White House advisers call for transformer reserve

GRID: A White House infrastructure advisory council calls for the U.S. to build a “strategic virtual reserve” of electric transformers to help speed electrification efforts. (Utility Dive)

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ALSO:

• Rising AI use, coupled with building and vehicle electrification, are set to drive U.S. electricity demand up 13% over the next 20 years, a consulting firm estimates. (Axios)
• A study finds heat pumps, rooftop solar and other clean energy and efficiency measures have helped operators balance the Pacific Northwest’s grid. (OPB)
• Some conservationists say a planned Maryland power line project would undo “hard-won” protections on thousands of acres of state park and nature preserve land. (Bay Journal)

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EMISSIONS:

• Federal officials look to carbon markets to fund overseas climate and clean energy projects, though the markets have often overestimated offsets, discrediting their climate bonafides. (E&E News)
• Data center emissions from Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft are likely more than seven times higher than the companies report, according to a news organization’s analysis. (The Guardian)
• Four Ohio cities will use $10 million in Inflation Reduction Act funding to develop new voluntary building performance standards and a resource hub to connect commercial building owners with services and incentives to cut energy use and emissions. (Energy News Network)

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TRANSITION: The future of vice presidential candidate JD Vance’s hometown may hinge on a $500 million federal grant to help the city’s steel plant build a massive hydrogen-powered furnace to replace coal — though the company is considering abandoning the funding. (The Guardian, Politico)

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OIL & GAS: Lake Charles, Louisiana, has become the locus of America’s natural gas industry, but its location between Houston and New Orleans exposes it to the brunt of climate change. (The Guardian)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• GM is reportedly in talks to buy electric vehicle batteries that use technology from a Chinese company but are produced in the U.S., similar to rival Ford’s EV battery plan. (Reuters)
• Virginia moves haltingly toward vehicle electrification, with Volvo and other manufacturers moving to add EV lines even as Republicans try to decouple the state from California EV goals. (Virginia Mercury)

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ELECTRIFICATION: California advocates call on Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a bill that would allow utilities to electrify entire neighborhoods rather than replace costly natural gas lines. (Canary Media)

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POLITICS: Oil industry leaders say they’re disappointed with former President Trump after he made an “incoherent” case for continued fossil fuel use at last week’s debate. (Politico)

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