WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) today announced two new programs under its Mine of the Future initiative, which aims to transform U.S. mining practices and speed the development of a secure and resilient domestic critical mineral and material supply chain by employing cutting-edge mining technologies and processes. First, FE has announced its intent to provide up to $80 million in federal funding for mining technology proving grounds that will support and accelerate innovative technology development and commercialization. FE also announced up to $15 million in federal funding for DOE’s National Laboratories to conduct critical research, development, and demonstration activities that will advance DOE strategies to strengthen our domestic critical mineral supply chain. Through both programs, the Mine of the Future initiative will help deliver on President Trump’s commitment to expand the nation’s critical materials portfolio, reduce our reliance on foreign sources, and re-establish the United States as a global leader in the mining sector.  “DOE is committed to fostering a new generation of skilled miners and equipping them with the tools to lead the world in mineral production and processing technology,” said Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy, Kyle Haustveit. “Through these new Mine of the Future programs, DOE is making a significant investment to accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge solutions for the U.S. mining sector.” Notice of Intent: Mining Technology Proving Grounds  FE announced its intent to issue an $80 million funding opportunity to establish Mining Technology Proving Grounds and accelerate the development of innovative technologies for the U.S. mining sector. If issued, the funding opportunity will help establish field sites for real-world testing, optimization, and deployment of next-generation mining technologies. These sites will also serve as vital training grounds for a new generation of skilled American miners. The Proving Ground initiative will help to de-risk the adoption of new mining technologies for commercialization and widespread industry

Oil notched its biggest weekly gain in more than three months as mounting pressure on Russia to end its war in Ukraine muddies the outlook for exports from the OPEC+ member, with algorithmic traders adding momentum to the rally. Global benchmark Brent advanced to settle above $70 a barrel for the first time since late July, and was up roughly 5.2% this week, while West Texas Intermediate closed near $66. The commodity followed broader markets higher on Friday amid stronger-than-expected US economic data, which allayed fears of near-term demand deterioration. The dollar weakened, making commodities priced in the currency more attractive. The equities move compounded earlier gains on a confluence of bullish geopolitical developments. Trump pressed Turkey to stop buying oil from Russia, said he would ask Hungary to do the same and earlier in the week rebuked NATO members for buying fuel from the OPEC+ producer. The mounting pressure comes as Ukraine has stepped up drone strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. Meanwhile, European diplomats warned the Kremlin this week that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is ready to respond to further violations of its airspace with full force, including by shooting down Russian planes, according to officials familiar with the exchange. The United Nations, meanwhile, will reimpose broad sanctions on Iran after days of diplomacy in New York failed to ease a standoff over Tehran’s nuclear program. “It’s a risky market in which to be short at the moment, made ever more risky by the still elevated speculative shorts that have been accumulated across the crude complex,” said Rory Johnston, oil market researcher and founder of Commodity Context. In another sign of heightened bullishness, commodity trading advisers, which tend to amplify price swings, flipped to net-long on Friday for the first time since early August, according to data from

Judy W. Chang is a commissioner of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Steven Wellner and Kathleen Ratcliff serve as her advisors. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of other FERC commissioners or any stance of the agency. Generational change is occurring in the nation’s energy sector. While FERC is considering urgent short-term fixes, it also must evaluate longer-term solutions that shape the sector. One solution that meets this era of change is the integration of transmission planning and interconnection processes. The current challenges facing the electric industry are multifaceted, with compounding effects. Rapid and accelerating load growth, backlogged interconnection queues, limited regional/interregional transmission buildout, ongoing supply chain issues and increasingly frequent extreme weather events are exacerbating reliability concerns and raising electricity bills for consumers. States, utilities, grid operators, customers, and market participants grappling with these challenges are exploring short-term fixes, some of which call into question the open-access principles and market constructs this country has used to plan and build the grid’s infrastructure to date. Open access and competitive wholesale electricity markets have been our bedrock principles because they have delivered real value to customers: They have kept energy costs affordable, met customers’ needs efficiently and ensured those who create the need for new infrastructure bear their fair share of the associated costs. The question, then, is what reforms can meet our current demands while preserving the benefits of open access and competition? The answer is clear: Modernizing, harmonizing, and integrating our transmission planning and interconnection processes can meet those challenges. Dramatic load growth is on the horizon The biggest issue facing the industry is the expectation of rapid, dramatic load growth in the near term. While previous circumstances that have driven load growth were largely distributed throughout the country,

