$3.1BTexas data center tax abatements statewide that shift infrastructure costs onto existing residents and school funding
My Take
What matters today, and why.
- FERC threatening PJM intervention means the federal government is about to override a consensus-governance model — and whoever controls the rewrite decides which load class pays for the generation gap data centers created.
- Drone strikes on Russian refineries and Hormuz shipping lanes are forcing a centralized-to-distributed infrastructure rethink — and every efficiency gain lost to redundancy gets billed to ratepayers before it ever becomes a defense budget line.
- Texas is finding out what Ohio already paid $1.5B to learn: data center tax breaks don't price the second bill — the one ratepayers get when grid expansion costs shift to the residential rate class because the operator that drove the load got the exemption.
— Julia Polk
Deep Reads
The few stories that actually move the picture today.
DC energy & gridGeneration shortfall drives capacity price spikes; ratepayers pay through higher bills.
Community-first data centersTax breaks shift infrastructure costs to schools, roads, and non-DC ratepayers.
Planetary & human healthIndustry liability shields prevent climate damage cost recovery from fossil fuel companies.
Cleantech & energy financeInstitutional consolidation concentrates grid control; refinancing risks threaten energy transition.
Circular economyPyrolysis facility diverts plastic from landfills; creates toxic emissions near communities.
New & Notable
Not the big news — the interesting one. Emerging, surprising, worth a look.
Scientists breeding disease-resistant American elms by deliberately infecting seedlings with fungus.
Hawaii launches nation's first citywide reusable foodware system with $3M in seed funding.
Also Tracked
A sample of what else is on the radar today.
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