Grid & Storage Investment: Base Power announced a $1B Series D and launched Base Core, a large U.S.-built home battery aimed at faster, grid-supportive outage protection. Power Plant Buildout: Dominion Energy plans a 2.6 GW Mount Storm combined-cycle natural gas plant, tied to DOE funding for keeping coal capacity online. Oil Market Volatility: Oil slid after Trump paused a planned Iran strike and signaled diplomacy; Iran denied talks were underway, keeping prices jumpy. Producer Profits: Exxon and Chevron reported soaring Q2 profits as Iran-linked supply disruptions pushed crude higher. Consumer Pressure: Gas prices eased in Baltimore, but the national picture remains costly for households. Cybersecurity for Utilities: FBI/CISA warned Iranian-linked hackers are expanding attacks on programmable logic controllers across water and energy systems. Data Center Water Use: Records show Meta’s Gallatin campus uses millions of gallons monthly, fueling local scrutiny of new AI data center growth. Nuclear Proliferation Watch: A Middle East nuclear race is emerging as countries reconsider enrichment and power plans amid shifting security assumptions. Compliance & Funding: Antora raised Series C to scale thermal battery energy for industry and data centers. DOE Oversight: Ascend Elements agreed to pay nearly $7.5M over inflated DOE reimbursement claims for a Kentucky battery materials plant. Energy Infrastructure Risk: Southern California fault stress hit levels not seen in 1,000 years, raising stakes for preparedness.