Debt limit bill would speed completion of controversial West Virginia gas pipeline
Lengths of pipe wait to be laid in the ground along the under-construction Mountain Valley Pipeline near Elliston, Virginia, September 29, 2019.
Charles Mostoller | Reuters
A bipartisan debt limit bill struck by President Joe Biden and House Republicans over the weekend would expedite approval of all permits for a West Virginia natural gas pipeline and curtail environmental reviews under one of the country’s landmark environmental laws.
The Mountain Valley Pipeline, which has been promoted by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., would transport natural gas 303 miles from West Virginia to the Southeast, and part of it would cross through the Jefferson National Forest. The construction of the $6.6 billion pipeline is nearly done, though plans have been delayed for several years amid legal setbacks.
Climate and civil rights activists and some state Democrats have strongly opposed the pipeline. Scientists have repeatedly warned that the country must halt approvals for new fossil fuel projects and quicken the clean energy transition to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
While the Biden administration has imposed an aggressive climate agenda, the president has also taken steps to boost fossil fuel production and work with Manchin and Republicans, who’ve argued the president’s climate agenda is endangering U.S. energy security.
Critics of the Mountain Valley Pipeline say it will run through predominantly rural, low-income Indigenous communities and will undermine the country’s efforts to curb fossil fuel emissions and pollution that disproportionally harms environmental justice communities.
“The dirty debt ceiling deal is essentially an assault on our climate and working families. It is a climate bomb … and health threat to every community in its pathway,” Jean Su, energy justice program director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said during a call on Tuesday. “It’s incredibly vital that Congress vote on a clean debt ceiling deal.”
Proponents say the pipeline is vital to bolstering U.S. domestic energy security, and that the plan was already near completion and set to move forward.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks on his deal with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to raise the United States’ debt ceiling at the White House in Washington, May 28, 2023.
Julia Nikhinson | Reuters
The debt limit bill expedites the pipeline’s federal permits and limits judicial review. Still, the project could still be held up or blocked by lawsuits.
U.S. energy company Equitrans Midstream Corporation earlier this month said it anticipated to finish the pipeline by the end of the year, but added “there remains significant risk and uncertainty, including regarding current and likely litigation.”
“President Biden protected his historic climate legislation, stopped House Republicans from clawing back record funding for environmental justice projects and secured a deal to get hundreds of clean energy projects online faster all while protecting the full scope of environmental reviews,” Abdullah Hasan, a White House spokesman, said.
“We believe this is a bipartisan compromise that Congressional Democrats can be proud of and that will accelerate our clean energy goals and climate agenda,” Hasan said.
The deal would also streamline the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a landmark environmental regulation, to limit its requirements on some projects.
The agreement would designate “a single lead agency” to develop environmental reviews in order to speed the process, and shorten the time the federal government takes to analyze a proposed plan’s environmental impact.
Environmental groups argued the NEPA provision would further curtail the public’s ability to provide input on fossil fuel projects that would harm overburdened communities. A letter from 175 groups on Tuesday urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and members of Congress to vote on a clean debt ceiling bill.
Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance, which represents oil and gas companies, said in a statement that the reform to NEPA analysis is “extremely important for getting the country back on the path of energy dominance.”
“This is a strong first step to getting American energy infrastructure more expeditiously permitted, thereby reducing costs to taxpayers, and easing high energy prices for consumers,” Sgamma said of the debt ceiling agreement.
Congress is set to vote on the legislation as early as Wednesday. Both Republican and Democratic support is required for the bill to pass. The deal must pass the Senate before the June 5 deadline set by the Treasury Department.
As Texas braces for tighter power margins and record demand on the ERCOT grid, Sunrun and NRG Energy are transforming home batteries into a giant virtual power plant. The two companies are integrating more home battery storage into the grid and tapping those batteries when the state needs power the most.
The solar + storage provider and energy company announced a new multi-year partnership aimed at accelerating the adoption of distributed energy in Texas, with a focus on solar-plus-storage systems that can be aggregated and dispatched during periods of high demand. The idea is simple: use home batteries as a flexible, on‑demand power source to help meet Texas’s rapidly growing electricity needs.
Under the deal, Texas homeowners will be offered a bundled home energy setup that pairs Sunrun’s solar and battery systems with retail electricity plans from NRG’s Texas provider, Reliant. Customers will also get smart battery programming designed to optimize when their batteries charge and discharge. As new and existing Sunrun customers enroll with Reliant, their combined battery capacity will be made available to support the ERCOT grid during times of stress.
“This partnership is a major step in achieving our goal of creating a 1 GW virtual power plant by 2035,” said Brad Bentley, President of NRG Consumer. “By teaming up with Sunrun, we’re unlocking a new source of dispatchable, flexible energy while giving customers the opportunity to unlock value from their homes and contribute to a more resilient grid.”
Sunrun, which has one of the largest fleets of residential batteries in the US, will be paid for aggregating the capacity, and participating Reliant customers will be compensated by Sunrun for sharing their stored solar energy.
The arrangement gives Texas households a way to earn money from their batteries while also improving grid reliability in a state that continues to see rapid population growth, extreme weather, and rising electricity demand.
Read more: The US’s first residential V2G power plant is running on Ford F-150 Lightning trucks
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Volkswagen is gearing up to launch a new family of affordable EVs, starting with the ID.Polo. Can it fill the shoes of the popular low-cost hatch?
Volkswagen announces ID.Polo EV range and more
The ID.Polo will be the first of four new entry-level electric vehicles that Volkswagen plans to launch, starting in Spring 2026.
