Evan Halper

Covering the energy transition for the Washington Post. [email protected].

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

Woot, woot. Started today at @washingtonpost, where I'll be untangling the energy transition. Energy and climate wonks, pols, innovators, etc: find me at [email protected].

[Juliet Eilperin @eilperin]

As data centers boom in Virginia, a new @washingtonpost analysis shows that residents there are breathing in the exhaust from more than 10,000 diesel generators By @evanhalper and @kcrowebasspro https://t.co/w0FtNTmWD6

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

Plot thickens at Rick Perry's @FermiAmerica . Fresh SEC filing reveals former CEO Toby Neugebauer was just fired altogether for cause, removing him from the board -- after stock for this planned colossal AI energy campus plunged in value 81%. https://t.co/PNjE6XL5H9

[Dan Lamothe @DanLamothe]

EXCLUSIVE: It could take six months to fully clear the Strait of Hormuz of mines deployed by the Iranian military, and any such operation is unlikely to be carried out until the U.S. war with Iran ends, the Pentagon has informed Congress — an assessment that means the conflict’s economic impact could extend late into this year or beyond.

[Juliet Eilperin @eilperin]

NEW: The share of Virginian voters who support new data centers in their community has plunged to 35 percent, according to a Post-Schar School poll, showing how the national mood has shifted. By @evanhalper @sfcpoll Omari Daniels and Isabelle Gibson https://t.co/bqLCRBEuxC

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

Rationale for ripping out a beloved stretch of DC bike lane: allow more cars to pile up at the cherry blossoms – an already gridlocked hellscape. The data shows cutting off bikers at this stretch could get cyclists AND drivers killed. But it will please some trolls.

[Martin Austermuhle @maustermuhle]

The Trump administration is removing a protected bike lane that runs along 15th Street from the National Mall to the Tidal Basin. Officials say it causes traffic; bike advocates say it actually makes everyone safer. https://t.co/tse9cVEzAg

[Patrick De Haan @GasBuddyGuy]

i estimate the chance of the national average reaching $4/gal in the next month is now 80%

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

This would be significantly higher than oil ever reached during the Biden era, when prices at the pump soared to $5.

[Financial Times @FT]

FT Exclusive: Qatar’s energy minister has warned that war in the Middle East could 'bring down the economies of the world', predicting that all Gulf energy exporters would shut down production within weeks and drive oil to $150 a barrel. https://t.co/CfQ2vs0h8W

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

MAGA is learning to love solar -- as the right's anti-solar crusade is making utility bills higher, giving China an advantage in the AI race, and fueling U.S. dependence on imported energy. Key MAGA voices urged a pivot. It is happening. https://t.co/2Ygo5VnI1u

[Juliet Eilperin @eilperin]

One immediate impact of #Iran strikes: higher oil prices, falling stock markets, @evanhalper and @rachsieg The question is whether these developments, which will intensify the affordability crunch, will last https://t.co/nRGrOs1kLQ

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

Silicon Valley’s energy appetite is so insatiable that it is now trying to build a colossal shadow power grid for itself nationwide. But will it work? Said @JigarShahDC : “This whole thing feels like a fairy tale concocted on the back of a napkin.” https://t.co/hUf2Yl0aqQ

[Chico Harlan @chicoharlan]

After thousands of stories, this is the last piece I'll ever write in the @washingtonpost.

It's about Iceland, looking at the planet's future, seeing an existential threat.

https://t.co/NhmTtZN4pY

[Washington Post Guild @PostGuild]

It takes all of us to make The Washington Post. Every section works together to create this authoritative, entertaining, worldwide news report.

So, @JeffBezos: #SaveThePost.

[Katie Mettler @kemettler]

The Metro staff has always been the @washingtonpost's first line of defense when news breaks in our backyard.

Jan. 6, 2021? We risked our safety as rioters chased and chanted "traitors get the rope."

That reporting helped win the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. #SaveThePost

[Siobhán O'Grady @siobhan_ogrady]

For nearly a century, @washingtonpost foreign correspondents have been on the frontlines of wars, pandemics, economic crises, civil uprisings and so much more. Washington needs us. The world needs us. If you read us and need us, please watch and share.

@JeffBezos #SaveThePost

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

The @washingtonpost unflinchingly follows the story wherever it leads. In this case, 3 continents. Few institutions can bring the public the kind of accountability reporting The Post does every day. Please don’t gut our newsroom @jeffbezos #SaveThePost
https://t.co/im0FIuM3xr

[Juliet Eilperin @eilperin]

NEW: The two companies the Trump administration has awarded secretive contracts to in order to sell Venezuelan oil have a history of bribery and corruption, reports @evanhalper and @Anthony_Faiola https://t.co/SlWyIrS68w

[Evan Halper @evanhalper]

“I don’t care how much chocolate icing you put on a dog turd, it don’t make it chocolate cake. They are trying to fluff this data center thing up and say, ‘Man, eat this birthday cake.’” https://t.co/g6gA0GUdPw

[Steve Inskeep @NPRinskeep]

So many ironies.

NYT, WaPo (and NPR and others) gave up Pentagon passes rather than sign a restrictive media policy that cast them as a security threat.

It didn’t stop them from learning critical information, which they handled responsibly as they so often have.

[Juliet Eilperin @eilperin]

Trump has grand visions of how oil production in Venezuela could soar now that he's ousted Maduro. @evanhalper and @PeterWhoriskey break down what could really happen #madurocaptured https://t.co/kJuaAKkuPk

[Michael Thomas @curious_founder]

Last month, after I wrote my story about giga-scale data centers, two journalists at The Washington Post reached out to use Cleanview's data for one of their stories. Their piece just came out and it's a great read.

Using our data, and a few other sources, @evanhalper and @niko_tinius found that the average planned data center is expected to be 10x larger than current operating ones.

Yesterday's data centers used as much power as a small town. Today's are expected to use as much as a city with 500,000 people. But the largest ones could use as much power as Philadelphia (population: 5.7m).

These data centers come with important consequences. As Evan and Niko write:

"Such facilities will create a major climate challenge. By the mid 2030s, forecasts show the world’s data centers could drive as much carbon pollution as the New York, Chicago and Houston metro areas combined."

@evanhalper and @niko_tinius consistently publish awesome work. To read more of their work, subscribe to The Washington Post's Climate Lab and give them a follow here on X.