Energy & Utilities


  • Ionna rechargery apex north carolina
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    Provided by Hyundai Motor America

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    Ionna moves forward with EV charging network

    The automaker-led joint venture remains committed to rolling out public charging infrastructure, despite the suspension of government funding.

    By Larry Avila • Feb. 12, 2025
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    chrisp0 via Getty Images
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    New York loans Revel $60M to expand NYC public EV charging

    The financial arrangement is “an important and replicable precedent” to accelerate electric vehicle charging, NY Green Bank President Andrew Kessler said.

    By Robert Walton • Feb. 11, 2025
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    jamesteohart via Getty Images
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    Trendline

    Top 5 stories from Smart Cities Dive

    From worsening climate change to a shifting transportation landscape and the housing affordability crisis, cities have their work cut out for them.

    By Smart Cities Dive staff
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    Hal Bergman via Getty Images
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    DOT suspends Biden’s $5B electric vehicle charging network effort

    Most of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure funds have already been awarded to states, however, and some observers say the Trump administration cannot end the program with just a memo.

    By Robert Walton • Feb. 10, 2025
  • Roger Garbey (top) and Andres Hernandez, from the Goldin Solar company, install a solar panel system on the roof of a home a day after the Trump administration announced it will impose duties of as mu
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    Joe Raedle via Getty Images
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    EPA funding freeze endangers $7B Solar For All program

    “We don't know how much money got out the door, we don't know how much money the administration can seek to claw back,” said Vote Solar’s executive director, Sachu Constantine.

    By Diana DiGangi • Feb. 7, 2025
  • An electric bike is locked to a street sign in front of a red fire truck, with caution type surrounding it
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    Spencer Platt via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    E-bike fire crisis won’t be tamed without federal support

    Lithium-ion battery fires are causing deadly incidents across the country. Attorney Michael Mezzacappa points to New York as an example of how cities can respond but calls for Congress to take greater action on safety standards.

    By Michael Mezzacappa • Feb. 6, 2025
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    OlegAlbinsky via Getty Images
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    The Smart Cities Outlook for 2025: Change is coming

    From new federal policies to growing technologies like AI and robotaxis, cities will encounter many changes while they continue to tackle housing, homelessness, climate and equity issues.

    By Smart Cities Dive Staff • Jan. 31, 2025
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    stock.adobe.com/rufous

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    California cities launch nation’s first public hydrogen utility

    Although the Inflation Reduction Act's 45V tax credit was critical to its formation, the new utility hopes to avoid dependence on the federal incentive.

    By Emma Penrod • Jan. 30, 2025
  • A woman walks in front of NYC skyline.
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    Eduardo Munoz Alvarez via Getty Images
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    Judge dismisses New York City’s lawsuit against Big Oil

    A state judge ruled the city had failed to demonstrate that ExxonMobil, Shell, BP and the American Petroleum Institute had deceived consumers about the climate impact of their fossil fuel products.

    By Zoya Mirza • Jan. 24, 2025
  • Trump holds up an executive order after signing it on at a post-inauguration parade in Capital One Arena
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    Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images
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    Trump freezes IRA funding

    Trump also revoked what he calls the Biden administration's “EV mandate” and pulled out of the Paris climate agreement as part of several energy-related actions.

    By Kate Magill • Jan. 22, 2025
  • Wind power generator in green landscape with distributed energy icons.
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    Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn via Getty Images
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    Sonnen, SOLRITE Energy launch grid-optimizing virtual power plant in Texas

    The program aims to relieve congestion and improve renewable power economics on the Electric Reliability Council of Texas grid, Sonnen USA CEO Blake Richetta said.

    By Brian Martucci • Jan. 17, 2025
  • An electric vehicle charging station co-branded by Flying J and GM Energy with the two company logos visible on the overhead canopy
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    Courtesy of General Motors
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    GM using AI to find the best locations for EV chargers

    The automaker says uncertainty about how to find charging stations remains a hurdle to prospective customers.

    By Eric Walz • Jan. 14, 2025
  • DOT announces $635M in EV charging, other clean transportation grants

    The grants will support installation of more than 11,500 electric vehicle charging ports as well as hydrogen and natural gas fueling infrastructure.

    By Robert Walton • Jan. 14, 2025
  • A row of electric vehicle chargers in a parking lot.
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    Aranga87/iStock/Getty Images Plus via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    How to keep electric vehicle investments on track in the new political climate

    A clean fuel standard has worked in several states to fund EV infrastructure. It should be tried in more places.

