AI Data Centers, Jassy, Ellison: BS Climate Promises, Extra-dirty Generators
I’m horrified by how many data center power plants may run on gas. The CEOs of the U.S. giants have been promising for years to cut carbon. Some have made…
Hinojosa on Data Centers: Her Own Words (Translate: don’t be A-holes and you can Build)
Gina Hinojosa intends to move forward on data centers. Don’t believe the misleading headlines. Almost all the 2027 & 2028 builds can go ahead because they are already permitted. She’s…
Top House Dems: Data Centers Should Pay. All Renewable. Some Say No to EviL. Some Say No to Everything.
Frank Pallone of New Jersey will likely chair Energy & Commerce, Kathy Castor will chair Energy, & Paul Tonko will chair Environment. I ask Claude to pull what they’ve said…
Senate Energy Dems on Strong on Pollution, Data Centers, AI Safety. their opinions
Much more coming. The three senior Democrats on Senate Energy and Natural Resources helped block a data center bill that passed the House 417-3. Martin Heinrich objected to the Ratepayer…
Carbon Capture
4000 words from Claude. Only firm conclusion: success at a appropriate cost is unproven. This is not a backgrounder, not a factchecked article. I’m still doing research. My gut is…
The Off-Grid Gas Buildout: Who’s Building It, Who’s Breathing It, and Why Oversight Is Thinning
This is a Claude backgrounder. I’m still checking before I write my article. Dave Zeke Hausfather’s Climate Brink analysis, summarized separately here, put a number on how much dirtier off-grid…
2025 Wholesale Power Prices in the 20 Largest Economies
From about 3¢/kWh in Alberta to 13¢ in Italy. The five priciest wholesale markets among the 20 largest economies are all European.
U.S. Prices By State
Real-time energy averaged $65.89/MWh in New England and $36.94 in Texas. Add capacity charges and the gap gets wider.
Reconductor or Rebuild?
When a transmission corridor runs out of capacity, a utility has two basic options: string new, higher-capacity wire on the towers already standing, or build an entirely new line on…
100+ GWh Tesla Megapacks Ready to Transform U.S. Grid
Elon turned on the Brookshire, Texas plant on August 6. It will add 50 GWh a year to U.S. battery capacity. Half of that would be enough to drastically reduce,…