found some double-counting. Consumer and manufacturing advocates warn that customers could inherit billions in transmission costs if projected facilities never arrive.
JUDGE ORDERS META'S WISCONSIN POWER FORECASTS RELEASED
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Dane County Circuit Judge Stephen Ehlke ruled that state regulators unlawfully withheld unredacted records showing projected electricity demand at Meta's Beaver Dam campus. The case turns a trade-secret fight into a public-records test.
TRUMP MOVES TO CLEAR ENVIRONMENTAL HURDLES FOR DATA CENTERS
Axios
The administration is reshaping environmental rules to speed campuses and their supporting power plants. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin says the agency will not create data-center-specific environmental requirements.
MONTANA MOVES TO WALL OFF DATA-CENTER COSTS
Daily Montanan
A bipartisan committee unanimously advanced a draft bill for customers of at least 5 MW. It would create a separate large-load class, require financial guarantees and direct regulators to prevent stranded costs from reaching other customers.
TEXAS POWER GROWTH LEADS THE NATION AS SOLAR SURGES 35%
San Antonio Express-News
Utility-scale generation rose 3.2% in the first half, adding 9,086 GWh as solar reached 35,992 GWh. Solar is now on pace to pass coal in annual Texas generation for the first time.
Power & Grid
DOE HAS UNTIL CHRISTMAS EVE TO SAVE 23 GW OF BATTERIES
Canary Media
A foreign-equipment ban leaves developers unsure whether Chinese battery cells are covered along with software and controls. DOE has until Christmas Eve to clarify rules that could delay or cancel projects already financed or under construction.
STUDY FINDS 17.5 GW HIDING ON CALIFORNIA'S LOCAL GRID
Utility Dive
Solar and storage connected at distribution substations could serve 32% of projected 2032 summer peak load without major transmission upgrades. The industry-funded estimate measures technical potential, not a construction forecast.
NEW MEXICO GROUPS WANT THE STATE TO BUY INTO ITS BIGGEST UTILITY
The Cool Down
More than 50 organizations and 1,400 signers want New Mexico to consider taking a stake in PNM's parent when it reissues $400 million in shares. The opening follows a ruling that an earlier Blackstone transaction violated state law.
EQUINOR'S BIGGEST U.S. BATTERY GOES LIVE IN TEXAS
San Antonio Express-News
The 100-MW Citrus Flatts project near Harlingen can supply about 25,000 homes for two hours. It will sell into ERCOT as a merchant plant rather than operate under a long-term utility contract.
MICHIGAN PLANS 254 MILES OF NEW POWER LINES
MLive
A group of proposed high-voltage routes would cross the Lower Peninsula as part of the Midwest's wider transmission buildout. The projects promise more transfer capacity and a long siting fight.
Data Centers
DATA-CENTER PLANNING COOLS AFTER JULY'S SURGE
Construction Dive
The Dodge Momentum Index slipped 0.4% in August after a 6.9% jump in July. Without data centers, commercial planning would be down 18.9% from a year ago, showing how much the sector still props up the pipeline.
OG&E SAYS GOOGLE COULD CUT HOUSEHOLD BILLS BY $6.84
The Oklahoman
The utility projects average monthly residential savings by 2036 from serving three Google campuses. Oklahoma regulators still must test the assumptions and approve the agreement.
DATA-CENTER NUCLEAR DEALS LIGHT A FIRE UNDER URANIUM
The Wall Street Journal
Uranium is nearing $90 a pound as power deals from Amazon, Microsoft and other technology companies reinforce an already tight fuel market. New reactor demand is colliding with stubborn supply constraints.
NORTH DAKOTA MAKES ITS PITCH FOR DATA CENTERS
North Dakota Monitor
State and industry officials say campuses can widen the tax base, support population growth and create a new market for local energy. The case comes as other states focus on costs and community opposition.
717 CAMPAIGNS PUT DATA CENTERS IN THEIR ADS
The Hill
An Absecon Group study finds campaigns across both parties are spending on the issue from Ohio and Iowa to Wisconsin and Maine. Local opposition has become a national election message.
Stat of the Day
9,373 GWh
Growth in Texas utility-scale solar in the first half of 2026
More than the state's entire net generation increase, meaning every other source combined shrank.
San Antonio Express-News ↗