Today's Energy Pulse
Scania pilots vehicle‑to‑grid charging for heavy‑duty electric trucks
Scania demonstrated one of the first vehicle‑to‑grid (V2G) systems for heavy‑duty electric trucks using the Megawatt Charging System (MCS). The pilot showed bi‑directional power flow, letting trucks feed stored electricity back to the grid while parked at depots. Real‑time communication between the truck, charger and energy‑management platform enabled dynamic charging and discharging.
Also developing:
U.S. Sanctions Iraq’s Deputy Oil Minister Over Alleged Iranian Oil Scheme
The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Iraq’s Deputy Oil Minister Ali Maarij Al‑Bahadly and several militia‑linked firms for allegedly channeling Iraqi crude into networks that blend it with Iranian oil. The move is part of the Trump administration’s intensified “Economic Fury” campaign targeting Iran’s illicit oil revenue streams. Sanctions freeze any U.S.-related assets and prohibit U.S. persons from transacting with the designated entities. The action underscores Washington’s focus on the regional infrastructure that enables Tehran to evade sanctions and fund armed groups.
Diversified Energy, Carlyle Partner in $1.175-billion Acquisition in Oklahoma's Anadarko Basin
Diversified Energy and private‑equity firm Carlyle have agreed to buy a portfolio of oil and natural‑gas assets in Oklahoma’s Anadarko basin for $1.175 billion. The deal adds roughly 300 MMcfed of production—about 51,000 boe/d—for the next year and includes 101,000 acres of SCOOP/STACK/MERGE...
Outrage as Oil Giants Profit Billions From Iran War – The Latest
Shell has reported $6.9 bn in profit since the Iran war began, buoyed by soaring global energy prices. The windfall has reignited public and political calls for higher taxes on fossil‑fuel producers to fund relief for households hit by rising costs....
Crude Oil Moving Off of Low Levels and Back Toward the Next Target at the $95 Area
Crude oil bounced from session lows near $89.85 after finding support above $88.70, stabilizing the market as optimism around Iran negotiations faded. The rebound peaked at $97.34, but prices settled lower, with traders eyeing the $95 resistance – the 50%...
Clearway Energy Completes 320-MW Storage Project Complementing Existing Solar Arrays
Clearway Energy has commissioned the 320‑MW Honeycomb Energy Center in Utah, consisting of four 80‑MW battery storage units that provide 1,280 MWh of reserve capacity. The storage systems are paired with Clearway’s adjacent solar farms and are covered by 20‑year power...
Duke Energy Locks In 2.7 GW of Data‑Center Power Contracts in Q1 2026
Duke Energy announced that it signed 2.7 GW of new energy service agreements with data‑center operators in the first quarter of 2026, bringing its total contracted data‑center load to 7.6 GW. The contracts underpin a broader 7.8 GW pipeline and support the utility’s...
Iraq’s Maiden LNG Terminal Facing Delay as FSRU Heads to Jordan
Iraq’s inaugural liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal has been pushed back to 2027 because of ongoing Middle‑East hostilities. The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) originally slated for the Basrah project will instead be chartered to Jordan’s National Electric Power...
Ontario Advances Bruce C Nuclear Project with $300M Pre-Development Agreement
Ontario’s government directed the Independent Electricity System Operator to sign a $300 million cost‑sharing agreement with Bruce Power, unlocking funds for pre‑construction work on the proposed Bruce C nuclear expansion. The project, if approved, could add up to 4,800 MW of capacity at...
Eni's New Indonesia Find Will Anchor Third Regional Gas Hub
Eni announced plans to fast‑track a third gas production hub in Indonesia’s Kutei Basin after a successful drill test at its newly discovered Geliga field. The hub will become part of the Eni‑Petronas Searah regional satellite, leveraging existing infrastructure. The...
UK Wind and Solar Outpace Fossil Fuels for 15 Months
Wind and solar have now beaten fossil fuels in Great Britain for a record 15 months in a row Just a decade ago, fossil fuels were generating four times more than wind + solar Now that's flipped: Since the Iran war, wind...
