Yesterday, Trump signed a flurry of memos that directed federal funds to domestic energy infrastructure, including grid, coal, LNG, and petroleum assets. He cited the Defense Production Act, which is used to ramp up production of supplies deemed key to national security.

How it works: The DOE can now disperse funding laid out in last year’s One Big Beautiful ‌Bill toward sorely needed supplies, like gas turbines and transformers. The Trump administration has previously harnessed the same law for its “drill, baby, drill” agenda, including in a recent effort to revive an oil pipeline off the CA coast.

Why now? The Iran War is compounding consumers’ frustration over rising energy costs—an issue Trump campaigned on fixing. Now, the White House hopes that industry cash injections can ease the financial and regulatory gridlocks slowing US energy production.

Solar accounted for >25% of the overall rise, per a new IEA report, ahead of natural gas at 17%. The added solar generation (600 TWh) marked the largest recorded single-year increase for any electricity generation tech. Together, renewables + nuclear met nearly 60% of new energy demand. 

Meanwhile, battery storage claimed the crown as the year's fastest-growing power sector tech. Around 110 GW of new battery capacity came online globally, beating the biggest-ever annual additions for natural gas. Plus, last year offered some early evidence for the nuclear revival: Over 12 GW of reactors broke ground as momentum returned in several regions.

This spike is largely steered by the data center rollout, MISO claimed in a recent forecast. Under MISO's mid-case scenario, data centers would account for 20% of the region’s electricity by 2030 and 25% by 2040. Over 2026-2027, it expects 8-14 GW of new data centers. Most of this predicted growth is parked in the central region (IL, IN, MI).

The hedge: Limited transparency from hyperscalers makes these forecasts tricky, MISO said, and data center demand is ultimately "highly dependent" on AI finding routes to profitability. Similar uncertainty put a huge asterisk on a recent ERCOT demand forecast. Over the next year, the number of data centers that actually crop up will offer a critical peek into the future.

The product: The company’s perovskite-coated glass (placed on top of conventional silicon cells) can boost efficiency from 22% to 30%, per CEO Scott Wharton. That's a third more energy from the same footprint, with knock-on savings on land, labor, steel, and trackers.

The caveats: Panels currently churned out at the 65K-sq. ft facility are just a quarter of utility-scale dimensions. The factory’s annual capacity tops out at 40 MW, and durability—a historical weak point—still has to hold up in field trials with a "who's who" of US developers. Full-size panels are targeted for 2028.

Why it matters: US solar manufacturing has largely replicated what China already makes (on a smaller scale). Now, perovskites could help speed up the transition to domestic clean energy that’s independent of China's silicon supply chain.

The Houston-based enhanced geothermal developer hasn't disclosed share count, price range, or target valuation yet. But we do know that JP Morgan, BofA, RBC, and Barclays are joint lead bookrunners, with nine additional banks on the ticket.

Fervo aims to join a small cohort of geothermal companies on public markets. The also filing fits in with a broader investor pivot toward firm, low-carbon generation that can complement wind and solar. Now, the offering remains subject to market conditions and regulatory approval.

Want to dive into the promise (and challenges) of US geothermal? Check out our Power Perspectives episode featuring DOE leader Kyle Haustveit.

By the numbers: Exports for the “new three” industries (solar, lithium-ion batteries, and EVs) reached a record $21.9B, according to Ember analysis. Solar led the jump at 84% growth, followed by lithium-ion batteries (+69%) and EVs (+65%). 

The drivers? Elevated energy prices in the wake of the US-Israel war with Iran, plus shifting Chinese export rebates for solar and batteries. "This is just the beginning," said Ember senior analyst Euan Graham, pointing to months of unfolding knock-on effects from high fuel costs.