The defining theme across today's announcements is that securing electricity, rather than securing chips or capital, is now the decisive limit on artificial intelligence expansion. Federal regulators moved to force the question into the open on the same day that developers raced to bring new generation online and one campus collapsed for want of power.
FERC orders all six US grid operators to defend or revise large-load rules
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission used its June 18 open meeting to issue tailored show-cause orders under section 206 of the Federal Power Act to each of the six regional grid operators it oversees, namely PJM, MISO, SPP, CAISO, ISO New England and NYISO, requiring them either to justify their existing large-load interconnection tariffs or to file reforms, as set out in the commission's own announcement. Each operator has sixty days to defend or revise its rules for connecting data centres and other large users, and thirty days to file an informational report on how it will secure adequate generation, an unusually fast route that the agency chose over a conventional rulemaking, as Renewable Energy World reported.
Critical Energy raises $22m for modular geothermal plants aimed at data centres
Los Angeles startup Critical Energy, founded by former SpaceX propulsion engineer Spencer Jackson, announced $22 million in early funding comprising a $19 million seed round and $3 million in venture debt, co-led by Susa Ventures and Upfront Ventures with participation from MaC Venture Capital and others, according to the company-issued release carried by citybiz. The company builds assembly-line modular turbines that it says can be deployed in roughly two weeks, targeting a first 2.5 MW commercial plant in 2027, and it positions geothermal as a firm round-the-clock supply for compute campuses, as ThinkGeoEnergy confirmed.
TerraPower Natrium reactor enters UK regulatory assessment
The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation, working with the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales, formally began the three-step Generic Design Assessment of TerraPower's Natrium reactor, a 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor with molten-salt storage that can lift output to 500 MWe, the regulator announced. TerraPower, chaired by Bill Gates, also opened TerraPower UK as its first office outside the United States, while its first Natrium plant remains under construction at Kemmerer in Wyoming with a 2030 target, as World Nuclear News reported.
Ohmium and Hynfra agree green hydrogen development across MENA and Africa
US-based PEM electrolyser manufacturer Ohmium International and Polish developer Hynfra signed a master cooperation agreement to advance green hydrogen and green ammonia projects in Mauritania, Jordan and Oman, according to the companies' release on BusinessWire. The framework covers the front-end engineering and design stage, with Ohmium supplying electrolyser technology and technical support, and the partners citing energy independence and reduced fossil fuel imports as the rationale, as Energy Monitor reported. The agreement does not yet disclose capacity, tonnage or financial figures.
CIM Group closes about $600m financing for California solar and storage
CIM Group's Permanent Power Company closed an approximately $600 million construction financing facility for its Grape project at Westlands Solar Park in California's San Joaquin Valley, the company said on BusinessWire. The facility combines a roughly $372.3 million construction-to-term loan, a $166.7 million tax-credit transfer bridge loan and a $61.3 million letter of credit facility, with Truist as administrative agent, funding 246.4 MWac of solar paired with a 150 MWac and 600 MWh battery system, as confirmed in the company's SEC 8-K filing.
Eos Energy lands first order under 2 GWh battery reservation deal
Eos Energy Enterprises announced the first purchase order under Frontier Power USA's 2 GWh capacity reservation agreement, supporting the Redbird project, a 100 MW and 400 MWh four-hour battery system using Eos's zinc-based Z3 technology for the ERCOT market in Texas, the company said on GlobeNewswire. The order fills nearly half of a 1 GWh master supply agreement and the company pointed to a further 12 GWh development pipeline across ERCOT, PJM, CAISO and MISO, as StockTitan reported.
