Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has directed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study potential impacts from offshore wind on human health, including electromagnetic frequency from undersea cables. The move aligns with President Donald Trump's anti-offshore wind efforts and illustrates how he intends to leverage federal agencies to support his agenda. Industry advocates maintain that electromagnetic frequency from subsea cables does not present a risk.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has declined Tri-State Generation and Transmission's proposed High Impact Load Tariff, determining that the commission does not have jurisdiction over the proposed rules. The tariff was intended to address increased electricity demand tied to expected growth in data center development across the Mountain West region.

The "electron gap" between the US and China is widening as the latter scales investment in its electro-industrial stack, and the US must combat the issue by bringing at least 100 gigawatts of new capacity online every year starting in 2026, wrote OpenAI in a letter to the White House. It recommends expanding the Advanced Manufacturing Investment Credit, removing regulatory barriers and developing a skilled workforce.

The average cost of electricity varies from state to state, with Hawaii having the highest residential rate at 40.96 cents per kilowatt-hour. This infographic breaks down average costs at the state level, noting that states such as California, Massachusetts, Alaska and Maine also face high electricity costs while the opposite is true in Nevada and Idaho. The variation is attributed to multiple factors, including whether a state has ample natural resources or is subject to burdensome regulations.

The UN has forecast for the first time that global greenhouse-gas emissions will decline, citing government climate pledges. However, the UN says the reduction will be insufficient to prevent severe climate change and extreme weather, projecting a 10% decrease in emissions by 2035, compared with 2019, well short of the 60% drop needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The UN report highlights uncertainty regarding US emissions because of President Donald Trump's rollback of climate policies.

The Energy Department has updated the Loan Programs Office's loan guarantee rules, removing previous requirements for developers to engage communities and reduce emissions. It has also proposed new rules to support the Energy Dominance Loan Program, including provisions that would enable the LPO to increase its support for critical mineral initiatives. The LPO is already scaling its focus on critical minerals as seen by the Thacker Pass lithium project, but implementing the changes may be complex due to a lack of alignment on financing between the White House and Congress.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., has expressed optimism about comprehensive federal permitting reform, aiming to release a clear framework by year-end. Whitehouse is collaborating with Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, focusing on transmission infrastructure and emission reduction. Several governors have voiced bipartisan support for permitting reforms to address rising electricity demand and critical energy projects.

Maine and Connecticut have shared plans to jointly review clean energy projects, with the goal of accelerating renewables deployment and helping more projects qualify for federal tax credits before they phase out. The approach allows both states to evaluate the same project bids independently, potentially leading to more efficient and cost-effective projects.

Corning has opened the largest solar ingot and wafer factory in the US, the first such facility to open in over a decade. Located in Michigan and co-located with Corning's polysilicon manufacturing facility, the factory already produces thousands of wafers daily and aims to exceed 1 million per day soon. Corning has secured long-term supply agreements with Suniva and T1 Energy and has acquired a module assembly facility from JA Solar.

Every aspect of the US solar supply chain has been reshored, and manufacturing capacity is up across all segments, the Solar Energy Industries Association reports. Capacity for solar module production has surpassed 60 gigawatts, solar cell production capacity is up more than threefold and battery cell manufacturing has reached more than 21 gigawatt-hours. The momentum shows what can happen with investment certainty in place, but risks remain due to policies that deter domestic investment, hinder job growth and raise consumer costs.

Global oil demand is now expected to max out at 108 million barrels per day in 2032 -- two years later than previously anticipated, reports Wood Mackenzie. It attributed the shift to the ongoing use of hydrocarbons in transport and chemicals, as well as the growth of artificial intelligence and geopolitical tension. "Fossil fuels are no longer uncontested; they are being squeezed into narrower roles, but their decline is proving more gradual than expected," said the report.