Jesse D. Jenkins
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jessedjenkins.com
Jesse D. Jenkins
@jessedjenkins.com
30K followers 2.7K following 4K posts
Macro-energy systems engineering, optimization & policy. Associate professor at Princeton University. Leads the ZERO Lab. Co-hosts SHIFT KEY podcast. Time100 Next & TIME100 Climate honoree. More at linkedin.com/in/jessedjenkins & zero.lab.princeton.edu
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jessedjenkins.com
SPP (the Southwest Power Pool, serving the central Great Plains states) approved a new regional transmission plan with $8.6 billion in projects, including ~950 miles of ultra-high voltage 765 kV lines, and with estimated benefits 18X the costs www.spp.org/documents/75... More of this please! 🔌💡
November 7, 2025 at 3:09 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Hat tip @wilsonar.bsky.social for this! 🤣
November 6, 2025 at 12:49 AM
jessedjenkins.com
How's this for energy abundance? Millions of Aussies will start receiving three hours of free power each day in 2026. This is what happens when you make rooftop solar less than a buck a watt!!

"Rooftop solar installations cost about $840 (U.S.) per kilowatt of capacity before rebates." 🤯
🔌💡
For years, Australians have been been installing solar panels at a rapid clip. Now that investment is paying off. The Australian government announced this week that electricity customers in three states will get free electricity for up to three hours per day starting in July 2026. The Solar Sharer plan will be available to everyone in New South Wales, South Australia, and in the southeastern part of Queensland to start; more regions will be added later. Households won’t need to have solar on their rooftops to qualify, though they will need a smart meter installed. The plan will help those who live in apartments or don’t have a suitable rooftop to benefit from their neighbors’ panels, Bowen said. Although the government hasn’t said which hours in the middle of the day will qualify, the hours between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. are the most likely candidates. Customers will have to opt in to the new plan, which is meant to encourage people to shift their energy use to peak solar-production hours. Smart appliances can help people make the most of this by allowing them to time charging their EVs or running loads of laundry.
November 6, 2025 at 12:46 AM
jessedjenkins.com
Cost estimates for new gas power plants just keep rising! www.utilitydive.com/news/gas-pow... 🔌💡
According to Enverus, capital costs for new natural gas power plants now average $2,200/kW to $3,000/kW. An analysis by GridLab adds another $1,500/kW levelized for the 20-year cost of fuel and $500/kW for pipeline infrastructure, putting the cost of new gas generation at $4,000/kW to $4,500/kW. Kevin Smith, CEO of Arevon Energy, spent years working on natural gas projects alongside nuclear and renewables before transitioning to focus on renewables exclusively. He suggested there was a ceiling to how much gas could be built to meet near-term demand given the prices, pipeline constraints and interconnection queues. “Tens of gigawatts of new generation from natural gas is likely at least five years away, if not more,” Smith said. Table: Comparison of typical cost and flexibility characteristics for various gas generation technologies: Natural Gas Combined Cycle, Natural Gas Combustion Turbine, NGCT Aeroderivative, and Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engine plants. From Ascend Analytics’ report on thermal generation.
November 4, 2025 at 6:26 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Today on SHIFT KEY: we talk with the intrepid CEO of a company on a quest to slash the cost drilling boreholes for ground source heat pumps (aka geothermal heating & cooling). The prize? How we heat & cool every building! Listen @heatmap.news or wherever you get your pods. 🔗⤵️
Simply operating America’s buildings uses more than a third of the country’s energy. A major chunk of that is temperature control — keeping the indoors cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Heating eats into families’ budgets and burns a tremendous amount of fuel oil and natural gas. But what if we could heat and cool buildings more efficiently, cleanly, and cheaply? On this week’s episode of Shift Key, Rob and Jesse talk to Dulcie Madden, the founder and CEO of Dig Energy, a New Hampshire-based startup that is trying to lower the cost of digging geothermal wells scaled to serve a single structure. Dig makes small rigs that can drill boreholes for ground source heat pumps — a technology that uses the bedrock’s ambient temperature to heat and cool homes and businesses while requiring unbelievably low amounts of energy. Once groundsource wells get built, they consume far less energy than gas furnaces, air conditioners, or even air-dependent heat pumps.
October 22, 2025 at 12:06 PM
jessedjenkins.com
I recently co-founded Firma Power w/Scott Burger & Brent Alderfer, a new venture assembling portfolios of clean resources to deliver firm, load-enabling power to hyperscale data centers and other large loads.
World-class analytics is our edge, and we want YOU to join the team. 🔌💡
Join Firma on our journey to commercialize load enabling clean firm power.
October 20, 2025 at 7:25 PM
jessedjenkins.com
This is utterly unconstitutional and un-American. Journalists identify 170 US citizens detained by immigration enforcement actions (~20 children), at least two dozen were prevented from contacting lawyers for at least a day. Blatant violations of Bill of Rights.
www.propublica.org/article/immi...
