Electric Utilities

The?U.S. The?U.S. Navy will escort ships?through the Strait of?Hormuz, possibly with an international alliance, when it's militarily feasible, U.S. Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent said in an interview with Sky News on Thursday. Bessent stated that he believed the US Navy would escort vessels through as soon as it was militarily possible. He said that the plan to escort ships would be implemented as soon as "the U.S. had complete control over the skies" and the Iranians' ability to rebuild their missiles was completely degraded. U.S., Israeli and Iranian strikes on Iran have escalated regional tensions. The response from Tehran has...

Kathy Hochul, the New York governor, opposes Trump's campaign to restart an nuclear power plant just north of New York City, her office said this week. Days after?the?U.S. The energy secretary visited to encourage the plant's reopening. The U.S. is experiencing a surge in power demand for the first decade, thanks to the explosion of AI data centers. To meet this demand, President Donald Trump set the goal that the U.S. quadruple its nuclear power capacity by the year 2050. Ken Lovett is Hochul's senior communications advisor on Energy and Environment. She said that the governor had made it clear...

Ursula Von der Leyen,?EU?chief, said that reducing?Europe's nuclear sector was a'strategic error'. This came as the governments struggled to cope with a severe energy shortage caused by the Iran War. The EU Commission President told a Paris event that Europe used nuclear energy to produce around a third in 1990. That number has now dropped to 15%. This leaves Europe reliant upon oil and gas imports, whose prices have risen in recent weeks. Von der Leyen said that Europe was at a disadvantage compared to other regions because it is "completely dependent on expensive and volatile fossil fuel imports". "This...

Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission, said that the decision to reduce nuclear energy's share in the mix of electricity production?in Europe was a strategic error. She said in a speech in Paris at a nuclear energy event that "this reduction in nuclear share was a decision, and I believe it was a mistake for Europe to turn its back on an affordable, reliable source of low-emission power." She said that in 1990, the EU relied on nuclear power for a third of its electricity. Now, it's only about 15%. She added that the European Union wants...

The parent company of Southern California Edison, which is based in Los Angeles, won the dismissal of a lawsuit that alleged 'it defrauded shareholders prior to wildfires in the Los Angeles area on January 2025 by claiming it had reduced the risk of loss from such catastrophes. Edison International was accused by shareholders of being "structurally incapable" to deal with extreme weather and implement the Public Safety Power Shutoff Program, which is a last resort measure to shut down powerlines when fire risk becomes too high. Shareholders also claimed Edison "falsely" promised that the program along with hardening electricity lines...

Southern California Edison's parent company won the dismissal of a lawsuit alleging that it defrauded its shareholders before?the wildfires in January 2025, by claiming to have significantly reduced losses due to such disasters. Edison International was accused by shareholders of being "structurally incapable" to deal with extreme weather and implement the Public Safety Power Shutoff Program, which is a last resort measure?to safely shut down powerlines when fire risks become too high. Shareholders also claimed that Edison falsely stated the program could, along with hardening of power lines and trimming vegetation reduce?wildfire risks by up to 90%. Edison's stock price...

The companies announced on Monday that the lithium developer, 'Controlled Thermal Resources' (CTR), will be listed in america through a $4.7billion merger with a blank-check company called 'Plum Acquisition Corp.?IV. After years of low activity on Wall Street, deals by special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) are resurging as companies turn to alternative routes to list. CTR, a lithium and 'geothermal energy developer, said that the deal would allow it to progress 'its flagship Hell's Kitchen Project and begin stage 1 construction. The stage 1 construction is located in California's Imperial Valley and will include a lithium carbonate production facility with a...

The national electricity union UNE?said that a power outage had struck a majority of Cuba including Havana's capital on Wednesday. This was as the island's socialist-run government 'faces 'increasing' pressure from the Trump Administration. Cuba experienced several major blackouts over the past few years, before the U.S. stopped oil shipments. Cuba's government has blamed its economic crisis on decades of?economic?sanctions imposed by the U.S. The current shortages have been exacerbated by the recent scarcity of oil due to U.S.-imposed pressure from Venezuela and Mexico. The UNE electricity 'union' said that it was working on restoring services and that the 'blackout'...

