Suniva Announces 4.5-GW Solar Cell Facility in South Carolina
Suniva announced a $350 million investment to build a 4.5‑GW solar‑cell plant in Laurens, South Carolina, slated for operation in Q2 2027. The new facility will raise Suniva’s U.S. capacity to over 5.5 GW, making it the largest merchant solar‑cell manufacturer in the country. The expansion leverages Inflation Reduction Act credits and aims to close a domestic supply‑chain bottleneck for cells, wafers and ingots. Suniva’s move underscores a broader push to onshore solar components amid rising data‑center power demand and geopolitical supply risks.
ERCOT Says Texas Demand Could Quadruple but Cautions Forecast May Be Inflated
ERCOT’s preliminary long‑term load forecast projects Texas peak electricity demand could soar to 367,790 MW by 2032, roughly four times the 2023 record of 85,508 MW. The surge is attributed to expanding data centers, cryptocurrency mining, and other large‑load industrial customers. Current...
Why Reforming Rooftop Solar and Battery Permitting Belongs on Every State Affordability Agenda
American families face soaring electricity bills, yet state permitting rules for rooftop solar and home batteries remain a costly bottleneck. A new Environment America scorecard shows 48 states receive D or F grades, with only California and Texas earning B...
FERC Orders American Efficient to Pay $1.1B for ‘Brazen Fraud’
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ordered American Efficient, its parent Modern Energy Group, and affiliated firms to pay roughly $1.1 billion for a massive fraud that spanned more than a decade. The agency said the company sold energy‑efficiency capacity it...
Maryland Regulators Weigh Investor-Owned Utilities’ Flexible Load Proposals
Maryland’s investor‑owned utilities have filed proposals to aggregate up to 440 MW of flexible‑load resources, including thermostats, batteries and bidirectional EV charging, to support virtual power plants and demand‑side management pilots. The DRIVE Act, signed in 2024, requires utilities to develop...
An Outdated FERC Policy Is Undermining the White House’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge
Data‑center developers pledged to the White House to pay for all new power‑delivery infrastructure, but utilities are rolling billions of dollars of transmission upgrades into rates that all customers share. The practice relies on FERC’s 1994 transmission pricing policy, which...
Colorado Legislature Sends ‘Advanced Transmission Technology’ Bill to Governor
Colorado lawmakers approved the Grid Optimization Act (HB 1081), directing the state public utilities commission to require Xcel’s Public Service Co., Black Hills Energy and Tri‑State to evaluate advanced transmission technologies in their biennial 10‑year transmission plans. The legislation defines...
Utility Investment Plans Jump 21%, Further Threatening Affordability: PowerLines
Investor‑owned utilities have lifted five‑year capital spending plans by roughly 21%, targeting $1.4 trillion through 2030, up from $1.1 trillion last year. The Southeast alone accounts for $572 billion of that spend, more than double any other U.S. region. Rate‑increase requests surged to...
Distributed Batteries Get Legislative, Utility Lift in California
California lawmakers are advancing SB 913 to count aggregated residential batteries and electric vehicles as resource‑adequacy capacity, leveling them with traditional generators. Ava Community Energy has launched an $11.25 million SmartHome Battery incentive, offering $500/kWh rebates for low‑income households and $90/kWh for...
Regulators Approve Georgia Power’s BYO Clean Resources Plan for Large Loads
Georgia regulators unanimously approved Georgia Power’s Customer Identified Resource (CIR) program, allowing large electricity customers to finance and connect up to 3 GW of clean energy projects through 2035. Participants receive renewable energy certificates and credit for the energy value of...
Maryland General Assembly Passes Rate Relief Measure to Lower Utility Bills by $150/Year
The Maryland General Assembly approved the Utility RELIEF Act, targeting a minimum $150 annual reduction in residential electric and gas bills. The legislation trims utility energy‑efficiency spending, lowers carbon‑emissions‑reduction targets, and forces investor‑owned utilities to join PJM, eliminating a 0.5%...
Iran War Impacts on Oil Prices Spiked Construction Stress, Increased Abandonments
Construction stress rebounded in March, with the Project Stress Index climbing 4.2% month‑over‑month, driven by a 22.8% surge in project abandonments linked to the Iran‑related oil price shock. While delayed‑bid activity and on‑hold projects fell 1.2% and 9.9% respectively, private...
FERC Approves Market Rules for Champlain Hudson Transmission Project
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved market rules for the Champlain Hudson Power Express, a $6 billion, 1,250‑MW merchant transmission line linking Quebec to New York City. The line, owned by Blackstone‑backed Transmission Developers Inc., will begin delivering 10.4 TWh of hydroelectric power...
The Need for Speed: FERC Must Exempt Transmission Projects From Regulatory Bottlenecks
ITC Holdings and the Grid Acceleration Coalition have lodged a complaint with FERC urging exemptions from Order 1000 for time‑sensitive transmission projects. They argue that the existing solicitation rules add 16‑20 months of delay, inflating costs and slowing the interconnection of...
Solar Generation to Rise 17% This Summer: EIA
The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects solar generation will rise 17% this summer compared with 2025, outpacing wind and helping meet peak demand. Overall electricity sales are expected to grow 1.2% in 2026, while coal output will fall about 10%...
