The Energy Department is aiming to help lower solar power costs by 60% over the next decade as the Biden administration looks to greatly speed up deployment of solar and other climate-friendly sources.

Why it matters: The target, paired with new funding for development of more advanced solar tech, is among Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's first initiatives.

Additions of new U.S. solar generating capacity broke new records last year despite the COVID-19 pandemic slowing some types of projects, per new industry data.

Why it matters: It shows a surge in growth thanks to increasing cost competitiveness, but also how solar continues to benefit from supportive state and federal policies.

Plans for the first major U.S. offshore wind project are closer to reality now that the Interior Department has completed an environmental review of Vineyard Wind, which is proposed for construction off Massachusetts.

Why it matters: Offshore wind has been very slow to develop here despite large power generating potential, but a wave of projects are now planned off the coast of Atlantic states including New York and New Jersey.

A new analysis shows lots of potential for regions with a high share of fossil fuel jobs to benefit from wind and solar development — with the right policies in place.

Why it matters: The idea of a "just transition" in the energy sector is discussed a lot in climate policy plans, including President Biden's recent executive order.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Saturday that blaming this week's mass power outages on renewable energy is "disingenuous."

Driving the news: Several Republicans, as well as conservative commentators have falsely blamed wind and solar energy for the blackouts, which left millions of people across Texas in the dark amid frigid temperatures and snow and ice storms.

The International Energy Agency is out with a helpful primer on how things got so bad in Texas earlier this week — and how to make power systems more resilient to weather extremes.

The big picture: Part of their analysis looked at what happened when bitter cold caused a surge in demand but also hampered natural gas production and power generation equipment.

The chart above is a wide-angle look at the main sources of electricity generation in Texas, showing how natural gas is by far the biggest and how renewables (largely wind) have overtaken coal.

Yes, but: There's plenty of variation, and blaming wind for the state's crisis misses the mark, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The VC arms of Chevron and BP are funding Eavor, a startup looking to commercialize a form of geothermal energy that it says can provide large-scale power in many regions worldwide.

Why it matters: It's the latest sign of momentum and investor interest behind technology that could significantly scale up geothermal.

Hyzon Motors, the hydrogen fuel cell truck and bus startup, is going public via reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company.

Driving the news: Hyzon is merging with Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp. in a deal that values the New York-based startup at $2.7 billion.

The huge multinational oil-and-gas company Total on Tuesday unveiled new information about its diversification efforts — and the company's changing its name too.

Driving the news: Total said over 20% of its expected $12.1 billion in net spending in 2021 will be devoted to renewables and other electricity-related investments.