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Michelle Lewis

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Michelle Lewis is a writer at Electrek. She lives in Massachusetts. She has previously worked for Fast Company, the Guardian, News Deeply, Time, and others. Message Michelle on Bluesky..

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DOE props up dying coal with $625M days after Wright mocks clean energy subsidies 

DOE coal

The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced it will spend $625 million to “expand and reinvigorate” the US coal industry, claiming it will boost energy production and help rural communities. Energy Secretary Chris Wright praised “beautiful, clean coal” as “essential to powering America’s reindustrialization and winning the AI race.”

The Trump administration argues this spending will keep aging coal plants running, lower electricity costs, and prevent blackouts. But this so-called coal revival plan wastes millions when clean energy is cheaper and growing at a breakneck pace.

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Greenlane sweetens electric truck purchases with charging perks

Greenlane electric trucks

Greenlane, which provides public charging infrastructure for electric trucks, just rolled out a new dealer program called “Charge On Us,” which offers $500 in charging credits and six months of free Greenlane Edge subscription access with every qualifying electric truck purchase. The offer applies across light-, medium-, and heavy-duty models. Velocity Truck Centers, one of North America’s largest commercial truck dealers with 65 locations across the US, is the first partner to sign on.

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Illinois awards $18.4M in restored NEVI funds to build EV charging stations

Illinois NEVI DC fast charging

Illinois is expanding its EV charging network with $18.4 million in federal grants that were restored after being unlawfully frozen by the Trump administration. The grants come from the second round of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, which supports Illinois’s goal of registering 1 million EVs by 2030.

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EVs and batteries fuel the US VPP boom, hitting 37.5 GW in 2025

virtual power plants US VPPs

The US virtual power plant (VPP) market is growing fast, with 37.5 gigawatts of behind-the-meter flexible capacity now online, according to a new Wood Mackenzie report. VPPs connect small energy systems and smart devices into a single network managed by an energy company or utility. That can include residential solar panels, battery storage, EVs, and smart thermostats. When the grid needs help during peak demand or emergencies, they can be tapped – and you get paid for participating.

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$75M boosts EV Realty’s first big rig charging hub in California

EV Realty charging hub California

EV Realty just broke ground on its first big truck charging hub in San Bernardino, California. The site sits in a prime location: by the San Bernardino Intermodal Facility, 60 million square feet of warehouse space, and Interstates 10 and 215 – a major freight route from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

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Solar + nuclear to surge in Middle East as electricity demand soars – IEA

Middle East electricity

Electricity demand is skyrocketing across the Middle East and North Africa, and it’s being driven by two big factors: cooling homes and businesses in extreme heat, and making seawater drinkable through desalination. A new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows just how dramatic the surge is. Electricity use in the region has tripled since 2000, and it’s expected to jump another 50% by 2035. That’s like adding the current combined electricity demand of Germany and Spain.

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China’s surge pushes global wind toward fastest growth ever

global wind growth

The global wind industry is going to hit some unprecedented growth milestones, according to Wood Mackenzie’s Global Wind Power Market Outlook for Q3 2025. The world is on track to add its second terawatt of wind capacity by 2030. To put that in perspective, it took 23 years to install the first terawatt, which was reached in 2023. The second will come in just seven.

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