Good morning. Washington is putting nearly $2 billion into the existing grid, a $20 billion data center posted $1 in security and the Senate is weighing $50 billion for nuclear campuses. Cheap collateral, expensive infrastructure.
Top Stories
DOE PUTS $1.9 BILLION INTO THE EXISTING GRID
The Associated Press
Thirty-one projects across 26 states, selected under DOE's SPARK program, will add sensors, dynamic line ratings and other technology intended to move more power over wires already in place. Grant recipients will contribute another $3.35 billion, and DOE says the upgrades could improve service for 100 million Americans.
$20 BILLION DATA CENTER BACKED ITS GRID DEAL WITH $1
Utility Dive
FERC rejected ComEd's attempt to cancel a transmission agreement for PowerHouse Hillwood's planned 1.8-GW Joliet campus and left the contract fight to federal court. Commissioner David LaCerte called the developer's $1 letter of credit an “embarrassing legal fiction.”
SENATE WEIGHS $50 BILLION NUCLEAR-CAMPUS PLAN
The Center Square
The proposal would build three regional hubs combining advanced reactors, data centers, manufacturing and nuclear-fuel recycling. DOE says each campus could produce $10 billion in long-term local tax revenue and 25,000 jobs, but commercial reprocessing has historically required government support.
TIPPED FUEL ASSEMBLY PAUSES PALISADES WORK
ABC57
Fuel loading stopped after an assembly tipped while being lowered into the Michigan reactor. Holtec says it is designing retrieval equipment and preparing a license amendment request; the company and NRC say there was no radiation release or danger to workers or the public.
U.S. LOST 36,949 CLEAN-ENERGY JOBS IN 2025
pv magazine USA
E2 says employment fell for the first time since the post-Covid economic crisis, accounting for about 43% of all U.S. energy-sector job losses. Storage, grid and biofuels grew slightly, while 142 canceled or downsized projects represented $57.8 billion in lost investment.
Power & Grid
DEMOCRATS COUNT $190 BILLION IN FOSSIL-FUEL BENEFITS
The Guardian
A report from Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse and Chuck Schumer estimates the industry will receive that amount in tax breaks and subsidies over a decade. It also counts 30 GW of frozen wind projects representing $54 billion in investment. The White House dismissed the report as partisan.
FBI PROBES FIRES AT TWO ENBRIDGE SITES
Wisconsin Public Radio
One fire damaged an equipment trailer and two boring machines at the Line 5 reroute site in Ashland County; another occurred at Enbridge's Superior office. No one was injured, and investigators have not announced a cause.
POWER-MARKET FIGHT RETURNS TO FIRST PRINCIPLES
The Center Square
An AEI panel split over whether regulated utility monopolies or competitive markets can build faster without sticking customers with bad investments. A FERC chairman's adviser said either model can work, but RTO governance was not built for fast, transparent decisions.
INDUSTRIAL SITES COULD SUPPORT 172 GW OF SMALL REACTORS
Interesting Engineering
A peer-reviewed study modeled reactors at ammonia plants, steel mills, refineries and process-heat sites. With the federal clean-hydrogen credit, 91 GW could be viable initially, rising to 171.9 GW as factory production and construction improve.
SOUTH DAKOTA WEIGHS $1.93 BILLION GRID BUILDOUT
South Dakota Searchlight
Two proposed lines would add about 160 miles of high-voltage transmission across eastern South Dakota and into North Dakota. Regulators expect decisions in late 2027 or early 2028; construction is targeted for 2032 to 2034.
Data Centers
3-D PRINTERS TAKE ON THE GAS-TURBINE SHORTAGE
The Wall Street Journal
AI's power demand has jammed conventional turbine casting and stretched equipment waits for years. California startup Parallax and other manufacturers are betting additive production can make complex parts faster as newcomers pile into the power business.
DATA-CENTER NOISE CAN TRAVEL 3,000 FEET
St. Louis Public Radio
A St. Louis University researcher says continuous low-frequency sound travels farther and penetrates buildings more readily than ordinary urban noise. The city's new rules require 600-foot setbacks, equipment enclosures and annual third-party reports.
OPENAI AND ANTHROPIC HIRE TENNESSEE LOBBYISTS
Tennessee Lookout
New state ethics filings show the companies, the Data Center Coalition and Andreessen Horowitz hired Tennessee lobbyists for the first time this year. They arrive as local moratoriums and electricity-cost concerns build ahead of the January legislative session.
VIRGINIA MAPS BROWNFIELDS FOR DATA CENTERS
Cardinal News
Gov. Abigail Spanberger ordered a 180-day study of brownfields, old industrial properties and other previously developed land. The state must identify sites that spread economic benefits while limiting pressure on power, water, infrastructure and communities.
OHIO ACTIVISTS DEMAND A 12-MONTH PAUSE
cleveland.com
Conserve Ohio and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton want a statewide moratorium on new data centers. At least 138 Ohio municipalities and townships reportedly have active local pauses, and 23 have effectively banned the projects.
Stat of the Day
23 GW
Extra capacity expected from existing transmission lines
DOE says that is enough electricity for roughly 16 million homes.
The Associated Press ↗