    By Laura Sherman • Jan. 10, 2025
  • Wind power generator in green landscape with distributed energy icons.
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    Sakorn Sukkasemsakorn via Getty Images
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    Microgrids boost grid reliability, lower costs: Colorado road map

    In the face of rising transmission costs and extreme weather impacts, self-contained grids can benefit both rural areas and urban centers, according to state agencies.

    By Brian Martucci • Jan. 9, 2025
  • A highway with cars on it in front of a city skyline. Two large cranes line the highway next to new construction.
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    JasonDoiy via Getty Images
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    6 smart cities trends to watch in 2025

    Transportation systems, housing policy and decarbonization approaches will evolve this year as the Trump administration assumes power and technology continues to advance.

    By , Jan. 9, 2025
  • The Tesla Model Y traveling on a highway.
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    Courtesy of Tesla Inc.
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    Rise in EV financing may signal growing interest among consumers: Experian

    The arrival of new, more affordable models alongside the federal EV tax credit have boosted leasing.

    By Kalena Thomhave • Jan. 3, 2025
  • People walk across a city street at a crosswalk. Tall buildings and streetlights line the road,
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    tunart via Getty Images
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    9 predictions about what 2025 may hold for US cities

    “Playground” cities will thrive, innovative housing programs will proliferate and technology will transform transit and municipal services, these sources say.

    By Smart Cities Dive staff • Jan. 2, 2025
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    Tasos Katopodis via Getty Images
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    Biden raises GHG emissions-reduction goal, but experts say Trump ‘hellbent’ on reversing course

    “Even though the Trump administration may not lift a finger to deliver on this plan, it sets a north star for what the U.S. should be aiming for,” said World Resources Institute's Debbie Weyl.

    By Robert Walton • Dec. 20, 2024
  • A rendering of public EV charging station that General Motors and Chargepoint plan to build.
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    Courtesy of General Motors
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    GM, ChargePoint partner to deploy 500 ultra-fast EV chargers

    The two companies plan to open the charging stations to the public before the end of 2025.

    By Eric Walz • Dec. 19, 2024
  • A person in a hat and gloves stands on the wooden beams of home under construction. The person holds a wooden beam.
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    RyanJLane via Getty Images
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    Washington local governments sue to block builder-supported measure favoring natural gas

    Voter-approved I-2066, which prevents the state and local governments from restricting access to natural gas, is unconstitutional, said Seattle, King County and other groups in a lawsuit filed last week.

    By Dec. 19, 2024
  • A man in a red uniform repairing a heat pump.
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    welcomia via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    The key to successfully deploying heat pump water heaters? Funding innovation.

    Small grants allow local organizations to test new technologies and approaches, a vital step in scaling climate solutions. 

    By Chris Badger • Dec. 17, 2024
  • An aerial view of the Manhattan skyline at sunset.
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    Nafiz Rahat via Getty Images
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    92% of large NYC buildings meet 2024 carbon emission limits: report

    Site energy use in buildings over 25,000 square feet dropped for the fifth year in a row, with 43% of buildings set to meet Local Law 97’s stricter 2030 targets, the Urban Green Council says.

    By Nish Amarnath • Dec. 16, 2024
  • Rivian R2 reveal
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    Phillip Faraone via Getty Images
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    California approves $1.4B to deploy 17,000 EV chargers, hydrogen fueling infrastructure

    California has about 152,000 public and shared private chargers installed today, and it expects that number to reach 250,000 in the next few years.

    By Robert Walton • Dec. 13, 2024
  • Closeup of the hands of two people holding together pipes. One pair of hands holds a tool.
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    BanksPhotos via Getty Images
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    5 community-scale geothermal systems to be built with $35M from DOE

    The projects will demonstrate how communities can leverage energy underground to decarbonize buildings, the Department of Energy’s Geothermal Technologies Office says.

    By Updated Dec. 18, 2024
  • Aerial view of wind turbines taken with a drone in Vermont.
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    Gabriel Shakour via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    Stepping up to achieve local climate progress despite federal headwinds

    As a second Trump administration takes office, state and local action will be among the most effective means of continuing the momentum for clean energy deployment and cost reductions.

    By Darren Springer • Dec. 11, 2024