Biden administration announces $3 billion for battery supply chain

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: The Biden administration announces $3 billion in grants to build out an ​“end-to-end supply chain” for electric vehicles, seeking to challenge China’s dominance of the sector. (Associated Press)

NUCLEAR: As it seeks to meet growing energy demand for AI technologies, Microsoft announces a 20-year power purchase agreement that will revive Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear plant. (Bloomberg, New York Times)

OIL & GAS:

• John Podesta, the Biden administration’s top clean energy advisor, says the surge in U.S. oil and gas production has ​“been good for the American consumer and good for national security” while acknowledging the country needs to rapidly decarbonize. (Bloomberg)
• FERC Chair Willie Phillips says a federal court ​“erred” in throwing out the agency’s approval of the Transco natural gas pipeline. (E&E News, subscription)
• A Texas pipeline fire that’s been burning for four days finally goes out, as officials announce a criminal investigation into the car wreck that caused an explosion and the subsequent fire. (Associated Press, New York Times)

CLEAN ENERGY:

• Analysts say the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates this week will ​“jumpstart” clean energy projects that are ​“very sensitive to the cost of capital.” (Utility Dive)
• U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm calls Georgia the ​“tip of the spear” for the clean energy transition, citing its significant private sector investment in solar, electric vehicle and battery manufacturing that’s been driven by federal tax credits. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

SOLAR:

• An analysis predicts high energy prices will prompt nearly half of U.S. households to install solar by 2050. (Utility Dive)
• The costs of solar energy and storage continue to plummet, and the world is on track to install 29% more solar capacity this year than last year, a think tank reports. (Vox)

GRID:

• The North American Electric Reliability Corp. says it ​“remains concerned” about whether there will be sufficient natural gas capacity to meet demand during extreme winter weather. (Utility Dive)
• A new report says PJM Interconnection could enable more battery storage by reforming a seldom-used interconnection process to fast-track new capacity. (Utility Dive)
• Federal regulators consider a proposal to craft rules for tribal nations looking to connect large generating projects to the grid. (RTO Insider, subscription)

MINING: The federal Bureau of Land Management finds a proposed Nevada lithium mine’s protection plan is adequate to avoid driving an endangered wildflower to extinction. (Associated Press)

CLIMATE: Researchers raise concerns about the potential for AI-powered chat tools to aid in the creation and dissemination of climate misinformation. (DeSmog)