IJR News

Governors Take On Power Companies Over Who Controls Your Electric Bill — 9hGovernors whose states share the nation's largest power grid will meet Thursday in Chicago — as critics say the grid's members kept most decision-making power.

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Nicole Hardy Power companies keeping control of the grid just means higher costs with less accountability for users.

UK Grid Warns of Power Shortfall as Wind Output Plunges — 1dThe United Kingdom's power grid scrambled for electricity Tuesday as collapsing wind generation exposed a fundamental weakness in the country's aggressive green energy buildout.

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ALA Reports 4,235 Books Targeted for CensorshipPolitics — 3dEvanston Councilmember Krissie Harris is proposing a one-year pause on data center approvals and incentives while the city reviews infrastructure and grid capacity. The proposal has majority support on the City Council and is scheduled for committee review.

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Bahrain Grand Prix start held at Sepang over thunderstorm and safety checks — 4dThe Bahrain GP start at Sepang was delayed after a thunderstorm hit with cars already on the grid; the medical car reported significant standing water and no new start time was set.

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Jared Kim They should delay as long as needed with that much standing water reported. Safety has to come first even if it ruins the schedule.

Eldorado Gold completes Skouries mine link to Greek national grid — Sep 28, 2026Eldorado Gold’s Skouries mine in northern Greece is on permanent national-grid power after Greek transmission authority approval, with first copper-gold concentrate already produced and Q4 2026 commercial output targeted.

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Most Influential Women in World HistoryYourlist — RankingFrom ancient queens who ruled empires to modern activists who changed laws, these women left indelible marks on politics, science, and culture. Vote for who you think shaped history most profoundly.

Wärtsilä, Schneider, Stanley launch faster US data-center power approachTech — Sep 30, 2026Wärtsilä, Schneider Electric and Stanley Consultants introduced a coordinated “Generator-to-Chip” approach to help U.S. data center developers bring power online faster as AI drives demand and grid connections lag. It combines onsite generation, electrical systems, automation and project services to reduce handoffs and improve delivery coordination.

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Germany Completes World's Tallest 365-Meter Wind TurbineEnvironment — Sep 28, 2026Germany has completed the world’s tallest wind turbine, a 365-meter structure in the former coal-mining region of Brandenburg designed to tap stronger, steadier high-altitude winds and potentially generate about twice as much electricity as conventional turbines. The project is expected to connect to the grid in November and is part of the region’s shift toward renewable energy.

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Samsung, SK Hynix Reject $18B Grid Prepayment — Sep 13, 2026Samsung Electronics and SK hynix have rejected KEPCO's plan to prepay about 25 trillion won in electricity bills to fund national grid upgrades, citing the burden on mid-to-long-term strategy and ongoing industry uncertainty. The decision raises questions about KEPCO funding, potential increases in debt, and the feasibility of large-scale grid investments tied to Korea's semiconductor and AI growth.

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Marcus Bell If the grid lags, semiconductor expansion and AI data centers will hit bottlenecks no matter how much the companies invest in fabs.

EU Proposes Rating System for Data Centers' Energy and Water Use — Sep 21, 2026"Tripling our data centre capacity cannot mean tripling the pressure on our grids, our water and our energy bills," Teresa Ribera said as the EU unveiled 500+ kW data-centre ratings.

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Maya Lindstrom This rating system should push operators to cut waste on power and water before Europe builds out all those new AI centers.

Cuba Suffers Seventh Major Blackout This Year — Sep 18, 2026On Sept. 18, 2026, Cuba's grid totally disconnected; UNE activated recovery. By dusk only 5% of Havana's ~862,000 customers had power; residents cited food, water and multi-day outages.

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Elena Vasquez Cuba can't keep losing the entire system like this every few months. Recovery is too slow for daily life.

UBS Rates Five AI Hosting Stocks Buy — Sep 23, 2026UBS sees sizable upside in five former Bitcoin miners repurposing their power assets for AI data centers, arguing that scarce grid access and contracted capacity position them to benefit as computing demand surges, though execution and tenant risks remain. Other market coverage points to potential beneficiaries across the broader buildout—including Quanta Services, Keysight, Amphenol, Tutor Perini and Viavi—while noting that higher rates and inflation may complicate the investment outlook.

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New York Pizza vs Chicago Deep DishYourlist — VS BattleThe foldable slice versus the fork-and-knife casserole — America's longest-running food fight.

IMF: AI Could Raise Europe’s Productivity, Deepen Strains — Sep 19, 2026IMF studies and remarks warn that AI could raise EU productivity by about 1% over five years, but benefits would be uneven and could strain power grids and raise dependence on foreign technology unless Europe deepens economic integration and invests in energy, infrastructure, and skills. At the global level, the IMF cautions that inflation remains stubborn, debt service costs rise, and AI financing concentrated in the United States could pose systemic risks, even as growth around 3% would be a notable achievement.

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Daily Wordle, Strands, Chess Puzzles Cover September 9-12 — Sep 8, 2026Across several outlets, readers are offered hints and explanations for daily puzzles, from Wordle-style clues about a star-themed aster and related garden terms to NYT Strands grids and spangrams framed around winning, along with coverage of WSJ's number puzzles and a chess tactic puzzle for enthusiasts.

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Asset Owners Double AI Environmental Risk View in Year — Sep 15, 2026Growing concerns about AI's environmental footprint are rising among asset owners and the public, with surveys showing worries about data-center energy use, electricity costs, and climate impacts as AI expands. Meanwhile, new research explores using generative AI to forecast air pollution more efficiently, and debates over data centers include pollution from power plants and calls for policies on grid upgrades and clean energy.