IEA Chief Warns Iran War Could Spark the Biggest Energy Crisis Ever
International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol warned that the war in Iran and the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz could trigger the largest energy crisis in history. Speaking with Canada’s Energy Minister Tim Hodgson, Birol said the...
More Turbulence for Washington State’s Giant Wind Farm
The Horse Heaven wind farm in Washington faces renewed FAA scrutiny after Scout Clean Energy filed fresh airspace determinations, while the project’s tower count has been cut and heights increased amid ongoing litigation. In Utah, the Box Elder County commission...
Trump Administration Officials Call for Federal Environmental Permitting Reform
At the SelectUSA Investment Summit, Trump administration officials announced a push to overhaul federal environmental permitting, targeting faster approvals for major infrastructure projects. The proposal includes a $14 million EPA budget increase to cut red tape, NEPA procedural reforms with deadlines...
Bernreuter: Daqo Sales Slump Reveals ‘Irrational’ Polysilicon Market Dynamics
Chinese polysilicon giant Daqo New Energy reported an 88.3% plunge in Q1 2026 sales even as output ticked up to 43,402 metric tons, up from 42,181 MT a quarter earlier. The stark mismatch, highlighted by Bernreuter Research head Johannes Bernreuter, signals a market where...
Blackstone Invests €2 Billion in Eurowind Energy: Billion-Euro Partnership Accelerates Expansion of Renewable Energy Projects
Blackstone is injecting roughly $2.2 billion into Danish developer Eurowind Energy to accelerate wind‑energy projects across Europe, with a focus on Germany. Eurowind currently has over 300 MW under construction and a 4.6 GW development pipeline in the country. The capital will fund...
What the ‘Eco Right’ Wants From Permitting Reform
Nick Loris of C3 Solutions argues that the emerging "eco‑right" sees the data‑center boom as a catalyst for sweeping permitting reforms. He advocates tech‑neutral, consumer‑first policies that streamline federal statutes such as NEPA, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered...
The Future of US Energy Security: Building on Lessons From the Iran War
The Iran war has triggered the largest energy disruption in modern history, exposing both strengths and gaps in U.S. energy policy. America’s embrace of the shale revolution and the 2015 repeal of the crude‑oil export ban turned the country into...
Barclays Says It's the Best Buying Opportunity in 20 Years for These Oil Stocks
Barclays upgraded the U.S. energy services and technology sector to positive and raised several oil‑service stocks, including Halliburton, to overweight. The bank lifted Halliburton’s 12‑month price target to $55, implying roughly 36% upside from the current price. It also upgraded...
Iran Can Outlast Trump's Hormuz Blockade for Months
U.S. intelligence estimates Iran could withstand a full naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz for 90‑120 days, challenging the view that a swift closure would force Tehran to negotiate. Despite sustained U.S. and Israeli strikes, Iran’s missile and drone...
Australia Confirms Domestic Gas Reservation Policy From 2027
Australia confirmed a domestic gas reservation policy effective July 2027, requiring exporters to set aside a portion of production for the local market. The government abandoned a previously considered 25 % gas tax, easing fiscal pressure on producers. The policy aims to...
General Motors Sourcing 100% Renewable Energy for US Operations
General Motors has become the first U.S. automaker to power all its domestic sites with 100 % renewable electricity, a goal it reached in 2025 and announced ahead of Earth Day 2026. The company’s renewable procurement, including wind and solar PPAs,...
CertainTeed Launches Roof- and Ground-Mount Systems for Its Own Solar Panels
CertainTeed, a century‑old roofing and building‑materials firm, has entered the solar‑mounting market with two new products: the Solstice Mounting System for pitched roofs and the Solstice Ground Mount for off‑roof installations. The roof‑mount system features lightweight, high‑strength rails, universal clamps...
Tightened Supply Chains: Strait of Hormuz & Bitumen Markets
In this episode of The Asphalt Story, Irina, Kayvan, and Oliver discuss how the Strait of Hormuz disruption is tightening bitumen supplies for European and African markets. They explain that reduced crude flows from Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq are...