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced on Wednesday that it has approved the construction of a small nuclear reactor in Wyoming, backed by Bill Gates. TerraPower's 345 megawatt sodium-cooled Kemmerer reactor was approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, marking the first commercial reactor approval in almost a decade. The reactor is to be constructed near a coal-fired power plant, and will become operational in the early 2030s. TerraPower announced in a press release that it will begin construction within the next few weeks. The NRC stated that the plant includes a system of energy storage to temporarily boost output up...

Italy's Energy Minister?said Wednesday that the country could reactivate some coal-fired?power stations if conflict in?the Middle East leads to an energy shortage. Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, Minister of Energy and Environment in Italy, said that "there are coal-powered stations in Italy that I would not like to reactivate. But they're there in reserve for our country." Israeli and U.S. Forces?struck Iranian targets on Tuesday. This prompted Iranian strikes against energy infrastructure in other Gulf States considered U.S. Allies in a area that accounts for just under a third global oil production. Iran also targeted tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Through...

The European Union treads a thin line when it comes to plans to introduce "Made in EU" rules for the bloc's automotive industry. It wants to revitalize local manufacturing without damaging relationships with major trading partners. Plans, which are due on Wednesday, as part of an 'effort to boost EU Industry more broadly,' are complicated by a division between the member states. France takes a more protective line, while Germany is more concerned about possible retaliation. Automakers who rely on non EU supplies, or have large operations in non EU countries, such as Ford and Jaguar Land Rover that lobby...

The Delaware Supreme Court approved on Friday the 'billionaire bill', which would limit lawsuits filed against powerful business leaders. According to the law SB?21?, if a deal has been approved by either a board committee with a majority independent directors, or by a vote of public shareholders, then investors can't challenge it in court. Prior to this, both steps had to be taken and the board committee must have been made up entirely of independent directors. The bill makes it more difficult to challenge the independence of a director and limits what records are available to shareholders looking to check...

Dan Lipman, the president of global business initiatives for 'Westinghouse', said that Japan and the United States have reached an agreement on their respective responsibilities in a possible?joint project between Westinghouse and Japanese manufacturers of nuclear power equipment. On Saturday, Dan Lipman, president of?global business initiatives at?Westinghouse's told? Sources told us this month that Japan and the U.S. were working together to include a nuclear project as part of a second tranche of deals in Japan's $550 billion investment package. The deal will involve Westinghouse. As nations seek to increase their domestic energy resources, the momentum for building nuclear facilities...

Tokyo Electric Power announced 'on Friday that it is likely to delay the start of commercial operations at the 'Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear power station due to a minor leak in electricity transmission. TEPCO announced that it has decided to suspend?from the No. 6 reactor of the plant. The electricity leak was detected by an alarm in the reactor No. A spokesperson for the utility said that the utility had planned to restart commercial operations on March 18, but needed time 'to investigate the issue.' It is unclear how long this delay will last. The spokesperson stated that the reactor showed...

Kim Jung-kwan, South Korea's Industry Minister, said that Seoul was 'in talks' to invest in a nuclear project in the United States. This is part of Seoul’s pledge of investing $350 billion into U.S.-based projects. Seoul is scrambling to review its deals with Washington, after U.S. president Donald 'Trump' threatened to increase tariffs on goods imported to South?Korea by 25%. He blamed a delay of the Asian ally in implementing a trade agreement agreed last year. Kim responded to a question from a member of the parliamentary committee about Korea's potential investments in U.S. nucleopower plants by saying, "We are...

Is this the Art of the Deal, Gregor Stuart Hunter? U.S. president Donald Trump warned that trade partners should not "play games" and back out of recently agreed trade agreements after the Supreme Court ruled against his 'emergency tariffs. Some foreign governments want to check if they still have the same terms that were originally negotiated. Trump will "come out smokin'" in his State of the Union Address on Tuesday, after the tariff setback. He may even take aim at the Supreme Court Justices who are seated there. However, governments in Asia still have concerns. Japan wants to know if...