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Gardening Coverage Highlights Native Plants, Drought ResilienceLifestyle — Sep 13, 2026Across gardening topics, experts highlight shade-tolerant native plants and their varied species, a grass-clover lawn mix as a drought-resilient, low-maintenance alternative, and strategies for expanding shrub use in British landscapes, while noting Hibiscus blooms during the monsoon season and a Cornwall grower showcasing off-grid, water-smart irrigation amid heatwaves.

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Can you actually read a map?Quizie — QuizFifteen world-geography questions. Most people miss at least three — the AI grades you and names your traveler rank.

Senate Blocks AI Data Center Cost Bill — Sep 15, 2026The Ratepayer Protection Act, backed by Rep. Gabe Evans and a broad bipartisan coalition, would require large data centers (100 MW+ peak demand) to cover the full costs of new electricity generation and grid upgrades, shielding households from subsidizing AI infrastructure. The measure has cleared committee and is headed toward a House floor vote under fast-track rules, reflecting bipartisan concern about AI-driven electricity demand ahead of the 2026 elections.

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Beam, Masdar City Sign MOU Exploring Clean-Energy SystemsBusiness — Sep 17, 2026Beam Global and Masdar City Free Zone signed a non-binding MoU to explore integrating Beam’s off-grid EV charging, solar-integrated e-bikes, and other clean-energy mobility technologies into Masdar City’s ecosystem, following Beam Middle East’s licensing. The partnership aims to advance sustainable mobility and clean-energy innovation in the UAE and GCC’s green-investment push, though deployment details and timelines remain undecided.

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Volvo Plans One of Sweden’s Largest Energy Parks — Sep 10, 2026Volvo Group plans one of Sweden's largest energy parks in Mariestad beside its planned battery cell factory, starting with about 70 MW/260 MWh of storage to support the regional grid and enable a future test bed for energy innovations, with commissioning targeted for 2027. The park will operate in two tracks and is designed to grow alongside the battery cell plant expected after 2030, reinforcing Volvo's regional industrial cluster and decarbonization efforts.

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Priya Raman This storage addition makes sense to back up the grid while the battery plant scales up later.

NextEra, Dominion Offer Bill Credits and Data-Center Protections for Merger — Sep 14, 2026NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy are expanding their Virginia benefits package as they seek regulatory approval for their $67 billion merger, doubling residential bill credits to four years, pledging 1,000 new Virginia jobs, and expanding energy assistance and clean energy projects including solar and storage. The plan also aims to shield customers from data-center grid costs and accelerate local clean-energy development, with a merger closing anticipated in the second half of 2027.

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Priya Raman The thousand new jobs and extra solar storage are welcome but I worry the 2027 closing date means delays that hurt customers sooner.

DOE Finalizes $1.9B Loan for Iowa Nuclear RestartBusiness — Sep 8, 2026The U.S. Department of Energy approved a loan of up to $1.9 billion to NextEra Energy to restart the 615-megawatt Duane Arnold Nuclear Energy Center in Iowa, with commercial operation targeted for the first half of 2029, as part of a broader push to bolster nuclear generation. The project is expected to boost local jobs, tax revenues, and grid reliability, and Google has been identified as a major purchaser of the plant’s power for its AI data centers.

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Pentagon Weighs $5 Billion Fluidstack Loan — Sep 10, 2026The Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital is weighing a roughly $5 billion loan to Fluidstack to bolster the U.S. data-center supply chain and domestic manufacturing for AI infrastructure, rather than funding new data centers, signaling AI computing power as a national-security asset. While terms are not finalized, the move follows executive actions restricting foreign equipment in critical grids and reflects a broader shift toward treating AI infrastructure as strategic defense-capability investment.

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Sam Okafor Treating AI power as a defense priority makes sense given how much it overlaps with military capabilities now.

TX Solar Displays Solar Street Lights for Projects in 20 Countries — Sep 17, 2026TX Solar, officially Yangzhou Tianxiang Road Lamp Equipment Co., Ltd., presents itself as an integrated OEM solar street-light supplier with in-house manufacturing, offering bespoke luminaire housings, modular all-in-one and split-type systems, 3D modeling, photometric testing, and a growing patent portfolio to support projects in 20+ countries. The company markets turnkey outdoor lighting solutions for infrastructure, highways, and off-grid and climate-varied deployments, highlighting high-mast towers, solar energy Street lights, and battery options (lithium and gel) showcased at major events like the Canton Fair and targeted at municipal, EPC, and international contractors.

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Priya Raman Solar lights like these could help a lot in off-grid regions if the batteries last in extreme weather.

House Republicans Advance Bill Requiring Data Centers to Cover Grid Costs — Sep 9, 2026House Republicans plan to bring the bipartisan Ratepayer Protection Act to the House floor next week, aiming to require regulators to ensure data centers share some costs of new power generation to curb rising household electricity bills amid growing data-center demand. Separately, state regulators and lawmakers are taking steps and public messaging— Pennsylvania’s PUC reviewing load-control and cost allocation, a Virginia congressman promoting a national data-center plan, and even Trump voicing support— highlighting bipartisan concerns about reliability and who pays for the AI power boom.

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DAVID BLACKMON: Will Texas Grid Survive Looming Winter Storm? — Jan 22, 2026Can the Texas power grid hold up to another major winter storm? Grid managers at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) assured the public on Monday that they were ready, but Texans like yours truly who…

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