Good morning. Big news: UAE state-run developer Masdar has wrapped up fundraising for its 5.2-GW, 19-GWh “round the clock” solar-plus-storage system. Yes, you read those numbers right. The ginormous project is slated to come online next year, when it’s expected to offer 1 GW of baseload solar power. ☀️
P.S. In a recent send, we fell victim to a common cosmic misconception: The dark side of the moon does not, in fact, receive less sunlight than the side facing Earth.
— Molly, Carrie, and the Energy Central editorial team
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Heat waves hurt the grid in more ways than you might realize.
This summer, extreme heat is hitting the US—hard. Take the recent Western heat dome, which raised temps up to four degrees above previous records. That’s “extremely hard to do statistically,” Erik Smith, a climate data analyst at EPRI, told Energy Central. “And research says that we’re going to see a lot more of those types of record-shattering events.”
What this means for the grid: These unprecedented heat waves pile more demand on an already strained system. And in these extreme conditions, it’s hard to keep essential assets running.
The greatest challenge? Ensuring nuclear plants can keep on splitting atoms. They are “very risk-averse,” Smith told us. These facilities rely on nearby rivers, oceans, and lakes to cool off reactors (and discharge the leftover water)—so high temps can throw off the entire delicate equation. Just look at France, where nuclear plants are currently cutting production to avoid sending hot water into already hot rivers.
Other heat hurdles:
Solar generation suffers: You’d think that a scorching, cloudless day would yield plenty of solar output. But PV panels are designed to perform best at around 77 degrees Fahrenheit. For every degree above that threshold, power output drops by roughly 0.5%.
Storage capacity sinks: Lithium-ion batteries operate best at around 59–95 degrees Fahrenheit. Temps above that can reduce storage capacity over time. And when facilities turn up the AC to protect batteries, it reduces the overall output.
Extreme temps can also reduce transmission conductor capacity, age transformer insulation, and accelerate underground cable corrosion.
The best way to keep on generating gigawatts during extreme heat? Accurate and ample weather forecasting, which helps operators prepare for whatever comes next. (One bad sign: The Trump administration's National Weather Service staffing cuts are limiting the launches of trusty weather balloons…)
Right now, we’re in the midst of a strong El Niño, which brings a higher likelihood of searingly hot days—but also a silver lining: more predictability. “So there’s a lot more that you can do earlier on,” Smith said.
PJM’s 2028-’29 capacity auction missed the reliability target…and added over $6B in data center-driven costs.
What happened: The auction clinched over 138 GW of unforced capacity generation and demand response…but fell 7 GW short of PJM’s reliability requirement (marking the third-straight year with a deficit). Another triennial tradition: The auction yet again hit the FERC-approved price cap ($325/MW-day). This signals that “demand for electricity is growing faster than new power generation is being built,” PJM COO Stu Bresler wrote in a statement.
The (huge) data center piece: Surging demand from these facilities contributed over a third of the auction’s total capacity cost ($16.4B). Since 2024, data centers have added nearly $30B in such costs. One idea to shield other ratepayers: data center-specific auctions.
What’s next: To keep the country’s largest grid up and running, PJM has several fixes in the works. These include 1) a temporary interconnection fast-track for “shovel-ready” generation 2) an emergency backstop auction set for September and 3) a potential “Connect and Manage” process à la ERCOT.
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Major utilities are (reportedly) prepared to sign the White House’s data center pledge.
The details: Multiple “large” utilities are expected to ink the Trump administration’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge to combat data center cost-shifting, Politico reported. These would add to recent signatures from Montana, Wyoming, and Missouri’s GOP governors…who aren’t the only Republicans working to rein in data center expansion.
Republican backlash bubbles: A MAGA activist-founded group, Humans First, will lead protests against data centers in 37 states this Saturday. These include New York, which just enacted the country’s first state data center moratorium.
Utility pros: What do you think of state data center bans?
As brutal heat blankets the US, the DOE has deleted nearly 2K webpages with energy-saving tips.
The spark? On July 1, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told residents to set their thermostats to 78 degrees Fahrenheit (and help keep the city’s grid stable amid a vicious heatwave). This immediately triggered backlash…but the DOE itself has similar guidance. Or rather, had: That webpage seems to have vanished after Mamdani’s announcement.
Next: On July 2, the Trump administration rolled out proposals to rewrite efficiency mandates for home appliances. Days later, over a dozen more DOE webpages on energy efficiency went dark.
In sum: The agency appears to have scrapped a total of 1,662 webpages featuring tips to reduce energy use, according to a Guardian investigation.
Natural gas firm Williams has raised $5.3B for its 2.6-GW behind-the-meter pipeline.
Behind the money: The Blackstone-led investment will fund five Ohio gas facilities for power-hungry customers like data centers. The largest project, a 682-MW plant, is expected to come online in late 2028.
Other major money moves: Nuclear powerhouse Holtec has filed for an IPO, which could be valued at $10B…and next-gen geothermal developer XGS Energy is considering going public, too.
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Thanks for reading. TTYL!
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