Author: Erick Parel

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has directed a halt on new data center connections to the ERCOT grid pending a comprehensive audit of their energy use, water consumption, financing, ownership, and community impacts.

Energy News Beat This action, announced August 3, 2026, comes roughly three weeks after New York became the first state to impose a temporary statewide moratorium on new hyperscale data centers. It applies to projects seeking to interconnect with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) system and pauses related transmission planning work, including the […]

China Approves Eight New Nuclear Plants, Including Four With Hualong One 2.0 Tech

Energy News Beat China’s State Council approved the construction of eight new nuclear reactor units on July 31, 2026, during an executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Qiang. The projects, spanning four provinces, represent a total investment exceeding 170 billion yuan (approximately $25 billion) and continue the country’s aggressive expansion of nuclear capacity as a […]

Hormuz Tanker Traffic Stalls as Attacks Escalate

Energy News Beat Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has sunk to its lowest level in more than two months as attacks and threats intensify, leaving the world’s most critical oil chokepoint effectively stalled despite intermittent diplomatic noise from Washington. Ship-tracking data show vessel movements—including commodity carriers—plunged after a brief mid-June to early-July uptick […]

Qatar, Bessent Signal Progress on Short-Term US-Iran Deal — With Mixed Signals from Iran

Energy News Beat Oil markets swung lower on Tuesday as Qatar and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pointed to advancing mediation efforts aimed at a short-term arrangement between the United States and Iran, centered on reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The chokepoint, which normally handles roughly one-fifth of global oil and LNG supplies, has been […]

From Smokestacks to Solutions: How Standard Carbon is Decarbonizing Energy

Energy News Beat Natan Shahar, Founder & Chief Strategy Officer of Standard Carbon, stops by with solutions. What if the solution to the alleged climate change was hiding in plain sight—literally in the smokestacks of power plants, factories, and boilers around the world? On this episode of the Energy Newsbeat Podcast, host Stu Turley sits […]

Williams Cos. Reaches Deal to Buy Momentum Midstream for Up to $5.5 Billion

Energy News Beat Tulsa-based The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE: WMB) has signed an agreement to acquire Momentum Midstream in a strategic transaction valued at up to $5.5 billion, establishing a premier position in the Haynesville Shale to serve expanding Gulf Coast LNG, power, and industrial demand. The deal, announced alongside Williams’ strong second-quarter 2026 results […]

Europe Gas Buffer Hits 18-Year Seasonal Low with Little Upside Hope

Energy News Beat European Union natural gas storage inventories stood at just 57.15% of capacity as of August 2, 2026 (645.965 TWh), according to Gas Infrastructure Europe’s Aggregated Gas Storage Inventory (AGSI+). This marks the lowest level for early August in records dating back to at least 2009–2011, leaving the region with a thinner-than-usual buffer […]

America is watching the world’s movement to nuclear power generation

Energy News Beat ENB Pub Note: This article was originally published on America Out Loud, and we recommend reading and following Ronald Stein!  Most California politicians have hated the zero-emissions electricity generated by nuclear power since 1976, when they passed a moratorium on new nuclear power plants. Nuclear is the cleanest, safest, proven, least-emitting fuel of all, […]

Net Zero has hit the Bank of England, and they cut all support for coal. But the rest of the world increases use of coal and low-cost energy.

Energy News Beat The Bank of England is moving further away from thermal coal. From October 2026, it will no longer accept bonds issued by companies deriving revenue from thermal coal mining as eligible collateral in its lending operations. Commercial banks borrowing from the Bank (including major UK institutions) will not be able to post […]

The Iran War Spread to the Red Sea, and What is the Impact

Energy News Beat The conflict centered on Iran has expanded into the Red Sea, turning one of the world’s most critical energy corridors into a flashpoint with cascading effects on oil logistics, costs, and market dynamics. Energy analyst Anas Alhajji (@anasalhajji) captured the strategic stakes in a detailed August 3, 2026, post analyzing the Red […]