This is Queen Street Analytics' weekly digest of regulatory developments, legislative discussions, political announcements, and other government-related news concerning power generation and transmission, wind and solar, utilities, midstream companies, batteries and energy storage, LNG, biofuels, as well as nuclear. Once a week, we break down the most important updates in this space in under five minutes.

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Dates: 2026-03-15 to 2026-03-21

📋 In This Week's Newsletter

• 🏛️ This Week's Congressional Calendar
• 🇺🇸 Federal Government News
• 📜 Legislative Updates
• 📚 What We're Reading This Week

This Week's Congressional Calendar

• Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee: Hearing on Bulk Power System State: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will conduct a hearing on March 25, 2026, in Dirksen 366 to assess the status and reliability of the bulk power system.

Federal Government News

White House Announces $73 Billion in Japanese Investments for U.S. Energy Projects

President Donald J. Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi agreed to increase bilateral economic security, with $73 billion in Japanese investments directed toward U.S. energy projects. The initiatives also involve joint research for supply chain resilience and critical minerals, and a new Critical Minerals Action Plan. The agreement expands science and technology cooperation, including AI, quantum technologies, and lunar and Martian exploration. Defense elements include Japan's deployment of advanced capabilities and expanded missile production. The partnership also includes a new Memorandum of Cooperation for conservation and National Parks management.

Sources: www.whitehouse.gov

FERC Proposes Reliability Standard TPL-008-1 to Address Extreme Temperature Events

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a notice soliciting comments on revisions to the information collection FERC-725N related to newly proposed Reliability Standard TPL-008-1 focusing on transmission system planning for extreme temperature events. NERC submitted this standard in December 2024, which prescribes benchmark cases, steady state and transient stability analyses for various heat and cold scenarios, and corrective action plans. 62 planning coordinators and 204 transmission planners are affected, with an estimated annual paperwork burden of 16,880 hours, totaling $1,192,910. The standard requires each responsible entity to complete an 'extreme temperature assessment' every five calendar years.

Sources: www.federalregister.gov

NRC Issues Regulatory Process Overview for Licensing Light Water and Non-Light Water Reactors (2026-2028)

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) published Regulatory Issue Summary 2026-02, outlining resource allocation and scheduling for reactor licensing and oversight for fiscal years 2026-2028. The summary covers construction-related activities, design certification, and regulatory engagements for large LWRs, light water-cooled SMRs, non-LWRs, and nonpower production/utilization facilities. The NRC requests early stakeholder engagement for preapplication activities. The summary is available on the NRC's official platforms and was finalized without change following public comment.

Sources: www.federalregister.gov

FERC Environmental Assessment Released for Crescent Hydroelectric Project Relicensing

FERC’s Office of Energy Projects published an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Crescent Hydroelectric Project No. 4678, operated by New York Power Authority on the Mohawk River. The EA analyzes environmental impacts and concludes that relicensing the project—with appropriate protective measures—would not significantly affect the environmental quality. Public comments are open until April 15, 2026, through FERC’s online platforms or mail.

Sources: www.federalregister.gov

NextEra Gains Federal Approval for Up to 10 GW Gas Power Projects in Texas

NextEra Energy received federal authorization from President Trump for up to 10 gigawatts of gas-fired power generation projects in Texas. This approval follows significant Japanese investment commitments and is aimed at supporting regional energy reliability and manufacturing.

Sources: www.reuters.com

Legislative Updates

Hydropower Licensing Transparency Act Advances

Bill 3500, the Hydropower Licensing Transparency Act, moved forward with recent hearings held by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Water and Power. The measure seeks greater procedural clarity for hydroelectric project relicensing.

Sources: www.congress.gov

To Amend Energy Policy Act of 2005: Biotechnology for Energy Resilience

Bill 7936 was referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. It proposes amendments to support biotechnology product development, demonstration, and commercialization to improve energy resiliency.

Sources: www.congress.gov

Co-Location Energy Act Introduced

Bill 5639, the Co-Location Energy Act, was referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources. The bill targets regulatory frameworks to enable co-location of energy generation infrastructure.

Sources: www.congress.gov

A Joint Resolution on Clean Electricity Production Credits

Bill 107, a joint resolution disapproving the IRS rule on 'Beginning of Construction Requirements' for the termination of clean electricity production and investment credits for wind and solar facilities, was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders, Calendar No. 363.

Sources: www.congress.gov

Utility Line Technicians as Emergency Response Providers

Bill 7996, amending the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to clarify that utility line technicians qualify as emergency response providers, was referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Sources: www.congress.gov

What We're Reading This Week

• Why Tech Giants Are Ditching the Power Grid: Tech firms seek alternatives to traditional grid supply to address reliability and energy demands.
• India may soften new grid-supply rules for renewable power producers: Indian government is considering easing regulations for renewable power producer grid access.
• Explainer: What are the EU's options to curb energy bills?: EU authorities examine potential strategies to reduce household energy costs.
• How AC maker Carrier wants to turn air conditioners from energy hogs to grid assets: Carrier plans to integrate air conditioners into grid asset management systems.
• Opinion | California’s Climate of Fuel Insecurity: California faces supply risks due to energy market volatility and infrastructure challenges.
• Nuclear fusion advances, but challenges remain for power grid: Progress made in nuclear fusion research, but integration with existing grid requires further development.
• Governments worldwide shield households from rising energy costs: National governments implement measures to mitigate escalating energy expenses for consumers.
• Assessing energy security in Europe, US and China as Iran crisis drags on: Persistent geopolitical tension impacts energy security planning across major regions.
• NextEra secures Trump's approval for up to 10 GW gas power projects: NextEra Energy receives federal clearance for large-scale gas power installations in Texas.
• 🔮 Exponential View #565: The solar supercycle; an agentic nation; seeing fraud & moving asteroids++: Industry experts examine accelerating trends in solar manufacturing and technological cycles.

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