Skip to content
Grid & Energy
United States

US Department of Energy awards $5 billion to modernise eight nuclear plants, six of them in Illinois

By Eve

On 27 October, the US Department of Energy announced grants worth $5 billion to modernise eight nuclear power stations across three states, according to WMBD as cited by The Cool Down. Six are in Illinois (Quad Cities, LaSalle, Dresden, Clinton, Byron and Braidwood), with the others being Calvert Cliffs in Maryland and Limerick in Pennsylvania. State Senator Li Arellano said the work would generate enough extra electricity for one million homes, while the 2025 Adequacy Resource Study warned that Illinois power production could fall short of demand by 2028.

Why it matters

Added firm generation in Illinois could ease the grid capacity pressure that threatens to constrain new charging load, which matters for CPOs planning high-power sites in the state. Procurement teams should still treat the 2028 shortfall warning as a reason to check grid connection timelines and supply assumptions.

Source

Original title
“Illinois expected an energy crisis by 2028. But a $5 billion grant for 6 nuclear plants could reverse that”
Published
4 November 2026
Updated
5 November 2026

In this story

Related news

Recurrent Energy brings Court Barton solar farm in the UK into commercial operation

Recurrent Energy has brought the Court Barton solar farm in the UK into commercial operation, according to a CSIQ Stock News item. The source describes the completed project as moving part of Recurrent Energy's development pipeline into operating infrastructure, and gives no capacity, grid connection or offtake figures. The same page also lists unrelated items, including an Elong Power subsidiary's three year cooperation agreement worth at least RMB2 billion (about US$300 million) for domestic grid side energy storage supply.

Why it matters

A newly operating UK solar asset shows developer pipelines turning into live generation, which can matter for those sourcing renewable power or looking at co-located charging. With no capacity or offtake details disclosed, it is a market signal rather than something to act on directly.

United Kingdom
5 Nov 2026

Recurrent Energy (global) · Source

Grid Users Coalition says 82.8% of logistics businesses lack the grid capacity they need

The Grid Users Coalition, a group of twelve business bodies including Logistics UK, the Road Haulage Association and ChargeUK, reports that 82.8% of logistics businesses lack the grid capacity they need. It says the Budget's grid measures do little to change this, as electricity price relief goes to around 10,000 energy-intensive manufacturers and faster connections go to strategic data centres and other strategically important projects. Its report, Grid Access for Growth, sets out low-cost fixes, most needing no new public money, and the coalition has written to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero asking for a meeting.

Why it matters

Logistics depots and charging hubs remain in the connection queue, so project timelines and site viability for depot and public charging work still hinge on grid access. CPOs and fleet operators should watch whether the coalition's proposed fixes gain traction with government and the regulator, as they could shorten waits for non-priority sites.

5 Nov 2026

Source

Britain curtailed 1,789 GWh of wind over 30 days, paying wind farms £51.5 million to cut output

The National Energy System Operator curtailed 1,789 gigawatt-hours of wind generation over a 30 day period, with net payments to wind farms for reducing output totalling £51.5 million ($69.4 million). That equated to one-fifth of potential grid-scale wind generation, or 17% once estimated output from smaller wind farms on local networks is included. Scottish wind farms accounted for over 99% of the curtailed power, as transmission lines to England reach capacity on windy days, with the B6 boundary the tightest bottleneck. The figures were reported by The Cool Down, citing Electricity Live data shared on Reddit.

Why it matters

Constraint costs from grid bottlenecks are ultimately borne by households, and they show how much usable low carbon power is stranded in Scotland while gas plants elsewhere ramp up. For CPOs and procurement teams, this strengthens the case for demand that can absorb surplus power and for siting and flexibility decisions that account for regional grid constraints.

United Kingdom
5 Nov 2026

Source