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Opinion:

¶ “New Trump Nuclear Reactor Policy: ‘Trust Us'” • The Trump Administration is quietly dismantling safeguards for nuclear power and seeking to limit both transparency and public input. Trump’s Department of Energy wants us to blindly trust them to protect the public. But blind trust in federal agencies is in scarce supply these days. [Legal Planet]

Nuclear plant (Cüneyt Alan, Unsplash)

¶ “Trump Can’t Stop This: Renewable Energy Shatters World Records” • Renewable energy is not just surviving the second Trump presidency, it is racing ahead and setting records that would have seemed implausible a decade ago. The market shift toward cleaner power is proving far harder to reverse than the White House might have hoped. [MSN]

World:

¶ “Trump To Lower Tariffs On India After Modi ‘Agrees’ To Stop Buying Russian Oil” • US President Donald Trump said he plans to cut tariffs on goods from India to 18%, from 25%, after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil. Trump had been pressing India to cut its reliance on cheap Russian crude for months. [Euronews]

Narendra Modi and Donald Trump (White House, public domain)

¶ “EU’s Climate Goals At Risk Without China’s Critical Raw Materials, EU Auditors Warn” • The EU is struggling to diversify its supply of critical raw materials by the end of the decade, risking a successful energy transition and continued high dependence on China, according to a recently published European Court of Auditors report. [Euronews]

¶ “Europe EV Sales: Record Month!” • EVs had another strong month in Europe, with a record 453,000 plugin vehicles being registered in December. The previous record was 412,000 units. Of the new plugins 327,000 were battery EVs, which jumped to 57% year on year. That was their highest growth rate in over two years. PHEVs were up 34%. [CleanTechnica]

Dacia Spring (Dacia image)

¶ “Ontario’s Nuclear Rate Shock Reveals A Deeper Affordability Problem” • Ontario Power Generation has asked the Ontario Energy Board to approve a sharp increase in regulated nuclear payment amounts, including a year over year jump of more than 40% in 2027. The increase will add about $8 to a typical electric bill in the province. [CleanTechnica]

¶ “Lynk & Co 08 Achieves Guinness World Record by Reaching 293 Kilometers in 100% Electric Mode” • Lynk & Co has set a new Guinness World Records™ title with the Lynk & Co 08, achieving 293 km in fully electric driving mode, the longest distance by a plug-in hybrid SUV on record. The test was held at a racetrack in Toluca, Mexico. [CleanTechnica]

Lynk & Co 08 (JustAnotherCarDesigner, CC0 1.0)

¶ “Renewables Over 50% And Wholesale Prices Down – Is The Energy Transition … Succeeding?” • Ten years ago, if a heatwave as intense as last week’s record-breaker had hit the east coast of Australia, the power supply may well have buckled. This time, the system largely operated as we needed, despite some outages. It looks like success for clean energy. [The Conversation]

¶ “Prysmian Wins £2 Billion EGL4 Cable Contract” • Prysmian has secured a £2 billion contract to supply cable for the Eastern Green Link 4 subsea electricity project. The manufacturer will deliver over 640 km of cable for the 2-GW HVDC link between Fife in Scotland and Norfolk in England. The link is due to be operating in 2033. [reNews]

Cable workers (Prysmian image)

¶ “India Pours Over $10 Billion Into Rare Earths To Reduce Its Dependence On China” • India’s Finance Ministry has unveiled a budget proposal that will boost domestic rare earths mining and the clean energy sector as part of a broader effort to break global supply chain monopolies and achieve strategic self-reliance in critical minerals. [OilPrice.com]

US:

¶ “Another Judge Rejects Trump Effort To Block Offshore Wind, Says NY Project Can Resume” • Federal judge Royce Lamberth ruled that Sunrise Wind, an offshore wind project aimed at powering 600,000 New York homes, can resume construction, the fifth such ruling since the Trump administration halted the offshore wind projects in December. [ABC News]

Offshore wind farm (Karwin Luo, Unsplash)

¶ “Trump Goes Zero For Five Against Offshore Wind” • The Trump administration lost yet another legal battle in the US District Court for the District of Columbia. With this, all five of the stop-work orders for offshore wind projects were successfully challenged. Vineyard Wind was nearly 95% finished and already delivering power to the grid. [CleanTechnica]

¶ “Renewable Energy Seized 99% Of New Capacity Additions In 2026” • The US energy sector is at an inflection point that few analysts predicted even a decade ago. FERC data shows that 99% of all generating capacity added to the US grid in 2026 will be renewable. It is what industry experts describe as a fundamental restructuring. [WebProNews]

Vineyard Wind project (Courtesy of Vineyard Wind)

¶ “Enlight Begins Build At 1.2-GW US Hybrid Giant” • Enlight Renewable Energy has reached final development milestones for the CO Bar complex in Arizona, clearing the way for full-scale execution of its largest project to date. The five-stage complex will total 1.2 GW of solar capacity and 4 GWh of storage. It has a 1-GW interconnection agreement. [reNews]

¶ “Gas Explosion In New Hampshire Sparks A Fire At A Mental Health Facility” • A natural gas explosion in a building for mental health services in southern New Hampshire sparked a fire and forced emergency crews to warn nearby residents to evacuate the surrounding area. People in the near vicinity were urged to to extinguish burners all flames. [ABC News]

Have a delightfully affordable day.