Brian Turner is the Western regulatory director for national trade association Advanced Energy United and serves on the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative Launch Committee.  They said it couldn’t be done. They said California would never relinquish control over the markets run by the California Independent System Operator.  That is why I helped launch the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative, a collaborative effort to create a fully independent organization that can manage Western electricity markets free from any one state’s control. The Pathways Initiative was designed to secure input and buy-in from a broad range of stakeholders on what an independently governed market could look like so we could build the trust needed to move forward.  And now, it’s happening. The California legislature, nearly unanimously, just approved Assembly Bill 825, a bill allowing the state’s utilities to participate in electricity markets governed by a new, independent West-wide organization. The new Regional Organization for Western Energy, or ROWE, will be incorporated in early 2026. Much like a popular new restaurant with a small plates menu, the ROWE will offer affordable, reliable energy services à la carte: Each state in the West can take what it needs to satisfy its energy appetite. The table is set for each state to sit on an equal basis. No special service or extra helpings. Every state will have its consumer and policy interests respected and integrated through multiple mechanisms woven through the governance structure. In fact, the ROWE will have the most state- and public-interest-oriented governance of any wholesale electricity market in the country. The structure includes:  Board members selected not just for their electricity sector expertise, but for public interest experience.  A public policy committee of the board charged with maintaining communication with state officials and public power entities around the West and consulting with them on pending

India said it held “constructive meetings” with the US this week on a trade deal, although Washington’s demand that New Delhi stop buying Russian oil is weighing on the negotiations. US trade negotiators made it clear to their Indian counterparts that resolving the Russia issue was crucial to reducing India’s tariff rate and sealing a trade deal, a person familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. While the negotiations this week were positive, they failed to yield any significant breakthroughs, the person said. An Indian team led by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal offered concessions to the US officials, including easing some restrictions on the import of genetically modified corn, and offering to buy more American defense and energy goods, the person said. Goyal said Wednesday that India was willing to buy more energy goods from the US “in the years to come.” President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 percent last month, accusing New Delhi of helping Russian leader Vladimir Putin finance his war in Ukraine. India’s government has struck a defiant tone, saying it won’t halt Russian purchases and calling the US’s actions “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.” The trade negotiations in Washington from Sept. 22-24 were constructive, with both sides exchanging views on the “possible contours of the deal,” India’s government said in a statement. Goyal met with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Sergio Gor, Trump’s nominee for ambassador to India. The minister also met with Indian businesses and investors during the trip. A spokesperson for the US embassy in New Delhi said it doesn’t comment on private diplomatic conversations, while reiterating the Trump administration’s position that India’s actions were undermining US efforts to counter Russia. The 25 percent penalty on India “aims to deter countries from supporting the Russian economy

At the Trump administration’s request, the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an independent agency, abandoned its plan Sept. 12 to update the policy it uses to evaluate natural gas pipeline and LNG projects. The decision to scrap the long-running proceeding to revise the 1999 certificate policy for new natural gas facilities could indicate that the Department of Energy (DOE) intends to take a larger role in FERC policy, law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP said in a recent blog post. While FERC’s adoption of the request to end the proceedings will not result in any immediate changes to FERC policy, Akins said “it does signal that the DOE intends to be more involved in FERC policy making going forward and may be the first in a string of DOE efforts to reshape energy policy within FERC’s traditional purview.” FERC had until the end of September to act on a directive from Energy Secretary Chris Wright to terminate the proceeding that the commission has worked on since 2018. Wright said the move was necessary to remove industry uncertainty. “We believe that the 1999 Certificate Policy Statement, as subsequently applied by the Commission, continues to provide the appropriate framework for reviewing proposed natural gas projects in a legally durable manner, pursuant to the Natural Gas Act and consistent with judicial precedent, as it has for over 25 years. Therefore, we are now withdrawing the draft Updated Certificate Policy Statement and closing the proceeding,” FERC wrote in the Sep. 12 order. The commission added that the topics addressed in the proceeding were “better considered on a case-by-case basis.” By terminating the proceeding, FERC would now have to initiate a new docket and develop a new record if it wants to seek a policy change in the future, Akins said.