The archive
Tech
New York State recently approved construction of a controversial natural-gas pipeline in an effort to ease rising energy prices and prevent future supply shortages. The decision drew criticism from Democratic politicians and environmental groups, who argue that the underwater pipeline will compromise water quality and further entrench reliance on fossil fuels.
Economics
A lot of attention has been paid to the role of growing electricity use by data centers; however, most commentary has proceeded without much in the way of thoughtful analysis. A study on drivers of state-level trends in U.S. retail electricity prices from the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab begins to fill the gap.
Tech
At a recent hearing in Tallahassee, Florida, I testified on the advantages and promise of advanced nuclear technologies, as well as the policies needed to reduce costs and bring small modular reactors online more efficiently.
Around the Web
This piece was initially published in Latitude Media. Today a partnership coalition including Nvidia, Emerald AI, EPRI, Digital Realty, and PJM announced the world’s first power-flexible AI facility: the 96-megawatt Aurora…
Culture
That alarmist messaging has never been particularly helpful. It creates an all-or-nothing perspective on climate change, where one side pushes for aggressive mitigation efforts at the expense of all other considerations, while the other dismisses climate risks altogether. It’s time to drop that framing and instead adopt a perspective that puts climate risks in context.
Policy
Washington’s latest energy-policy controversy centers on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) recent decision to cancel billions of dollars in grants, including subsidies for clean energy and greenhouse-gas-reduction projects. As companies appeal and policymakers debate the validity of these cancellations, it is worth considering the proper role of government in promoting energy innovation.
Popular
In the hills of West Virginia, where coal once powered the nation’s factories and furnaces, a quiet transformation is taking place. In the town of Weirton, once known for its steel mills, a new factory is rising. But instead of steel, it will produce something far less glamorous and important for America’s future: rust.
Policy
But 2025 is different. Utilities sought $29 billion in rate hikes so far this year—nearly double the 2024 pace—and average prices rose at about twice the rate of inflation in the first half of the year. Inflation accounts for a big part of the story, but not all of it.
Around the Web
The debate over rising electricity prices in Washington has revealed a strange paradox. Republicans blame climate policies and renewable energy subsidies for driving up costs. Democrats, meanwhile, claim rates are rising because the Trump administration rolled back clean-energy incentives. Both stories cannot be entirely accurate. Renewables cannot simultaneously be the cause and the cure for high prices.
World
President Trump’s comments drew quick condemnation, with California Governor Gavin Newsom arguing the US is “ceding our leadership to China.” But anyone seriously claiming that China is a global leader on climate policy has not been paying attention.
