Federal Shutdown Hits U.S. Energy Operations
Widespread furloughs are underway at the federal agency charged with overseeing the U.S. nuclear stockpile. It’s the latest fallout from the government shutdown, now in its 20th day with no end in sight.
** The Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan received fresh nuclear fuel on Monday in what the facility’s owner called “a major milestone on the path to restarting” a permanently shuttered atomic station for the first time in the U.S.
** CenterPoint Energy, Inc. announced the sale of its Ohio natural gas Local Distribution Company business, Vectren Energy Delivery of Ohio, LLC, to National Fuel Gas Company, a diversified energy company headquartered in Western New York, for $2.62 billion. The assets include approximately 5,900 miles of transmission and distribution pipeline in Ohio serving approximately 335,000 metered customers.
Pipeline and Power Developments Impact the Midwest
** Summit Carbon Solutions is reassessing its long-planned Midwestern carbon capture pipeline, signaling that the project could proceed without North Dakota as a final storage destination. The company, headquartered in Ames, Iowa, has requested an amendment to its state permits that would remove language specifying permanent carbon storage in North Dakota, suggesting a major strategic shift in its development plans.
** The amount of natural gas pipeline exports to Mexico from the US jumped 25% last year compared to 2019. Exports averaged 7.5 billion vcubic feet a day in May, the most of any month on record as Mexico’s demand for natural gas, particularly in the electric power sector, increases.
Renewable Momentum Builds Nationwide
** Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has issued a temporary moratorium on new carbon capture and storage (CCS) well applications, citing the need for greater transparency and community engagement in the state’s growing carbon storage industry. The 12-page executive order calls for companies to work more closely with local governments and residents before submitting new project proposals.
** Teachers in Illinois public schools starting next year will be required by law to educate students on climate change, though the state hasn’t allocated funding to support the rollout.
**Amid soaring energy demands, officials in Arizona have approved a 2,000-acre solar project that will power thousands of homes, create jobs, and generate substantial tax revenue. The Phoenix Business Journal reported that the California-based venture Avantus Clean Energy will begin construction on the Pinyon Solar Project in 2026 and is expected to be finished by 2028. World
** According to national poll results, nearly two-thirds of Canadians (64%) support carbon removal initiatives, while four in five people (81%) find removals essential for the country’s strong and stable future.
Global Energy Shifts Continue
** Tesla has officially lost its global electric vehicle crown for the year. Through the third quarter of 2025, Chinese automaker BYD has pulled ahead of Tesla in pure battery electric vehicle sales, delivering 1.61 million vehicles to Tesla’s 1.22 million, according to data compiled by Chinese automotive blogger Tongkuai Shuchang.
**A group of miners was caught “red-handed” in an illegal excavation operation in Dhauj Aravalis, India, according to authorities on the scene, as reported by the Times of India. Officials seized a tractor trolley allegedly used for transporting mined materials from a protected zone