Primary sources
The original record: a document, dataset, or statement produced by the organization the claim is about.
- Government and agency releases: DOE, EIA, USGS, USDA, FERC, EPA, and state utility commissions.
- National laboratory reports such as Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's data center energy studies.
- Company filings and disclosures: 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, earnings decks, and official investor calls.
- Court filings, legislation, regulatory dockets, and published executive orders.
- Peer-reviewed research and technical papers released by the researchers themselves.
- First-party company statements: engineering blogs, model cards, and press releases.
Secondary sources
Work that interprets, aggregates, or reports on primary material. Used when no primary record is public yet, or when the analysis itself is the news.
- Reporting by established news organizations that adds verified detail or on-the-record interviews.
- Industry trackers and analyst research such as Synergy Research Group or IEA outlooks built on modeled data.
- Trade press covering permits, contracts, and local siting decisions ahead of official publication.
How sources are used
- Every number gets a source. If we can't point to one, the number doesn't run.
- Primary sources take precedence. When a primary document exists, we cite it instead of coverage about it.
- Secondary sources are labeled as such in the article text — "according to" plus the outlet — never presented as our own finding.
- Single-source secondary claims are attributed, not asserted. We say who reported it and let the reader weigh it.
- Estimates, projections, and modeled figures are identified as estimates, with the modeling body named.
- Figures are rounded for clarity; the underlying source retains full precision.
- Corrections are made in place with a dated note when a source is updated or retracted.
Every article ends with a numbered Sources list linking directly to the material behind each claim, so you can check the original yourself.