Investment into data centers continues to increase significantly as the country builds out infrastructure to accommodate the digital economy and growth of artificial intelligence. Many states, including Texas, have now implemented various tax incentives to encourage investment in the state while simultaneously grappling with the taxable aspects of data center fuel. In November 2025, the
Latest from Climate Solutions Legal Digest
Fusion Energy: Powering the Future
Fusion energy, the same process that powers our sun and stars, is rapidly moving from scientific theory to commercial reality. In a fusion reaction, two light atoms—typically deuterium and tritium—combine to form a helium nucleus and a neutron, releasing an immense amount of energy. This energy, primarily in the form of heat, can be harnessed
FERC Paves the Way for More Timely Construction of Natural Gas Infrastructure
Building natural gas infrastructure should get easier in the future by way of a recent ruling by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the Commission). On October 7, 2025, FERC issued a Final Rule, entitled “Removal of Regulations Limiting Authorizations to Proceed with Construction Activities Pending Rehearing” (Docket No. RM25-9-000, 193 FERC
Renewable Natural Gas as Data Center Power
With the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in computing applications booming, the need for computing power capable of supporting those applications has exploded, fueling an unprecedented surge in data center development. Those data centers require enormous amounts of power, primarily because of the many graphics processing units (GPUs) they use and the cooling systems those
Elsa’s Impact: Navigating Compliance in an Era of AI-Enhanced FDA Oversight
On June 2, 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the deployment of its own artificial intelligence system, “Elsa.” The large language model-powered system was scheduled for full-scale implementation across the agency by June 30, 2025. Initially piloted for FDA scientific reviewers, Elsa is intended to streamline internal processes and increase operational
Cybersecurity and Solar Power Vulnerability
As noted here in November 2021 and October 2023, the renewable energy sector faces growing concerns over its vulnerability to cyberattacks. Since then, the situation has not improved; the U.S. electrical grid has grown more vulnerable to cyberattacks,[1] with domestic utilities experiencing a 70% surge in cyberattacks in 2024.[2]
Co-Location of Data Centers with Renewable Energy Projects: Legal, Environmental, and Operational Considerations
The dramatic increase in the use cases for data storage, artificial intelligence and cloud computing have resulted in an atmospheric level rise in the demand for data centers, and the question of providing sufficient power to support those data centers has become paramount. Simultaneously, there has been an increasing emphasis on utilizing green energy as corporations
Renewable Energy and AI Data Centers
Although artificial intelligence (“AI”) dominated financial, technological, and even social conversations in 2024, less attention was paid to the reality that AI’s emergence entails substantial increases in energy demand, specifically electricity. Consider that a single ChatGPT query requires 2.9 watt-hours of electricity, compared to 0.3 watt-hours for a Google search, according to the International Energy