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Science and Technology:

¶ “SpaceX Proposes One Million Solar Powered Data Centers In Earth Orbit” • SpaceX thinks it has an answer to the question of how to power data centers. On January 30, 2026, it filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission to launch up to 1 million solar powered satellites that will serve as data centers for artificial intelligence. [CleanTechnica]

Orbiting data center designs (SpaceX image)

¶ “New Pumped Hydro Energy Storage System Doesn’t Need Mountains” • Pumped storage has always required height. But there is a new type from the UK, where the startup RheEnergise has a compact system it calls HD Hydro. Short for High-Density Hydropower, it can be set up on low, hilly terrain, without the need for high, steep slopes. [CleanTechnica]

World:

¶ “This Hydropower Plant Provides 10% Of Brazil’s Electricity. So Why Has It Been Dragged To Court?” • Brazilian courts ruled that the Belo Monte hydropower plant has had environmental and social impacts “far greater” than originally forecast. Approval to build it was conditional. It had to have little environmental impact. It failed on that. [Euronews]

Belo Monte dam (Vice-Presidência da República, CC BY-SA 2.0)

¶ “Russia’s Energy Offensive Plunges Ukraine Into Dark And Bitter Cold” • In Kyiv this winter, the citywide hum of thousands of generators has dominated the soundtrack. Ivan Stupak, a former officer in the Security Service of Ukraine, described it to ABC News as a “modern symphony. Ukraine is still under attack by Moscow. [ABC News]

¶ “Venezuela’s First Shipment Of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Left Venezuela Bound For The US” • Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodriguez announced that the country exported its first shipment of liquefied petroleum gas to the US. This comes nearly a month after President Trump ordered his military operation against the country. [ABC News]

Tanker (Alexandr Popadin, Unsplash)

¶ “Dutch Plan CfDs For 40-GW Offshore Drive” • The incoming Netherlands government has vowed to introduce a Contracts for Difference scheme to power towards 40 GW of offshore wind by 2040. The new minority government has outlined a series of priorities in a coalition agreement including the commitment to invest in clean, domestic energy. [ReNews]

¶ “Vattenfall Removes Mines For Nordlicht Build” • Vattenfall has completed removal of three WW II mines from the 1600-MW Nordlicht offshore wind farm site after geophysical surveys found magnetic anomalies interpreted as possible unexploded ordnance. A remotely operated vehicle found each to have the equivalent of 200 to 300 kg of TNT. [reNews]

Nordlicht mine removal (Vattenfall image)

¶ “Iberdrola And Norges JV Hits 1.5 GW Of Installed Capacity” • Iberdrola and Norges Bank Investment Management have 1500 MW of operational renewable capacity in their co-investment alliance following the addition of the 330-MWCaparacena and 316-MW Ciudad Rodrigo solar plants. The partners said they are part of €2 billion of JV assets. [reNews]

¶ “Australian Renewables Exceed 50% Of Power Supply in Q4” • Renewable generation supplied over half of Australia’s electricity in the fourth quarter of 2025, driving wholesale power prices down by nearly 50% and coinciding with record battery output. Coal-fired generation fell 4.6% year on year, and gas-fired output was down 27%. [pv magazine International]

Solar site (Queensland Department of Energy and Public Works)

¶ “China’s Installed Solar Power Capacity To Exceed Coal For The First Time” • China’s installed solar capacity is projected to surpass coal for the first time this year. The China Electricity Council expects China to add more than 300 GW of renewable capacity this year, making China the premier powerhouse in the world’s renewable energy revolution. [China Daily]

US:

¶ “Tesla Semi Chargers Planned For Pilot Travel Centers” • Pilot is recognized as having the largest network of travel centers in North America, with over 900 locations. Pilot is working with Tesla to install Semi chargers in California, along I-5, the state’s major transportation artery, which spans the whole state from North to South. [CleanTechnica]

Tesla Semi on the road (Korbitr, public domain)

¶ “IBM Advances Quantum Computing With Nighthawk For Clean Energy Transformations” • IBM’s latest step in Quantum Technology is the Nighthawk processor, a recently unveiled 120-qubit (quantum-bit) system that now anchors the company’s roadmap toward fault-tolerant quantum computing. Nighthawk is engineered for scaling depth. [CleanTechnica]

¶ “Zelestra Seals PPA For 50-MW Gem City PV Site” • Zelestra signed a long-term power purchase agreement with AEP Energy Partners for the full output of the proposed 50-MW Gem City solar project in Dayton, Ohio. Zelestra said the deal will enable construction of the project, which is in advanced development and due to begin full works in early 2027. [reNews]

Solar farm (Zelestra image)

¶ “Palisades Nuclear Power Plant Enters New Phase Towards Reopening” • The Palisades Nuclear Power Plant is entering its final phase towards reopening. According to a spokesperson for Holtec, crews are finishing maintenance activities and returning systems and equipment to an operational-ready state. There is no firm restart date yet. [MSN]

¶ “Florida Urges Bureaucratic Behemoth To Unshackle Nuclear Power” • America First Legal, a conservative legal organization, filed a petition on behalf of the State of Florida and Last Energy, Inc, asking that the NRC change the classification of the energy company’s modular nuclear reactor design so that it falls outside the NRC’s licensing jurisdiction. [AOL.com]

Have an agreeably beneficial day.

