Today’s headlines: DOE funds Puerto Rico energy storage, and black lung rates surge

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.

WIND

• As a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s blockade on wind project development begins hearings in court, a federal judge suggests she’ll rule in favor of renewables developers. (Courthouse News Service)

GRID

• The U.S. Energy Department closes a $489 million loan for a subsidiary of developer Pattern Energy to build battery storage systems and pursue gas deployment to shore up the grid and lower power costs in Puerto Rico. (E&E News, news release)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Ford announces its next stab at an all-electric pickup truck, called Fathom, will start at $28,350 and feature bidirectional charging capabilities. (Axios)

POLITICS

• Two House Democrats look to hold Energy Secretary Chris Wright liable for lying to Congress after he denied that blue-state climate grants were canceled for political reasons — something the Trump administration has since admitted is actually true. (The Hill)

• Candidates who’ve voiced their opposition to data centers won Democratic primary elections in Michigan and Kansas this week. (Politico)

BATTERIES

• Experts say non-lithium-battery energy storage startups Hydrostor and Invinity Energy Systems are primed to secure major investments and construction contracts in the near future. (Latitude Media)

FOSSIL FUELS

• As Texas continues to build out tons of solar power and battery storage, state senators are considering requiring that a minimum amount of new generation come from gas. (Inside Climate News)

• A new medical study finds cases of black lung in U.S. coal miners are rising to their highest levels since the 1970s — a warning sign as the Trump administration tries to revive the coal industry. (NPR)