AI's Energy Demand Sparks New Supply Chain
AI needs energy. From uranium to grid equipment, the power stack behind AI is becoming its own supply chain. Data centers need GPUs. GPUs need racks. Racks need power. Power needs grid access, firm generation, storage, cooling, and fuel. Hyperscalers are no...
Georgia Data Centers Falsely Claim Renewables, Fueling Shortages
🚨 Scam alert 🚨 Georgia's new "Customer Identified Resources" program lets data centers claim solar and wind farms as "their" electricity sources, while still totally relying on Georgia's overwhelmingly gas-, nuclear-, and coal-powered grid. This is exactly the kind of practice that...
Hawaii Legislators Voting on Bill Threatening State’s Solar Market
The Hawaii Senate is reviewing SB 3125, a tax‑relief bill aimed at easing the burden on low‑ and middle‑income households while reshaping several state tax‑credit programs. Central to the debate is the Renewable Energy Technologies Income Tax Credit (RETITC), which...
Greenvolt Next Delivers 2.2MWp Solar Farm at Astellas Dublin, Powering Their Sustainability Journey
Greenvolt Next has completed a 2.2 MWp ground‑mounted solar farm at Astellas' Damastown campus in Dublin, delivering the project in just four months. The installation comprises 3,192 panels and five inverters, supplying roughly 27% of the site’s electricity and cutting Scope 2...
University Research: Rear-Hanging Cable Shading Doesn’t Affect Bifacial Solar Project Output
Arizona State University’s new white paper shows that rear‑hanging cable bundles on bifacial solar farms cause a negligible performance hit—no more than 0.6% reduction in maximum power—compared with the 3%‑30% losses typically seen from mounting structures. The study, conducted with...
NRG Close to Completing 415-MW Gas Plant Backed by Texas Energy Fund
NRG Energy is set to finish a 415‑MW simple‑cycle gas unit at its TH Wharton plant in Houston this month, the latest step in a trio of Texas Energy Fund‑backed projects that together add 1.5 GW of capacity. The state‑backed fund...
Trump Is Getting Away With Murdering an American Industry
The Trump administration is effectively halting new U.S. wind projects by using the Department of Defense to refuse the Federal Aviation Administration’s clearance, creating a de‑facto ban. The American Clean Power Association reports 165 wind farms—about 30 GW of capacity—are now...
735 Electric Buses Coming To Dubai Soon
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority will receive 735 electric buses in 2026, expanding its electric fleet to roughly 775 vehicles. The existing 40‑bus pilot has already avoided 59,263 tons of CO₂ in 2025 and achieved a 95% satisfaction rate among drivers...
FEOC, Uncertainty and Constraints: Real Estate Capital for Energy Storage Developers Is More Critical than Ever
Energy storage developers are grappling with tighter FEOC compliance that mandates at least 55% of equipment costs come from non‑FEOC sources in 2026, rising to 75% by 2030. Lending to clean‑power projects slowed dramatically in 2025, with growth falling to...
Versa Materials and AUMUND Partner on Domestic Battery Cathode Manufacturing Equipment, Targeting 50% CapEx Reduction
Versa Materials Technology of Austin and Germany’s AUMUND Corp have signed an exclusive MOU to adapt AUMUND’s conveying and thermal‑processing equipment for battery‑cathode calcination. The partnership will replace the traditional multi‑step co‑precipitation and saggar‑based calcination with a single‑step spray‑pyrolysis process,...
Hint Reveals Why Hormuz Reopening Stalls, Questions Unasked
“I’m not trying to solve a puzzle here, Dr. Kimble…” “Well, I am trying to solve a puzzle…& I just found a big piece.” This story offers a hint about what’s taking so long to re-open Hormuz, but no one seems to...
USGC Crude Rerouted Through Panama to West Coast
Great map of Jones Act-waived intra-US petroleum flows. Some of it is intra-PADD optimization, but as expected we see a big push of USGC barrels transiting the Panama Canal to the US West Coast.
