Geothermal heats up

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.

OVERSIGHT

• The U.S. EPA is planning to delay enforcement of Biden-era rules requiring passenger and commercial vehicles to significantly cut tailpipe emissions from the 2027 through 2032 model years. (Reuters)

FOSSIL FUELS

• An examination of BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell’s advertisements shows they’ve claimed to be tackling climate change for the last 25 years while continuing to expand fossil fuel production. (Inside Climate News)

• Oil executive Harold Hamm’s support for President Donald Trump, which includes donations for the White House’s new ballroom, has earned him sizable influence in the administration. (New York Times)

• GE Vernova expects to end the year with a backlog of gas turbine orders that will take it into 2029. (Utility Dive)

• East Kentucky Power Cooperative applies for a $90 million grant from the Trump administration to extend the lives of two coal plants by converting them to run on either oil or natural gas. (WEKU)

POLICY

• House Republicans, with help from some Democrats, pass a bill that would require state utility regulators to consider the ​“reliable availability of electric energy” over a 10-year span, which some critics say will push utilities toward fossil fuels. (E&E News)

• The U.S. House votes to limit states’ abilities to use the Clean Water Act to fight pipeline development. (Bloomberg)

NUCLEAR

• California’s Coastal Commission greenlights Pacific Gas & Electric’s land-conservation plans related to its Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, clearing the way for federal licensing allowing the facility to operate for another two decades. (Los Angeles Times, Politico)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Global EV sales in November grew at their slowest rate since February 2024, with the end of U.S. tax credits and plateauing sales in China to blame. (Reuters)

GRID

• A new report makes the case for adding battery storage to data centers, saying batteries can provide reliable backup power and offset grid stress without the need for fossil fuels. (Inside Climate News)

• MISO approves $12.3 billion in transmission projects totaling nearly 2,000 miles across its central U.S. territory, around $5 billion of which will be expedited. (E&E News)

OFFSHORE WIND

• The Trump administration’s plan to reconsider and likely revoke permits for the US Wind development off Maryland poses an existential threat to the project and the company behind it, lawyers argue at a court hearing. (Maryland Matters)

UTILITIES

• New Mexico residents and advocates push back on private equity firm Blackstone’s proposal to acquire the state’s largest utility, saying it would harm consumers by enabling data center construction rather than supplying affordable power. (American Prospect)

• In Maine and other states, consumers see little relief from rising energy costs even as soaring bills inspire public outcry and promises of action by officials. (Stateline)

NEW FROM CANARY

• Chart: Geothermal energy is attracting more and more investment — Dan McCarthy

• Raya Power makes a solar-battery system you can put in your backyard — Jeff St. John

• The man behind the fall of offshore wind — Clare Fieseler

• FirstEnergy bribery scheme sank Lake Erie offshore wind, lawsuit says — Kathiann M. Kowalski