More threats
** As Washington launches its latest plan to cripple Iran’s economy, the Islamic Republic has threatened a regional and global response designed to raise the stakes for the United States and the world. “If the economic war continues, not a single drop of oil will be exported, neither through the Strait of Hormuz nor from anywhere in the Persian Gulf,” Mohsen Rezaei, the leader of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, wrote on X. “We will retaliate in an earthquake-like manner,” he said later in a televised interview.
Restoration
** Qatar and Kuwait have managed to boost their crude oil exports from the Strait of Hormuz to 70% of pre-war levels as they followed the United Arab Emirates in shuttling oil through the chokepoint and using ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman, anonymous traders told Bloomberg on Thursday.
Russian fire
** A fire has broken out at the Amur Gas Chemical Complex (AGCC) in Russia’s far eastern Amur region, killing seven people including six Chinese nationals, reported Reuters. In a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app, the plant said a further nine people were missing.
Australia
** Three rail industry proponents have been shortlisted to take part in the development of Australia’s proposed high-speed rail service between Newcastle and Sydney. The High Speed Rail Authority has selected the Alstom/UGL Joint Venture, the ARC Joint Venture and Hitachi Rail STS Australia for an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) process covering trains, systems and system integration for the project.
Grids
** The United States and China dominate global data-center electricity use, while Europe is a distant third. That distribution is important because adding a large amount of electricity demand to a mature grid that has experienced little growth for decades creates a very different challenge from adding it to an economy where power generation and transmission are already expanding rapidly.
US Energy developments
** President Trump issued an executive order barring new additions of certain power equipment — some transformers, inverters, and batteries and more — to U.S. grids. The order Wednesday cites national security risks like cyberattacks and is widely viewed as targeting Chinese equipment.
** The administration might quash the EPA’s authority over power plant emissions. The White House mulling over the idea which was drafted by the EPA and follows the agency’s February repeal of the Endangerment Finding, the legal foundation for US greenhouse gas regulation.
** The Interior Department plans to slash environmental study requirements for some oil exploration in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, per Reuters and High Country News.
** The Army unveiled $2.2 billion for companies to develop “microreactors” at military installations in North Carolina, Texas, Kentucky, and Georgia. It’s the Pentagon’s most direct effort yet to harness advanced nuclear energy.
** A new report on permitting delays from the National Association of Manufacturers puts the annual cost to U.S. manufacturers at $7.9 billion in lost revenue, legal expenses, and delayed project initiation. McKinsey estimates that major U.S. projects now take 4–5 years to permit, holding up roughly $1.1–$1.5 trillion in infrastructure investment. These figures represent generation capacity not coming online, grid upgrades not being delivered, and industrial facilities not being built. All of these inefficiencies show up as higher costs, tighter supply, and reduced resilience when needs are skyrocketing.
