Canary Media examines a solution for the added demand that AI data centers are bringing to the grid. The key point is that, except for certain peak times, there is ample generation capacity on the grid to support projected demand. By having AI data centers invest in battery storage, those systems will be available when demand peaks. Of course, it would also help if the Trump Administration stopped canceling permits and otherwise interfering with the build-out of renewable energy as reported by The New York Times. ‟More than 60 large wind and solar farms under development on federal lands, such as Jackalope Wind, are being stymied. But the administration is also holding up hundreds of wind and solar projects on private land that require federal consultations.” Canary Media notes how expanded renewables in Texas have helped stabilize the grid and prevent blackouts even during major storm events that previously caused problems.

In another edition of Trump’s efforts to increase fossil-fuel pollution, Inside Climate News describes how the clean school-bus program at the EPA is being “revamped” to support fewer electric school buses. ‟Under the Biden administration, the Clean School Bus program funded replacement of 8,900 school buses in 1,300 school districts, 95 percent of them zero-emission battery electric vehicles. The Biden administration made $965 million available when the most recent round of funding opened in the fall of 2024, doubling the offering of the previous year, when applications far surpassed the money available. Applications closed just before Trump took office in January 2025.” Trump’s EPA has announced that the applications from the fall of 2024 will not be considered, and that the EPA will be encouraging school districts to buy buses that burn natural gas. ‟Demand for clean school buses has been high, and hundreds, if not thousands, of school districts waited for over a year only to recently discover their applications would not be honored.”

Utility Dive reports that the federal government has canceled a $1.8 billion clean-energy loan commitment to Arizona Public Service, the largest investor-owned utility in that state. The loan would have helped finance the utility’s “new or upgraded transmission projects, renewable power generation, and grid-integrated energy storage systems.” Unfortunately, this is but one of over $83 billion in Biden-era loan commitments that have been “restructured, revised or eliminated.”

While EV demand has slowed some in the U.S., in large part to the hostile actions of the Trump Administration, the number of high-performance charging stations continues to grow. Canary Media notes that the U.S. fast-charging network expanded by 30% in 2025, with more charging stations and also more ports per station. The industry is also doing a better job of maintaining the charging network through improved design and remote diagnostics. This growth was driven almost entirely by private investment. Tesla continues to be the largest charging network, as it accounted for almost one-third of the growth in 2025. This is good news for the company, as The Washington Post describes how Elon Musk’s political activities have otherwise been damaging Tesla sales and the Tesla brand. ‟Overall, Tesla’s profits were down 46 percent in 2025.”

Canary Media describes how, during the recent cold weather in the northeastern United States, offshore-wind power plants were vital in helping keep the lights on, underscoring the foolishness of Trump’s crusade against offshore wind. ‟Federal officials are calling for additional fossil-fueled power to prevent future winter blackouts, all while trying to block the build-out of offshore wind, one of the most valuable resources for cold-climate coastal states. The data from January shows that the nation’s two operating utility-scale offshore wind farms — South Fork Wind and Vineyard Wind — performed as well as gas-fired power plants and better than coal-fired facilities.”

An article in The Atlantic describes the extraordinary conditions unfolding in the Colorado River basin. An extreme snow-drought is in progress, with the amount of water stored in the snowpack the lowest it’s been at this point in winter since comprehensive measurements began in 1987. ‟That snowpack forms the headwaters of rivers including the Colorado, the Rio Grande, and the Arkansas. And the Colorado River feeds the two largest reservoirs in the United States: Lake Powell and Lake Mead. Both reservoirs are critically low and have been for years: Powell is about 25 percent full, and Mead is at about 34 percent. If Powell’s water level drops another 40 or so feet, which it could this year, there won’t be enough water to generate hydroelectric power at Glen Canyon Dam. Water managers are starting to worry about ‘dead pool’ too, in which the lake will get too low to let water flow through Glen Canyon toward Lake Mead; they are likely to reduce water flow out of Powell this year to avoid it.” Grist reviews the conflicts among states that use the water, and how high-stakes legal action appears inevitable.

Canary Media reviews some of the latest thermal-battery systems, where off-peak electricity is used to heat materials such as bricks that can then heat air to the high temperatures (1,800°C) required for industrial processes such as cement and steel manufacturing. ‟By banking low-cost renewable power from the grid, the firms aim to deliver heat that’s even cheaper than fossil gas — a formidable challenge for projects in U.S. regions where gas is abundant and inexpensive.” To be successful, these projects need to be able to purchase electricity when supplies exceed demand and prices are low. This will require regulatory changes that allow industrial users direct access to wholesale electricity markets, rather than buying their electricity at retail rates.

Meanwhile, research continues globally to discover or refine different battery chemistries that might excel in particular applications. TechSpot describes research on a nickel-iron battery, a design first examined by Thomas Edison. Using nanotechnology, a fast-charging and durable battery has been developed. ‟Although the capacity of this new design still lags behind the lithium-ion batteries that power modern electric vehicles, its combination of exceptional cycle life, rapid charging, and low-cost fabrication makes it a compelling candidate for grid-scale applications.”

Grist describes how solar-power plant construction is becoming more environmentally friendly, as developers design and build these facilities in ways that minimize disturbances to ecosystems. ‟Instead of bulldozing and grading a site, companies are building solar arrays in more accommodating ways, including seeding soils with native grasses and flowers. This technique is being called ecovoltaics, and has the potential to bolster regional biodiversity and ecological resilience.”

Canary Media describes the remarkable rise in grid battery storage in the U.S. ‟Less than a decade ago, the sector was little more than an intriguing possibility. Energy storage in America mostly meant massive, decades-old pumped-hydro storage projects and a handful of small lithium-ion battery plants. In 2017, only 500 megawatts of grid battery capacity was online in the U.S.; now, there are individual battery installations larger than 500 MW. Still, the sector had big expectations for itself back then: In 2017, the Energy Storage Association set a goal of reaching 35 GW of storage capacity by 2025. Last year, the sector smashed that goal, hitting it in July and ending the year with nearly 45 GW of installed capacity.”

Canary Media reports on a major battery installation that is being proposed in the Boston area. It will be one of the largest batteries in the country, and the largest in New England. The project will enhance the reliability of the regional grid, and serve the growing electrical needs of the Boston area without having to build costly new transmission lines. ‟In fact, energy storage has already helped defer the need for costly, slow-moving transmission upgrades in Australia, Europe, and South America. But it hasn’t yet caught on in the U.S.”

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