Google wants to co-locate renewables with data centers

GRID: Google partners with a climate investor and a clean energy developer to build renewable power and storage projects co-located with data centers, with a goal of reducing the centers’ anticipated demand on the grid. (Canary Media)

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ALSO:

• The U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts nationwide power consumption will reach record highs this year and next due to growing demand from data centers, artificial intelligence, and homes and businesses. (Reuters)
• PJM increases its forecasted load growth in the winter and summer through 2045, largely because of data centers, with some states likely to struggle to build enough generation to meet demand. (Utility Dive)

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OIL & GAS:

• Exxon Mobil is designing a natural gas plant equipped with carbon capture that would not be connected to the power grid, and would instead send power directly to data centers. (New York Times)
• Texas researchers investigate a spike in Permian Basin seismic activity and its connection to oil and gas wastewater injections over the last 15 years. (Houston Chronicle)
• Observers say the U.S. Supreme Court appears set to rule in favor of a proposed Utah oil-hauling railroad and to limit the scope of reviews required under federal environmental law. (New York Times, Colorado Sun)

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POLITICS:

• President-elect Trump says his administration will expedite environmental permits for projects that invest $1 billion or more in the U.S., though a law professor speculates that likely means only prioritized consideration by agencies and not a bypass of environmental laws. (The Hill)
• A Democratic senator throws cold water on hopes of passing permitting reforms before the year ends, saying House Republicans want to go too far in retooling the National Environmental Policy Act. (E&E News)

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CLIMATE: Expressing concern for the state’s fossil fuel industries, two Pennsylvania lawmakers say they plan legislation to remove the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and require legislative approval for future agreements. (Indiana Gazette)

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WIND: A labor leader says Maine should reach out to other states to help support a deepwater port for offshore wind construction, after multiple attempts to secure federal funds have failed. (Maine Public)

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STORAGE: A Georgia company announces that its battery recycling facility will produce and market lithium carbonate — an important component in electric vehicle batteries that until now has only been mined. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

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EFFICIENCY: Milwaukee officials seek local manufacturing of highly efficient wall panels for prefabricated homes to resolve challenges of building net-zero modular homes for low-income residents. (Energy News Network)

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