Prices for two rare earths that are crucial to making super-strong magnets used in EVs or defence equipment have risen on the back of a?firm supply and a?firm demand. This is above an unprecedented price floor set by the U.S. As long as the price of MP Materials' neodymium & praseodymium remains above $110 per kilogram, the U.S. Government will not be required to subsidise the company. The price increase to $123 per kg, which is the highest level since July 2022 will also help other rare earth companies that Western governments are hoping will be able reduce their reliance...

A Trump administration official who is familiar with the plan revealed that President Donald Trump will launch a?strategic critical minerals stockpile? with $12 billion of seed money from the U.S. Export-Import Bank. The investment is a 'last ditch effort by Washington to counter what they perceive as Chinese price manipulation for minerals such as lithium, nickel, and rare earths, which are vital to items like electric vehicles, high-tech weapons, and many other products. Bloomberg News reported that the project, Project Vault will combine private financing with a $10 Billion loan from the EXIM Bank in order to stockpile minerals for...

Tokyo Electric -Power announced on Thursday that its subsidiary TEPCO Power grid will "sell" up to 26 million shares of its Kandenko affiliate as part restructuring efforts to improve the financial health of its company and pursue growth. The sale of shares, which is valued at approximately 150 billion yen (979 million dollars) based on Kandenko’s closing price on Thursday, forms part of Tepco’s plan, announced on Monday, to raise?about?200 billion yen by selling assets over the next three-year period. Tepco stated that the proceeds will be used to?capital invest in order to maintain a stable supply of electricity and...

On Saturday, almost 4,000 flights in the U.S. were cancelled ahead of a monster storm that already has?cut off power to thousands utility customers as far as Texas? and threatens to paralyze east states with heavy snowfall. Forecasters predicted that a monster winter storm, which has already 'cut power to thousands of utility customers as far west as Texas,' and threatened to paralyze eastern states with heavy snowfall, will sweep across the eastern two thirds of the country on Sunday, and continue into next week. Donald Trump, who called the storms historic, approved federal disaster declarations on Saturday in South...

Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO), after completing inspections, will restart a reactor on Wednesday at the?Kashiwazaki - Kariwa?nuclear plant. This is its first move of this kind since the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. TEPCO announced that it would bring online the 1,36 gigawatt reactor (GW) No. 6 after 7 pm (1000 GMT). The reactor No. 6, which is one of seven in Kashiwazaki-Kariwa's nuclear power plant, can produce 8.2 GW at full capacity. TEPCO investigated an alarm malfunction. TEPCO reported that the equipment was working normally as of early Wednesday morning. Reactor No. Reactor No. Reactor No. Reactor No. 7...

NHK, the public broadcaster, reported Monday that Tokyo Electric Power has delayed its'restart of Kashiwazaki and Kariwa nuclear power plants, which was originally scheduled for 'January 20th. TEPCO would have had to restart its reactors for the first time since Fukushima Daiichi was struck by a powerful tsunami in 2011. The company planned to restart Unit No.6 in Kashiwazaki Kariwa on January 20th and Unit No. The company had planned to restart Unit No.6 at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa on Jan 20 and Unit?No. NHK, citing its sources, stated that the delay was caused by an alarm malfunction which occurred during equipment tests...

The nuclear watchdog in Japan said that it will order Chubu Electric Power on Wednesday to submit a report detailing?falsified data? and pause the review of its utility's application?to restart?its only atomic power plant. The Nuclear Regulation Authority in Japan (NRA) warned that it would take a harsh action against Chubu Electric after discovering the utility had manipulated data used for the reviews of its No. The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) of Japan had?previously?warned against a severe response towards Chubu Electric, including scrapping the review altogether after it was revealed that data used in the reviews of reactors No. Hamaoka,...

Experts say that the Japanese plan to grant authorities the authority to order foreign investors retroactively to divest acquisitions aims to protect major companies and supply chains. However, it is unlikely to curb increased M&A activity, they add. Japan proposed Wednesday amendments to its foreign investment screening laws that would give authorities the option to force foreigners into selling investments they deem to be a risk to national or economic security. The proposals are part of a push by the Japanese government to reduce risks associated with a?an?inflow?of foreign money into Japan's economy and to maintain control over its key...