Americans have been dragged, tackled, beaten, tased and shot by immigration agents. They’ve had their necks kneeled on. They’ve been held outside in the rain while in their underwear. At least three citizens were pregnant when agents detained them. One of those women had already had the door of her home blown off while Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem watched. About two dozen Americans have said they were held for more than a day without being able to phone lawyers or loved ones. Americans Detained: The government doesn’t track how many citizens are held by immigration agents. We found more than 170 cases this year where citizens were detained at raids and protests. Held Incommunicado: More than 20 citizens have reported being held for over a day without being able to call their loved ones or a lawyer. In some cases their families couldn’t find them. Cases Wilted: Agents have arrested about 130 Americans, including a dozen elected officials, for allegedly interfering with or assaulting officers, yet those cases were often dropped.
October 20, 2025 at 7:11 PM
jessedjenkins.com
The government’s own data rebuts Trump Admin claims that wind and solar are driving up electricity prices, Politico reports share.google/RTIXPPQMXrTH...
“[T]he data say pretty much the opposite” of Trump & Secretary Wright’s claims.
Among the 22 states that drew higher-than-average shares of their power from wind and solar, 17 had below-average electricity prices in June, according to EIA data.
October 7, 2025 at 9:01 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Solar leads EU electricity generation as renewables hit 54% share.google/WEiX2aSdEwj9... 🔌💡 ☀️
According to new data from Eurostat, renewable energy sources generated 54% of the EU’s net electricity in Q2 2025, up from 52.7% year-over-year. The growth came mainly from solar, which produced 122,317 gigawatt-hours (GWh) – nearly 20% of the total electricity generation mix. June 2025 was a milestone month: Solar became the EU’s single largest electricity source for the first time ever. It supplied 22% of all power that month, edging out nuclear (21.6%), wind (15.8%), hydro (14.1%), and natural gas (13.8%).
October 2, 2025 at 1:41 AM
jessedjenkins.com
Here's more on the progress of electrification around the world from @ember-energy.org's new report ember-energy.org/latest-insig... which we discuss on this week's Shift Key here heatmap.news/podcast
September 25, 2025 at 12:43 PM
jessedjenkins.com
In the Post (& elsewhere), Energy Secretary Wright continues to get basic facts wrong. He claims “We’ve been talking about ‘electrify everything’ for a while. Today, 15 percent of energy in manufacturing comes from electricity, same as it was 25 years ago.” False. Here's the real global data.
September 25, 2025 at 12:43 PM
jessedjenkins.com
This week on SHIFT KEY: A stack of electricity techs — solar, batteries, EVs etc. — seem to be displacing fossil fuels across China & the developing world. Is this the start of the "Electrotech Revolution"? Rob & I discuss the evidence with @kingsmillbond.bsky.social heatmap.news/podcast/shif... 🔌💡
Heatmap graphic shows a truck in China hauling a wind turbine tower with two wind turbines and mountains in the background.
September 25, 2025 at 12:16 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Well 🤬
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/17/c...
If global temperatures continue rising, virtually all the corals in the Atlantic Ocean will stop growing and could succumb to erosion by the end of the century, a new study finds. The analysis of over 400 existing coral reefs across the Atlantic Ocean estimates that more than 70 percent of the region’s reefs will begin dying by 2040 even under optimistic climate warming scenarios. And if the planet exceeds 2 degrees Celsius of warming above preindustrial temperatures by the end of the century, 99 percent of corals in the region would meet this fate. Today, the planet has warmed about 1.3 degrees Celsius over preindustrial temperatures. The implications are grave.
September 22, 2025 at 8:34 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Do it! More than two gigawatts of round the clock emissions free power deliverable straight into NYC. Closing it was a huge mistake. Let's fix that mistake now.
www.politico.com/news/2025/09... 🔌💡⚛️
Politico headline says "Indian Point owner floats restart of shuttered nuclear reactors."
September 10, 2025 at 1:22 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Electricity is getting more expensive—and the culprit, in much of the country, is the poles & wires. On Shift Key, Rob and I unpack why distribution utility regulation kinda sucks, why it's so important, and how to fix it so utilities have incentives to be more cost efficient and save consumers $ 🔌💡
Shift Key podcast episode titled Utility Regulation Really Sucks
September 10, 2025 at 11:25 AM
jessedjenkins.com
Today on SHIFT KEY Summer School: how do electricity markets work? I give @robinsonmeyer.bsky.social a primer on marginal generators, bid curves, and capacity markets. Listen @heatmap.news or wherever you get your podcasts. 🔌💡
Shift Key Summer School podcast episode: how do power markets work?
August 13, 2025 at 1:57 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Today on SHIFT KEY: Jody Freeman joins us to unpack Trump's moves to kill regulation of greenhouse gases from vehicles, power plants, and everything else. We unpack how the EPA is attacking the cornerstone finding that underpins all federal GHG regs under the Clean Air Act.