The electric Polo “marks the beginning of a new generation of Volkswagen,” the brand’s CEO, Thomas Schäfer, said. The Polo is one of the best-selling VW models of all time, and its electric successor promises to build upon its legacy.
It will be the first “ID” model to bear an established Volkswagen name. Although it’s about the same size as its predecessor at 4,053 mm long, 1,816 mm wide, and 1,530 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2,600 mm, the Polo EV offers more interior space.
Thanks to its compact drive modules, the electric Polo offers an extra 19 mm of interior length, which is “particularly noticeable in the rear.”
The luggage compartment is 24% larger than the classic Polo, with 435 L, up from 351 L. Folding the rear seats opens up 1,243 L of load volume, up from 1,125 L.
According to Volkswagen, the electric ID.Polo is “more versatile than any of its predecessors,” making it the perfect EV for getting around the city or as an everyday driver.
The Volkswagen ID.Polo will initially be available with three power outputs: 85 kW (114 hp), 99 kW (133 hp), and 155 kW (208 hp), while a sporty GTI variant will follow later in 2026 with 166 kW (223 hp).
The 85 kW and 99 kW versions will be equipped with a 37 kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, while the 155 kW and 166 kW versions will be powered by a 52 kWh nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) battery, which Volkswagen said will deliver up to 450 km (280 miles) WLTP driving range. It will also support DC charging speeds up to 130 kW.
Based on a new MEB+ platform, Volkswagen promises that the new, highly efficient electric drive will reduce costs and energy consumption.
The new PowerCo unified cell uses cell-to-pack technology, combining cells directly into the battery pack. Volkswagen said the new design reduces costs, saves space, and unlocks more range while increasing energy density by about 10%.
VW’s MEB+ platform will also introduce new advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) features, including a drastically improved Travel Assist. The ID.Polo will also be the first VW model to offer traffic light and stop sign recognition.
Can it live up to the task?
According to Autocar, which got the chance to test a prototype, the ID.Polo “feels remarkably like the current Polo. Switch from the petrol Polo into this and, a lack of engine noise aside, you would barely notice the difference.”
The reviewer, James Attwood, said the electric Polo delivered a “genuinely impressive ride for a car of this size,” adding it “drives and feels like you’d expect a Volkswagen to.”
With an affordable price tag, “the ID.Polo should be a strong all-rounder among the pack of small EVs suddenly battling for attention,” Attwood explained.
“It has a classically Volkswagen feel, poise and maturity, and blends a pleasingly mature driving experience with decent practicality and a reassuringly solid feel,” he said, adding, “A Volkswagen that feels like a Volkswagen, then. For that alone, it should be a winner.”
Others who got an early taste of the ID.Polo reported similar thoughts, including Auto Express, which said it “shows VW at its best.”
“Solid, well connected, comfortable and even quite engaging to drive, the ability to build all of this into a well-priced package is something we all hoped for; the surprising bit is how much of VW’s innate ‘character’ has come through,” Jordan Katsianis said after testing the pre-production prototype.
The ID.Polo will launch in Europe in Spring 2026 with prices starting from 25,000 euros ($29,500). It will be the first of four new affordable Volkswagen EVs, followed by the ID.Cross SUV and the smaller ID.1 electric car.
Although Volkswagen has yet confirm it, the ID.Polo is (sadly) not expected to launch in the US. It’s an affordable electric car aimed at Europe’s growing entry-level EV segment. Given the recent policy changes under the Trump administration and America’s love for big trucks and SUVs, don’t expect to see the electric Polo successor in the US anytime soon.
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BYD offered a first look at its new flagship electric SUV and sedan, claiming the new EVs redefine high-end standards.
BYD preps to launch new flagship EV sedan and SUV
With over 480,000 new energy vehicles (NEVs) sold in November, BYD is coming off its best sales month of 2025. With new technology and vehicles launching across multiple segments, the company expects momentum to pick up in 2026.
That will include a pair of high-end flagship EVs, the Seal 08 sedan and Sealion 08 SUV. BYD confirmed the names for the first time on Monday alongside teaser images revealing the silhouette of each.
According to CarNewsChina, both models are set to debut in the first three months of 2026 and will feature BYD’s latest tech and software.
Both models are based on the Ocean S concept BYD revealed in April at the Shanghai Auto Show, featuring its latest design theme, Ocean Aesthetic 2.0.
Although China’s MIIT released a sales license for a BYD vehicle named the Seal 08 earlier this year, it launched as the Seal 06 EV this summer.
At 4,720 mm long, 1,880 mm wide, and 1,495 mm tall, the electric sedan is about the size of the Tesla Model 3. It’s offered with 46.1 kWh or 56.6 kWh battery packs, delivering a CLTC range of 470 km and 545 km, respectively.
Although BYD has yet to reveal prices or any other details, the Seal 08 is expected to deliver a longer driving range with added power.
Local news outlet 163 claims the new Sealion 08 will be 5,040 mm long, or slightly bigger than the Tesla Model Y-sized Sealion 07 SUV.
The new flagship SUV and sedan will join other BYD Ocean Series models, including the Seagull, Dolphin, Seal, and Song Plus.
Although November was BYD’s best sales month of the year, growth has slowed in 2025. BYD’s chairman and president, Wang Chuanfu, told investors (via CnEVPost) that the company’s biggest advantage lies in its advanced technologies, including next-gen batteries, smart driving features, charging, and other related EV tech.
“I say our technology isn’t sufficiently advanced now because we have major technological announcements coming, but I can’t disclose details at this time,” Wang said earlier this month.
BYD is also aggressively expanding overseas to drive growth. Last month, BYD’s exports surged 325% with a record nearly 132,000 vehicles shipped overseas.
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