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Thirteen governors join forces to push Congress for faster, fairer energy project approvals.
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Good morning, happy Friday, and happy Halloween! 


It’s been an eventful week – Hurricane Melissa left a trail of destruction after a record-breaking rampage through the Caribbean, President Trump met with several leaders in Asia, including President Xi of China, with whom he negotiated a short-term deal to end the rare-earths roadblock, and then, of course, there’s the World Series…


One news item that caught our attention was SEIA’s announcement that the entire solar supply chain has now been reshored in the U.S., although it warns that “momentum isn’t guaranteed.”


Indeed, the current administration’s anti-renewable, pro-fossil fuel energy policies continue to be a source of concern for many, not least OpenAI, which recently warned the White House that China is far outpacing the U.S. in building new generation, which could give it the edge in the AI race.


Meanwhile, the latest UN report has some mixed news: while it now expects global emissions to fall to 10% below 1990 levels by 2035, the world nevertheless remains far afield of the 60% reduction target necessary to keep warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius; a separate report finds that global coal use hit a record high in 2024.


And, as the government shutdown passes the 30-day mark, at least one official is working overtime: HHS Secretary RFK Jr. has directed the CDC to study the potential harms of offshore wind farms. 


Read on for more.

Permitting Power Push


This week, a bipartisan coalition of thirteen U.S. governors sent a letter to key congressional committee chairs outlining permitting priorities and urging them to pass technology-neutral legislation to accelerate the development of critical energy infrastructure. Organized by the National Governors Association, the letter calls for federal permitting processes that are streamlined, transparent, and free from political or technological bias. Here are some highlights:

  • Speed and simplicity: Governors want federal reviews to happen in months, not years, by streamlining agency coordination and modernizing NEPA rules.

  • Building across borders: They’re calling for clearer pathways to approve interstate transmission lines that can move power where it’s needed most.

  • Unlocking next-gen technologies: The proposal pushes for updated rules to bring advanced nuclear and other low-carbon technologies online faster.

  • Cutting red tape, not corners: Governors also want to align Clean Water Act reviews and other permits to reduce duplication and delay.

⚡️ The Takeaway


A swirl of proposals. The NGA’s call is one of many signals that permitting reform is moving from talking point to action item. With governors from both parties representing all 55 states and territories on board, the message is clear: streamlining project approvals is a shared national priority. On Capitol Hill, lawmakers are racing to shape their own frameworks, with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) saying he’s “eyeing the end of the year” for his committee’s proposal as pressure builds to deliver results.

Back From the Core


The U.S. nuclear energy sector is experiencing a resurgence as major technology companies and utilities seek reliable, carbon-free electricity to meet skyrocketing data center and AI-related energy demand. Two recent deals are emblematic of this shift and illustrate how public policy, private investment, and technological demand are converging to revive dormant assets. Here’s a closer look:

  • Iowa’s nuclear comeback: Google and NextEra are reviving the 615-MW Duane Arnold Energy Center, shuttered in 2020, under a new 25-year PPA. Once operational in 2029, the plant will deliver steady baseload power to Google’s Iowa data centers and the regional grid—an investment expected to inject $340 million into the state’s economy.

  • A second chance in South Carolina: Santee Cooper and Brookfield Asset Management have signed a letter of intent to explore completing the 2.2-GW V.C. Summer reactors—one of the country’s most infamous stalled projects after $10 billion in cost overruns. If revived, it would mark one of the boldest re-entries into U.S. nuclear construction in decades.

  • Federal tailwinds: The DOE and FERC are pushing new rules to streamline interconnection for large loads and incentivize generation near AI and industrial hubs, setting the stage for a broader “nuclear-plus” wave of clean power investment.

⚡️ The Takeaway


Reactor revival. These moves build on last fall’s announcement that Microsoft and Constellation plan to restart the undamaged reactor at Three Mile Island by 2027. Together, they point to a growing trend: tech giants and utilities are repowering existing assets to meet the explosive energy needs of AI and data centers. If successful, these projects could steady electricity prices, bolster grid reliability, and reestablish nuclear power as a cornerstone of America’s low-carbon energy mix.


100 Hours of Power


It’s been a minute since we last checked in with Form Energy, which has been working to develop a grid-scale, iron-air battery capable of cost-effectively storing 100 hours of energy. The company has now deployed its first commercial installation at a multi-day energy storage project – the first of its kind – owned by Great River Energy, a not-for-profit wholesale electric power cooperative based in Minnesota.


Form Energy’s batteries can discharge for four days straight – far longer than lithium-ion systems – so this represents a major milestone in long-duration battery energy storage. While GRE’s 1.5 MW project won’t come online until next year, the installation is an important step toward offering a new tool for balancing the grid as AI-driven electricity demand accelerates.


The batteries were manufactured at Form’s West Virginia factory, which opened in the fall of 2024 and has manufactured about 100,000 electrodes this year – enough for initial commercial deployments.


However, surging demand from utilities and data centers has resulted in much higher near-term demand than the company originally planned for – as in, “more than what we were projecting building as a company for 2028, 2029, 2030,” according to CEO Mateo Jaramillo.




The company is now under contract for over 200 MW of capacity and plans to expand its facility to one million square feet by 2028. This means raising a lot of “infrastructure-type” funding, “a hurdle that often trips up companies building first-of-a-kind projects who find themselves somewhere between pilot and commercial scale – mired in the so-called ‘Valley of Death.’”


Jaramillo is optimistic, however. He notes that Form’s 100-hour batteries directly address a critical pain point for the AI and data center sector, where load flexibility is key, and that  utilities managing new AI-related interconnection requests see multi-day storage as essential to keeping large loads online during grid constraints. A Duke University study found that data centers face about 85 hours of annual curtailment risk – a window that aligns perfectly with Form’s storage duration.
Thanks for diving into the Developer Dispatch with us.
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