Amrith Ramkumar

Shares of nuclear power companies surged Wednesday after Amazon said it would work with utilities to explore deploying futuristic small modular reactors (SMRs) in Virginia and Washington state. The e-commerce giant also invested in SMR company X-energy, one of the firms working on the Washington reactors, as part of a $500 million funding round that also included Citadel CEO Ken Griffin and private-equity firm Ares Management. Shares of SMR companies Oklo, which is backed by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and NuScale Power added more than 30%.

Shares of QuantumScape added about 20%, recovering some of a recent slide after the solid-state battery upstart said it shipped some of its high-performing battery cells to auto industry customers. QuantumScape is part of a generation of clean-energy startups trying to turn promising technologies into viable businesses before burning through their cash.

Big federal subsidies are driving a surge in solar installations on church rooftops.

Nuclear-energy stocks slid after the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shot down Amazon's plan to use more power from a Talen Energy nuclear reactor to fuel a data center. The decision is a sign that attempts by tech companies to hook projects up directly to sources of power could face obstacles from utility companies and regulators. Talen Energy, the company trying to sell more nuclear power to Amazon from the Pennsylvania plant, said the FERC ruling could have a chilling effect on similar projects, and that it is evaluating options.

The president-elect wants to boost fossil fuels and dial back green subsidies.

The president-elect wants to boost fossil fuels and dial back green subsidies.

Makers and suppliers of electric cars are dealing with diminishing cash, uneven sales and the prospects of an unfriendly Trump administration.

Makers and suppliers of electric cars are dealing with diminishing cash, uneven sales and the prospects of an unfriendly Trump administration.

Data centers are projected to guzzle as much electricity as renewable and fossil sources can produce.