Plugged In | April 2026

Plugged In | April 2026

NCSL Webinar: The Grid Reimagined: Strategies for Accelerating the Adoption of Distributed Energy Resources

Description: Join us for a webinar in partnership with The Pew Charitable Trusts, which will showcase Pew's new report that lays out legislative and regulatory strategies to enable broad access to cost-effective, reliable DERs across the country. Join this conversation with leading policymakers and experts to learn about leveraging the power of a more distributed grid.

Source: NCSL

NCEP Annual Meeting: Collaborative Responses to Load Growth

Description: The National Council on Electricity Policy is hosting its annual meeting May 5-6 in Charleston, S.C. Join representatives from state legislatures, state utility commissions, state energy offices, consumer advocate offices, governors' offices, air quality agencies and others for discussions on how policymakers can work together on load growth issues.

Source: NARUC

Louisiana Rejects Eminent Domain Limits for Carbon Capture Projects

Description: A bill seeking to restrict the use of eminent domain for carbon capture infrastructure was rejected by the House Committee on Natural Resources and Energy, revealing the ongoing tension between industrial development and property rights.

Source: Carbon Herald

Iranian Hackers Launching Disruptive Attacks at US Energy, Water Targets

Description: U.S. government agencies have issued a joint alert 'urgently' warning that Iranian hackers are targeting industrial processes associated with critical energy and water infrastructure

Source: CyberScoop CyberScoop

DOE Offers $50M for Tribal Energy Projects

Description: The Department of Energy is offering $50 million in grant funding for projects that develop affordable, reliable, and secure energy for tribal nations. Individual projects are eligible to receive grants of up to $7.5 million each.

Source: Utility Dive

Texas Opens $350M Advanced Nuclear Grant Programs to Spur Reactor Buildout, Supply Chain

Description: Under the Texas Advanced Nuclear Development Fund, the state has opened applications for advanced nuclear grants aimed at reactor construction and supply chain development.

Source: Power

Hochul Announces $50M Expansion of Clean Energy Workforce Programs in New York

Description: New York will invest another $50 million into workforce development for career pathways training programs and skills training and upskilling programs for clean energy development.

Source: FingerLakes1.com

Tesla to Buy $4.3 Billion of LG Energy Battery Cells from Repurposed GM Plant

Description: Tesla will buy $4.3 billion worth of battery cells from a Michigan plant originally slated to produce batteries for General Motors to help scale its battery offerings.

Source: CNBC

FERC: 50 GW of Data Centers Online at End Of 2025, With MISO Seeing Strongest Growth

Description: According to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 50 GW of data centers were operating in the U.S. at the end of 2025 representing a 24% growth since 2020.

Source: Utility Dive

Anatomy of a Blackout: Findings from the Spain-Portugal Grid Collapse Final Report

Description: A 49-member expert panel investigating the power blackout of Spain and Portugal in 2025 released a detailed 472-page-report outlining the set of interreacting weaknesses in the grid that resulted in the blackout.

Source: Power