New SHIFT KEY episode: "Trump's Move to Kill the Clean Air Act's Climate Authority Forever"
August 6, 2025 at 1:26 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Today on an all new SHIFT KEY: why @robinsonmeyer.bsky.social and I are worried about a growing electricity affordability crisis. We break down several factors all-but-certain to drive up costs & how that will change American energy politics. Listen @heatmap.news or wherever you get your podcasts.
New SHIFT KEY episode: What We're Worried About Electricity Prices
July 30, 2025 at 2:04 PM
jessedjenkins.com
And here's @costasamaras.com with his own strong submission to the Podcast Oscars in the category "Best Post-OBBB Podcast on What's Next for Climate and Clean Energy Transition" www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...
July 25, 2025 at 3:15 PM
jessedjenkins.com
Is decarbonization dead? @janeaflegal.bsky.social & I join Ezra Klein to talk through how Trump just shredded America's most ambitious climate policy, what survived, and where we go from here. Listen @nytimes.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/25/o...
Screenshot of Jesse Jenkins on The Ezra Klein Show with headline "Is Decarbonization Dead?" Screenshot of Jane Flegal on The Ezra Klein Show with headline "Is Decarbonization Dead?"
July 25, 2025 at 10:58 AM
jessedjenkins.com
Texas is the real model for American Energy Dominance. Trump is letting ideology triumph over pragmatism, while Texas continues to show what an all-of-the-above approach to harnessing energy resources can do for affordability, reliability, and economic growth
www.reuters.com/sustainabili... 🔌💡
President Donald Trump claims that rapid adoption of solar and wind power has made U.S. electricity unstable and expensive, justifying his bid to end most subsidies for renewable energy. But reliability has improved dramatically in the U.S. grid with the most renewable energy – in Texas - and electricity prices there are below the national average, according to regulatory filings and price data reviewed by Reuters. At the same time, some grids that rely primarily on fossil fuel generation have experienced reliability issues and surging prices.
July 11, 2025 at 12:29 PM
jessedjenkins.com
That is also relevant, but by that math, the difference due to hardware is about 60-70 cents/W, while the total difference in cost is much larger (e.g. $2.5-3/W in US vs $1-1.5/W in Germany). NREL bottom up analysis estimates soft costs other than labor for US resi. solar are ~$1.3/W!
July 9, 2025 at 3:53 PM
jessedjenkins.com
I make the case for local permitting reform to make distributed solar cheap in New Jersey. The same argument applies everywhere. Cut the insane red tape that is a big reason why rooftop solar costs 2-4x as much in the US as it does in other peer countries. www.njspotlightnews.org/2025/07/op-e... 🔌💡
Gov. Murphy can act now to cut the red tape that is holding back rooftop solar and home battery installations for families across the state. Solar is exceedingly popular among New Jersey voters. Unfortunately, it remains far more expensive to install here than around the world. Take Australia, where households typically install solar panels for less than $1 per watt —while we typically pay about three times as much. And Australia isn’t unique. Across other peer countries, rooftop solar costs a fraction of what it does for New Jerseyans. We shouldn’t stand for that kind of price premium. One of the biggest reasons solar is pricier here is the time and complexity involved in permitting a project and connecting it to the grid. New Jersey has some of the longest residential solar permitting timelines and some of the most complicated and burdensome permitting requirements in the country. Each of our state’s 564 municipalities has a process, some requiring applicants to go to City Hall during limited opening times and wait in line to have applications processed manually. Permitting is so onerous in some communities that installers avoid them altogether. This inefficiency isn’t just a headache — it’s a major cost driver. Permitting can add $3,800 to $4,500 to the cost of a typical rooftop solar system in New Jersey. For too many families, that’s the difference between going solar and giving up on the idea. It doesn’t have to be this way. The Legislature just unanimously passed a bill (S-4100/A-5264) that would fast-track permits for rooftop solar and home batteries. All applicants would need to do is fill out standardized information online and click a button. And that’s exactly as easy as it should be. This type of “smart permitting” has a track record of safety and results, and is already in use in hundreds of communities around the country. If we want to make rooftop solar and home battery installations easier and cheaper in New Jersey, smart permitting is a necessary first step, but we shouldn’t stop there. Our Board of Public Utilities should ensure utilities across the state offer swift timelines and fair prices to interconnect solar and battery projects to the grid. During its next session, the Legislature should also consider allowing families to opt for their rooftop solar and home battery systems to be inspected remotely using photos and videos, so they don’t have to take a day off work to wait around for an inspector, as well as clamping down on excessive permitting fees.
July 9, 2025 at 2:01 PM
jessedjenkins.com
6. The One Big "Beautiful" Bill increases U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 190 million metric tons per year in 2030 and 470 million tons in 2035—or about 2 percent of 2005 emissions in 2030 and 7 percent in 2035.
#OBBB 🔌💡
July 3, 2025 at 7:10 PM
jessedjenkins.com
5. The One Big "Beautiful" Bill decreases clean electricity generation in 2035 by more than 820 terawatt-hours—more than the entire contribution of nuclear or coal to our electricity supply today.
#OBBB 🔌💡
July 3, 2025 at 7:10 PM