/ Energy & Utility News

The Department of Energy informed staffers at multiple offices Friday that they’re likely to be fired or reassigned to another part of the department, federal employees told POLITICO’s E&E News.

“SCEP will be undergoing a major reorganization and your position may be reassigned to another organization, transferred to another function, or abolished,” a notice sent to a SCEP staffer said. “While no determination has been made concerning your specific position, it is likely that your position will be significantly impacted when these programs, projects or activities cease.”

Oklo Inc. has signed a landmark partnership with European nuclear developer newcleo to build and develop advanced nuclear fuel factories in the United States. This collaboration is a major move aimed at making America's supply of nuclear fuel much stronger and more reliable. As part of the deal, newcleo will invest $2 billion in these new fuel ventures through a connected investment fund. Additionally, a Swedish company, Blykalla, is expected to invest money as well and buy fuel services from the new facilities. Essentially, this agreement brings together major international partners and significant funding to quickly boost the U.S. ability to produce its own cutting-edge nuclear fuel.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ordered the Midcontinent grid operator to specify in its rules when and how merchant high-voltage, direct-current transmission projects are incorporated into its transmission planning models.

The 3-0 decision was in response to a complaint brought by Invenergy Transmission in August 2022 that centered on the Midcontinent Independent System Operator’s handling of Invenergy’s planned Grain Belt Express project. Invenergy’s complaint to FERC said that MISO failed to properly account for the Grain Belt project in its transmission planning process, potentially creating duplicative projects.

Residential electricity retail prices rose more rapidly than commercial and industrial prices from 2019 to 2024, according to a study released last week by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Nationwide, average residential prices jumped 27% to 16.5 cents/kWh in the five years since 2019 while average commercial prices increased 19% to 12.8 cents/kWh and industrial prices climbed 19% to 8.1 cents/kWh, the LBNL researchers said in a summary of the report examining factors that affect electricity prices.

U.S. grid investments are on the rise as power demand grows and network operators seek to upgrade and expand grid infrastructure to accommodate clean power and strengthen grid reliability. Grid investments are forecast to increase by 23% between 2025 and 2030, following a rise of 27% between 2020 and 2025, according to analysts at Wood Mackenzie.

A growing range of companies are investing in transmission, including private equity firms. Most transmission investments are guaranteed a rate of return by federal regulators, but margins can be higher for so-called merchant projects that provide returns based on power prices.

CenterPoint Energy will sell its natural gas distribution unit in Ohio to National Fuel Gas for $2.62 billion, as the U.S. utility focuses on its core regulated electric and gas operations in other states.

Shares of distribution company National Fuel fell 4.7% in morning trade on Tuesday and that of CenterPoint were down marginally.

Assets being sold include about 5,900 miles of transmission and distribution pipeline in Ohio serving about 335,000 metered customers, CenterPoint said.

American Electric Power (AEP), via its subsidiary AEP Transmission, has secured a $1.6bn loan guarantee from the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office to upgrade power lines in the US. This funding will be used to enhance around 5,000 miles of transmission lines across Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. 

The project involves replacing existing transmission lines with new ones capable of carrying more energy.

Earlier this year, AEP entered into a strategic partnership with KKR and PSP Investments to sell a 19.9% equity interest in its Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan transcos.

British Columbia intends to curb the growth of data centres, including those used for artificial intelligence, giving priority instead to natural-resource development projects competing for a limited supply of electricity.

A proposed law, introduced Monday, would free the Crown-owned utility BC Hydro from the obligation to supply electricity equally to all industrial customers. It would also ban cryptocurrency mining – another sector with large electricity demands.

The B.C. government is set to introduce legislation Monday to fast-track construction of a multibillion-dollar power transmission line to the north coast.

Energy Minister Adrian Dix says he expects the North Coast Transmission Line to break ground by the summer of 2026. The government is speeding the process in order to supply massive industrial projects that may or may not be built.

Michael Goehring, president and chief executive of the Mining Association of BC, said the NCTL project will tip the scales in favour of 15 critical-mineral and precious-metal projects that require certainty of electricity supply before they proceed.