EU: Airlines Should Pay Passengers for Cancelations Due to Fuel Price Surge
European airlines face a sharp rise in jet‑fuel costs, with prices topping $200 per barrel and Lufthansa alone estimating a $2 billion hit this year. EU Sustainable Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas told the Financial Times that fuel price spikes do not...
Estimating Timeline Until Hormuz Returns to 50
How much longer, from today, does it take for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen**? **defined as >50% of pre-war transit levels
Oil Shortages Looming: Europe by May, US by July
Distinguished economist & commodity market guru Jeff Currie on when oil shortages will hit: "Parts of the world like Australia, Philippines, Thailand already are [in a shortage]. Europe will hit tank bottoms sometime in May. In the US it will be...
Murphy Oil Avoids Gambling on Current Volatility
Murphy Oil Corp reported Q1 2026 net income of $53 million, down from a year earlier, but adjusted earnings per share of $0.32 beat estimates. Production increased 10% year‑over‑year to 180,053 boepd, driven by higher U.S. onshore output and progress on...
China, EU Unite on Carbon Pricing, Challenge Trump
China and the European Union have joined forces in a bid to create a global alliance on carbon pricing, putting them at odds with the Trump administration’s push to invest more in fossil fuels https://t.co/ALnazovHMy
Maryland Homeowners Face $1.6 B Data‑center Electricity Surcharge
Maryland homeowners will pay an extra $1.6 billion on their electric bills over the next decade to subsidize grid costs to feed data centers, according to a state agency https://t.co/IKWmGXLtMG
LNG Sector Seeing Near-Term ‘Supply Disruption’ Not ‘Demand Destruction’, Excelerate Says
Excelerate Energy, a U.S. floating regasification specialist, says the Middle East conflict is creating a short‑term supply disruption rather than eroding LNG demand. CEO Steven Kobos noted that new LNG projects coming online will expand the need for import and...
RNG: Rural Prosperity, Em
RNG is one of those rare win-win-wins — rural income, emissions reduction, energy security — and yet it still makes some environmentalists nervous. The political complexity is real, but so is the opportunity. https://t.co/od6g2nplAL
Canada Finance Minister Discusses Energy Markets Amid Middle East Conflict
Very pleased to meet with Canada’s Minister of Finance François-Philippe Champagne (@FP_Champagne) in Toronto to discuss recent energy market and economic developments amid the war in the Middle East, as well as @IEA-🇨🇦 cooperation https://t.co/zaraFH2k05
Norway Launches Bid Round, Approves Mature Gas Fields' Revival
Norway announced a fresh offshore licensing round while approving the restart of three mature gas fields, signaling a decisive push to boost domestic production. The revived fields are expected to add roughly 2 billion cubic metres of gas per year, reinforcing...
Energy Crunch Will Continue Despite Iran Peace Deal, Says Maersk
Maersk Says Energy Crunch to Persist Even If Iran Peace Deal Struck. Not surprising. This extended mess will not fix itself overnite. https://t.co/qJBag33bE9
Ukrainian Drones Strike Deep, Hit Perm Oil Facility
Ukrainian drone strikes hit DEEP into Russian territory again. This time, Ukraine hit one of its favorite targets: an oil facility in Perm. https://t.co/cX1kGfxId7
WTI Plunges 11% as Rumor‑Driven Headlines Swirl
US benchmark crude oil (WTI) is down -11% over the past two days. Since both sides likes to make their rap battle threats on social, they should lay out clearly their terms on social so we can follow along. This market...
Spain's Power Grid Turns Renewable Majority by 2026
🇪🇸 Spain's electricity in 2000: 56% fossil, 2% solar & wind. By 2026: 44% solar & wind, just 17% fossil. The crossover came in 2023. Gas now sets the price only 15% of the time vs 89% in Italy. More in my...
US‑Iran Conflict Affects 20% LNG, Just 3% of Global Gas
Shell CEO Wael Sawan: "While 20% of the world's LNG is impacted [by US-Iran war], that equals to only 3% of the world's natural gas." (An important point that's often overlooked)