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World:

¶ “Power Outages Hit Ukraine And Moldova As Kyiv Struggles Against The Winter Cold” • Emergency power cuts swept across several Ukrainian cities as well as neighboring Moldova, officials said, as a commitment came from the Kremlin to US President Donald Trump to pause strikes on Kyiv as Ukraine battles one of its bleakest winters in years. [ABC News]

Kyiv (Robert Anasch, Unsplash)

¶ “Canada And South Korea Discuss Trade Deal As BYD Eyes India” • Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told the world in Davos, “We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition.” He said that the middle nations, those not called the US, China, or Russia, will need to forge closer ties with each other. Meanwhile, BYD is eying India. [CleanTechnica]

¶ “A Balance Of Incentives And Penalties Works Best For Clean Energy Adoption” • World governments invest in fossil fuels for what they say is national security. But if the fossil fuel industry assumed the full cost of its impacts, rapid change in how the world consumes energy would take place, and the world would be a safer, healthier place. [CleanTechnica]

Oil refinery (Patrick Hendry, Unsplash)

¶ “What’s Stopping Sunny South Africa’s Solar Industry? Court Case Sheds Some Light” • A South African solar manufacturer, ARTsolar, is taking the government and some renewable energy developers to court. ARTsolar says it invested in manufacturing capacity because it expected the rules to lead to orders for locally made solar panels, but they didn’t. [The Conversation]

¶ “Pakistan To Receive $378.9 Million Loan From World Bank” • Pakistan is set to receive $378.9 million loan from the IBRD to improve its power transmission. The funding will be used for modernizing the transmission network to strengthen energy security, improve system performance, and support integration of renewable energy. [MM News]

Transmission lines (Matthew Henry, Unsplash)

¶ “CPRE Oxfordshire Starts Rooftop Renewables Project” • CPRE Oxfordshire started its Rooftop Renewables project to support communities in adopting home solar technology. The Warm Homes Plan announcement is expected to provide £15 billion to help UK households cut bills and carbon emissions through solar power and other green upgrades. [Oxford Mail]

¶ “Economic Survey Warns Of Cost, Grid As Key Challenges For Renewable Energy” • India must address challenges such as high capital costs, delays in acquiring land, and grid availability issues to sustain its rapid renewable energy growth, said the Economic Survey 2025-2026. The Economic Survey notes that the hurdles can be tackled with good policy. [MSN]

Indian farmland (Sandy Zebua, Unsplash)

¶ “The Key Energy Takeaways From Davos 2026” • The World Economic Forum set out a list of global risks ranked by severity as part of its Global Risks Report 2026. The first was long-term severe weather events, then biodiversity and eco-system loss. Critical change to earth systems was third. US President Trump pushed fossil fuels and nuclear power. [OilPrice.com]

US:

¶ “Elon Musk May Buy Another Election, Pitting Republicans Against Each Other” • Tesla CEO Elon Musk has a knack for putting himself in the media spotlight. Barely one month into the new year he has already hit the trifecta of sex, politics, and more sex. The retirement of Senator Mitch McConnell provides Musk with a political opportunity [CleanTechnica]

Elon Musk (Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0)

¶ “Utilities Challenge Coal Emergency Order” • President Trump declared an energy emergency as soon as he took office. But instead of ramping up support for the our most economical energy resources, wind and solar, the DOE issues orders to keep ancient, expensive coal power plants going. Utilities are starting to fight back. [CleanTechnica]

¶ “Aquifer Thermal Energy System Comes To Minnesota” • Air source heat pumps can struggle to provide heat in the coldest part of winter or even cooling in the hottest part of summer By contrast, groundwater stays at nearly the same temperature year round, making it far a more efficient thermal source for both heating and cooling. [CleanTechnica]

Using groundwater heat (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology)

¶ “Farmers Discover Staggering Benefits Of Pairing Solar Power With Agriculture” • In the small ranching town of Cokeville, Wyoming, two cattle producers are pushing back against soaring energy costs. For Tim Teichert and Jason Thornock, the solution isn’t abandoning agriculture, it’s pairing it with clean energy. The goal isto keep their ranches viable. [The Cool Down]

¶ “After Huge Snowstorm Penn Climate Scientists Warn About … Global Warming” • After the biggest snowfall in a decade, the U Penn student paper The Daily Pennsylvanian decided to ask Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Michael Mann, who said the recent snow makes “clear” the “impact of human-caused warming.” [The College Fix]

Have a comfortably relaxing day.

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