Yesterday, the Department of the Interior announced four proposed rules to revise Endangered Species Act regulations, reviving a suite of changes from the first Trump administration. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said, "These revisions end years of legal confusion and regulatory overreach, delivering certainty… while ensuring conservation efforts remain grounded in sound science and common sense."

And MP Materials has teamed up with the US Department of War to form a joint venture in Saudi Arabia to build a rare earths refinery. The Saudi JV builds on the multi-billion-dollar public-private partnership that MP and the Department of War announced in July to bolster America's rare earth supply chain and reduce its reliance on China.

On Capitol Hill today, the House Natural Resources Committee will vote to advance permitting reform—specifically the NMA-backed bipartisan Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development, or SPEED Act. The NMA's Rich Nolan testified in support of the legislation in early September.

And finally, the latest forecast for U.S. power demand is going up… way up. Grid Strategies now forecasts U.S. peak power demand jumping 166 GW in 2030. As the report notes, that's equivalent to adding 15 times the peak demand of New York City in just five years.