/ Energy News
Brookfield to Acquire Blackstone BESS Portfolio in North America
July 27, 2026
Brookfield Corp has signed an agreement to acquire AypaPower LLC from United States investor Blackstone Inc, which the Canadian investor said would give it a leading position in North America's battery energy storage system (BESS) market.
The transaction with funds managed by Blackstone Energy Transition Partners represents an enterprise value of around $7 billion and an equity value of $3 billion, a joint statement said.
FERC will impose reforms if PJM fails to adopt changes by September, chairman warns
July 24, 2026
The PJM Interconnection has until the end of September to agree to governance and stakeholder reforms or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will impose them, the agency’s chairman, Laura Swett, said Thursday.
“PJM is facing a grave legitimacy crisis,” Swett said at a technical conference FERC held on the grid operator’s governance issues.
Maritime provinces sign energy deal in PEI, consider regional electricity operator
July 23, 2026
The provincial governments plan to make a regional road map for electricity transmission by next spring and will consider creating an independent electricity system operator to manage power delivery in the Maritimes.
Meanwhile, the federal government announced $5.9-million Thursday to kick-start planning and technical work to build a pair of new undersea power cables from New Brunswick to P.E.I.
GE Vernova gas turbine backlog climbs to 116 GW
July 23, 2026
Strazik said GE Vernovaexpects its combined backlog of gas turbine orders and slot reservations to reach 125 GW by the end of the year.
GE Vernova is taking reservations for 2031 deliveries now and is on track to “be more than halfway contracted [for 2031] by the end of the year,” Straziksaid.
FERC eyes ‘grid-enhancing technology’ incentives: Chairman Swett
July 23, 2026
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has created a task force on “grid-enhancing technologies” to see how the agency can support them, possibly with incentives, FERC Chairman Laura Swett said Wednesday.
Utilities have proactively started using GETs — which include dynamic line ratings, advanced power flow controllers and high-performance conductors — and their cost-saving data is now available, Swett told the U.S. Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee during an oversight hearing.
Trump set to expand power cost pledge on data centers
July 22, 2026
President Donald Trump is set to unveil on Thursday a pledge backed by governors, lawmakers, utilities and data centerdevelopers aimed at shielding households from electricity costs tied to the AI boom, as he pushes to make the United States the global leader in artificial intelligence.
It extends Trump's original Ratepayer Protection Pledge from March to ensure the companies building and using data centers pay above and beyond normal rates so that costs are not passed on to average households.
Britain’s New Leader Starts With Electricity Tax Cut
July 21, 2026
Prime Minister Andy Burnham of Britain announced on Tuesday the elimination of value-added taxes on electricity, saying that the change would save households the equivalent of about $60 this year at a time of volatile energy costs.
The move, coming on Mr. Burnham’s second day in office, seemed intended to demonstrate his commitment to tackling high prices in Britain.
Data centers drove $6.3B in PJM capacity auction costs: market monitor
July 20, 2026
Data centers are responsible for $6.3 billion, or 38%, of the $16.4 billion in charges from the PJM Interconnection’s just-held capacity auction, Joseph Bowring, president of Monitoring Analytics, said in an email to Utility Dive.
In PJM’s last four base capacity auctions, data center-driven capacity charges totaled$29.4 billion — 46% of the $63.6 billion in total capacity charges in that period, Bowring said.
Yellowhead natural gas pipeline approved, ATCO’s Canadian Utilities says
July 20, 2026
Construction is poised to begin right away on a new $2.9-billion natural gas pipeline in central Alberta after the provincial power regulator approved the Yellowhead project proposed by Canadian Utilities Ltd.
It is expected to deliver over 1.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas, which the company said is equivalent to what Alberta’s entire electricity system delivers on a peak day.
Enbridge starts construction on B.C. pipeline expansion for natural gas
July 20, 2026
Enbridge Inc. has started construction on the $4-billion expansion of its pipeline system for transporting natural gas in British Columbia, with Ottawa touting the economic spinoffs from Canada’s energy industry.
The pipeline expansion project could be in service by late 2028 and will utilize Canadian-made steel, led by InterPro Pipe and Steel in Saskatchewan.
New Mexico Denies Gas Pipeline Permit for Oracle Data Center
July 16, 2026
New Mexico regulators have rejected applications for a natural gas pipeline across state lands for a second time, citing it would not be "in the best interests" of the state.
The decision threatens to delay Oracle's proposed data center, Project Jupiter, which would be driven by gas-powered fuel cells and has prompted strong local opposition over environmental concerns.
New Jersey law will let data centers pay for home energy upgrades
July 16, 2026
Last week, Gov. Mikie Sherrill (D) signed a bill that will create a first-of-its-kind program to incentivize data centers to secure clean capacity by reducing demand elsewhere on the grid. Data centers will be able to pay for households to replace their energy-hogging electric-resistance space and water heaters with much more efficient electric heat pump appliances — or to install rooftop solar and batteries.
France, Morocco plan direct electricity link
July 16, 2026
France and Morocco called for expressions of interest on Thursday in an electricity interconnection project linking the two countries as part of broader efforts to strengthen energy ties between Europe and North Africa, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said.
The project was one of "ambitious economic projects that create new synergies between our companies and allow us to further integrate Morocco and France into shared value chains," Lecornu told reporters at the end of a Franco-Moroccan high-level meeting in Rabat.
New York becomes first state to impose moratorium on data center development
July 14, 2026
New York has halted construction of large data centers for one year as it assesses the environmental impact of such facilities, becoming the first state to impose such a moratorium in the country.
Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order Tuesday that targets the development of new hyperscale data centers — massive facilities designed to support artificial intelligence and cloud computing infrastructure.
Illinois governor signs laws on utility bill transparency, financial assistance
July 14, 2026
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, D, signed several pieces of energy legislation into law last week, including new rules around utility bill transparency, need-based financial assistance and renewables.
Notably, HB 5524 requires the state Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability to compile a report detailing the charges that appear on a residential customer’s monthly electric bill, including the statutory authority for the charge, the entity to which the charge is remitted, any services supported by the charge and the full amount collected annually from the charge in 2025.