Dominion defends offshore wind

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WIND

• The Trump administration orders a 90-day suspension of construction of Dominion Energy’s nearly-complete offshore wind farms near Virginia and four other offshore wind farms over concerns they’ll interfere with military radar systems — just the latest move in the president’s sweeping campaign against the wind industry. (Virginia Mercury, Politico, Canary Media)

• Dominion Energy sues to restart construction, and a federal judge sets a mid-January hearing on the request to give the federal government time to present classified evidence about the stop. (Richmond Times-Dispatch, Virginian-Pilot)

• Apex Clean Energy completes the laying of foundations for a 13-turbine facility that will be Virginia’s first onshore wind farm. (Roanoke Times)

FOSSIL FUELS

• The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality approves an air quality permit for Dominion Energy’s proposed 944 MW gas-fired power plant, but state regulators suspend their previous approval due to significant community opposition. (WRIC, Virginia Business)

• The Tennessee Valley Authority announces it will add gas-fired turbines at a power plant near Memphis, Tennessee, bringing its total of new gas-fired construction to more than 3,600 MW. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

• The Trump administration has pushed to lift regulations on coal mining companies while neglecting a surge in black lung deaths and actively delaying a rule to increase prevention. (Kentucky Public Radio)

• Native American groups in South Texas campaign to preserve a newly discovered settlement site that sits among refineries and petrochemical plants near Corpus Christi. (Texas Tribune/​Inside Climate News)

• The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration releases a preliminary report on a coal miner who was killed in mid-December in a West Virginia coal mine. (WV News)

SOLAR

• Developers say a 90 MW solar farm in central Virginia that was approved by the county a year ago will begin construction in September of 2028, with commercial operation to begin in 2029. (Lynchburg News & Advance)

OVERSIGHT

• Democratic Virginia lawmakers push for the state to rejoin a regional carbon market after outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin spent much of his term trying to withdraw from it. (WVTF)

• Georgia Democrat Alicia Johnson is sworn in as the first Black woman to serve on the Georgia Public Service Commission. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

• Virginia Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger moves to create a new cabinet position to address rising power demand, costs, and the state’s mandate to shift to clean energy. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

• West Virginia closes its public comment period on Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s plan to triple the state’s generating capacity to 50 GW by 2050, largely with fossil fuels. (West Virginia Watch)

NUCLEAR

• Virginia residents try to stop the planned expansion of a high purity depleted uranium facility despite its $1.6 billion federal contract. (WJHL)

COAL ASH

• It’s been 17 years since the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston plant spilled more than 1.1 billion gallons of coal ash in Tennessee, which was followed by an extensive cleanup that led to widespread illness and death among workers. (Tennessee Lookout)

• Experts and environmentalists worry Alabama Power’s use of capped, unlined coal ash ponds threatens the biodiverse Mobile-Tensaw Delta, which drains much of Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. (Inside Climate News)

GRID

• West Virginia landowners fight NextEra Energy Transmission’s proposed 107-mile, 500 kV MidAtlantic Resiliency Link transmission line that runs from Pennsylvania to Virginia. (West Virginia Watch)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• A Virginia marina claims to be the only boat dealer in the U.S. that sells exclusively electric boats. (WHRO)

DATA CENTERS

• West Virginia lawmakers consider bills to give localities more say over data centers after passing a law last year that severely restricted their ability to regulate such facilities. (WV Metro News)

• A Virginia county board considers the permanent adoption of a zoning ordinance to require data center developers to obtain special-use permits. (Cardinal News)

UTILITIES

• J.D. Power names Chattanooga municipal utility EPB as the best midsize utility in the South for customer satisfaction for 10 years running. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

• A study finds more than 127,000 Kentucky households are behind on utility bills, with an average overdue debt balance of $549. (WUKY)

• Former Birmingham police commissioner Eugene ​“Bull” Connor leadership of the Alabama Public Service Commission in the 1960s and ​‘70s blocked rate increases and infrastructure construction in ways that opened the way for Alabama Power’s dominance today. (Inside Climate News)

COMMENTARY

• The Trump administration’s ​“pause” on permitting for offshore wind projects spotlights Virginia’s attempted shift away from fossil fuels to clean energy, amplifies the disconnect between state and federal policy, and injects more uncertainty into energy politics, writes an editor. (Cardinal News)

• An energy columnist still has a lot of unanswered questions about Virginia regulators’ decision to reconsider its approval of Dominion Energy’s gas-fired power plant. (Virginia Mercury)

NEW FROM CANARY

• How community solar turned a Superfund site into savings in Illinois — Kari Lydersen

• 10 big energy stories Canary Media is tracking in 2026 — Canary Staff