Coal for Christmas

This roundup of U.S. energy news headlines is part of our Canary Media Daily newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each morning.

STORAGE

• The U.S. installed 12.9 GW of energy storage through the third quarter of 2025, beating 2024’s total deployment of 12.3 GW. (Utility Dive)

OVERSIGHT

• The Energy Department’s inspector general will probe the Trump administration’s cuts to climate grants that primarily targeted states that voted for Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in the last presidential election. (The Hill)

• Justice Department lawyers acknowledged in a court filing this week that the states’ Democratic voting records are the reason their climate funding was targeted. (Washington Post)

SOLAR

• The Bureau of Land Management approved changes to the Libra Solar project in Nevada, marking the agency’s first signs of life on solar permitting in months. (E&E News)

FOSSIL FUELS

• A consumer advocacy group finds U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas have grown 22% this year, leading to a spike in home energy bills. (Inside Climate News)

• The Trump administration has reportedly asked U.S. oil companies whether they’d like to return to drilling in Venezuela, but most have said no. (Politico)

NUCLEAR

• Trump Media & Technology Group will merge with fusion startup TAE Technologies in a $6 billion, all-stock deal. (Axios)

• Nuclear-microreactor startup Radiant raises $300 million in its latest funding round, the latest in a series of funding announcements from the industry. (TechCrunch)

GRID

• PJM Interconnection’s latest capacity auction turns out record prices, meaning already-high power bills in the region will likely continue to rise. (Reuters)

• Nearly 3,000 data centers are under construction or planned across the U.S., with industry hotspots Virginia and Texas likely to see the most growth. (Axios)

• State legislatures have introduced nearly 200 bills this year targeting data centers, including legislation that tackles their high energy consumption, how they affect power prices, and whether to offer them tax breaks. (Latitude Media)

WIND

• A federal judge declines to issue an injunction US Wind was seeking to protect its Maryland wind farm from Trump administration attacks. (Maryland Matters)

EMISSIONS

• Tech giants, including Amazon, Google, and Meta, are sparring over how to tally carbon emissions associated with the power they buy. (Semafor)