The summer of 2026 tested the U.S. electric grid with record heat and rising demand. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Hourly Electric Grid Monitor (based on Form EIA-930 data), three major regional transmission organizations (RTOs) set new peak hourly load records.Eia PJM (serving roughly 65–67 million people across all or parts of 13 […]
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As of mid-October 2026, U.S. drilling activity continues to firm. Baker Hughes reported its closely watched weekly rotary rig count at 603 for the week ending October 9 (up 5 week-over-week and up 56 year-over-year from 547). WellDatabase’s U.S. Rig Report dated 10.14.2026 showed 608 total rigs (up 6 week-over-week and up 52 year-over-year). Enverus’ […]
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If you live in one of the 13 states or D.C. served by PJM, data centers are already on your power bill. The grid’s own market monitor puts their added capacity cost at $29.4 billion over four auctions. On Friday evening, federal regulators threw out most of PJM’s plan to make new data centers bring […]
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Heating oil opened the season at $6.04 a gallon, a record in EIA’s weekly data and 70% above last fall. The government expects oil-heated homes to spend 21% more this winter; the state energy-aid directors say closer to 50%. What is driving it, who gets hit hardest, where to find help, and what could still […]
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ENB Pub Note: This article first ran on the Crude Truth Substack, and we recommend subscribing. The Crude Truth about Diesel and President Trump’s Executive Order. President Trump signed an executive order on October 5, 2026, temporarily allowing off-road “dyed” diesel for highway use and deferring the federal excise tax through year-end. The move targets […]
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Isaac Orr, Vice President of Research at Always On Energy Research, to discuss a groundbreaking report on how alternative energy mandates are driving up electricity bills across America. The conversation reveals a stark divide between blue and red states in energy affordability and policy effectiveness, exploring how renewable energy requirements in regions with poor solar […]
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A worldwide diesel crunch, driven by wartime disruptions, is giving fresh political momentum to Brazil’s state oil company Petrobras and its long-debated push for greater domestic refining. The same supply tightness is exposing the United States’ own refining constraints—constraints that have accumulated for decades and are heavily concentrated in states with stricter environmental rules. In […]
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TC Energy’s Columbia Gas Transmission (TCO) declared force majeure Thursday after an unexpected mechanical issue on the Mountaineer XPress (MXP) system forced an immediate pressure reduction on Line 100 between the Mt. Olive Compressor Station in Jackson County and the Saunders Creek Regulator Station in Cabell County, West Virginia. The restriction takes the MXPSEG MA42 […]
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A diesel export ban is the kind of policy that polls well and trades poorly. With the AAA national average at about $6.53 a gallon as of September 22, 2026 — a record — and California well above $8, the political impulse is obvious: keep more barrels at home. That impulse misunderstands how U.S. refining […]
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The United States is not short of crude oil. It is short of spare refining capacity, spare distillate inventory, and spare time. Diesel is the pressure point. National retail diesel is printing all-time highs near $6.40 a gallon. California is above $8.30. Midwest pump prices are breaking state records after ExxonMobil’s Joliet refinery in Illinois […]
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