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Energy & Climate Counsel

Your one-stop resource for timely analysis of legal and policy developments affecting the energy and climate sectors. We focus on the issues that matter most to you, from federal and state policy and judicial decisions to business trends and financing news.

Rising Cyberattacks on U.S. Water Infrastructure: Federal Guidance and Next Steps for Operators
Blog August 17, 2026
Recent guidance issued by Federal agencies warns that malicious cyber actors are targeting internet-facing operational technology (“OT”) used by water and wastewater utilities, particularly PLCs…
Load Growth and the Demand Side Revolution
Blog July 30, 2026
Trillions of dollars of AI capital are chasing roughly 100 gigawatts (“GW”) of electric power, and the nation’s electric-sector regulators – the policymakers at the federal and state levels, as well as the administrators of the various RTOs/ISOs – have a critical role to play in helping them secure it…
PJM Board Directs FERC Filing on Reliability Backstop Procurement and Interim Resource Adequacy Service
Blog July 30, 2026
On July 27, the PJM Board of Managers issued a “decisional letter” that directed PJM to file proposals for a Reliability Backstop Procurement and Connect and Manage—renamed “Interim Resource Adequacy Service”—with FERC in the next few days…
SJC's Sunpin Decision: A Win for Solar Development, But Not the Last Word
Blog July 17, 2026
On July 14, 2026, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) issued its decision in Sunpin Energy Services, LLC v. Zoning Board of Appeals of Petersham, holding in favor of solar development and reaffirming that local zoning boards have only narrow authority to deny solar special permits…
The Prohibited Foreign Entity (or FEOC) Rules and Battery Storage
Blog July 16, 2026
Over the past year, battery storage developers and equipment manufacturers have had to contend with new “Prohibited Foreign Entity” (PFE) rules—commonly called the FEOC (“foreign entity of concern”) requirements…
Virtual Power Plants: The Distributed Energy Revolution Has Arrived
Blog July 13, 2026
How aggregated distributed energy resources are reshaping the grid — and what it means for energy developers, utilities, and in-house legal teams…
Transmission Planning: The Unsung Use Case for Battery Storage
Blog July 08, 2026
2025 was decidedly the Year of the Battery and the trend of expanding and optimizing the plethora of applications for battery storage systems has continued this year…
What Regulators Can’t See: The American Efficient Case and the Future of Demand-Side Oversight
Blog May 28, 2026
On April 15, 2026, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) imposed a $722 million civil penalty against American Efficient, LLC (“American Efficient”) and its affiliates in one of the largest enforcement actions in FERC’s history…
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ABOUT

Foley Hoag’s Energy & Climate Counsel blog aims to be your one-stop resource for timely analysis of legal and policy developments affecting the energy and climate sectors. We focus on the issues that matter most to our readers, from federal and state policy and judicial decisions to business trends and financing news.

Our authors, comprised of attorneys from the firm’s Energy & Climate practice, have been active in the energy and climate space for decades, counseling clients across the spectrum – from new, innovative technology companies to large utility-scale power projects. Recognizing early on the common concerns of the renewable and traditional energy fields, we established one of the first integrated practices to serve all segments of the energy and clean technology sectors. We believe this tight integration provides us with the insight to analyze the pressing issues, trends and opportunities that those in this industry have come to expect.