** In a surprise move, oil-and-gas giant ExxonMobil announced the acquisition of a privately owned company that produces a key ingredient used in lithium-ion batteries, The New York Times reported. The purchase offered an indication that the $470-billion company might be hedging its bets by investing in cleaner technologies viewed by many as the future of energy production and storage.
** More big oil and gas M&A may resume now that the Biden administration’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been replaced with new leadership, according to a long-time energy investment insider.
** Consumers Energy plans to sell 13 unprofitable hydroelectric dams it owns in Michigan for $1 apiece to a private equity firm, and the utility would then purchase the electricity back.
** AEP once again asks Ohio regulators for an additional $35 million from ratepayers to support two unprofitable coal plants, marking the utility’s first request since lawmakers passed a bill prohibiting bailouts for the plants.
** Entergy has proposed a $2.4 billion plan to build two gas-fired power plants in Texas, which could increase monthly bills for its ratepayers by $21.50 as critics argue the utility should consider more cost-effective options.
** A group of House and Senate Democrats say the Trump administration had “no legal authority” to cancel $4 billion of clean manufacturing grants issued under the Biden administration.
** A novel solar power project just went online in California’s Central Valley, with panels that span across canals in the vast agricultural region. The 1.6-megawatt installation, called Project Nexus, was fully completed late last month. The $20 million state-funded pilot has turned stretches of the Turlock Irrigation District’s canals into hubs of clean electricity generation
World
** Russia has revised up its September crude export plan from western ports to 2.1 million barrels per day (bpd), an 11% increase from the initial schedule, as drone attacks on domestic refineries reduce local demand for crude, two industry sources and Reuters calculations showed.
** A new report finds investors have committed $110 billion to 510 clean hydrogen projects worldwide.
** India is preparing to launch a national carbon capture initiative with substantial government incentives, as it seeks to balance rising energy demand with its climate goals while relying on coal, a senior official at India’s leading policy think tank said on Thursday.
** Brazil connected the northernmost state of Roraima to its national electric grid, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Wednesday, as he called for greater energy integration in South America. The connection of Roraima will save around 600 million reais ($111 million) per year in fuel costs for local thermal plants.