Today: Attorney general says stoppage threatens state's energy and economy; Meta unveils sweeping nuclear-power plan; big business is still banking on solar, despite Trump turmoil. 

Welcome back: New York Attorney General Letitia James on Friday filed two lawsuits against the Trump administration over its halt of the Empire Wind and Sunrise Wind projects.

WSJ Pro Sustainable Business's Clara Hudson reports the Trump administration in December paused the federal leases for five East Coast wind projects, citing national security concerns. The state attorney general’s lawsuit said the pause on the projects is “arbitrary and unwarranted” because both went through years of national security and safety reviews.

James, who asked the court to block the administration’s stop-work orders, also said that pausing the projects could threaten New York’s economy and energy. The two projects off the coast of Long Island are expected to power more than one million homes in New York, she said.

The Empire Wind project is run by Norwegian energy company Equinor, which last week filed an injunction request for the Trump administration’s order. Danish renewable business Orsted is developing Sunrise Wind, and it recently made legal bids to restart that project as well as its Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut.

• Supreme Court to hear case brought by Louisiana officials seeking to hold energy companies liable for environmental damage. (NYT)

Tell me what you think: Send me your feedback and suggestions at perry.cleveland-peck@wsj.com or reply to any newsletter. If you were forwarded this newsletter, you can sign up here.

Meta Platforms announced agreements that would make it an anchor customer for new and existing nuclear power in the U.S., where it needs city-size amounts of electricity for its artificial-intelligence data centers.

The Wall Street Journal's Jennifer Hiller writes that the Facebook parent said it would back new reactor projects with the developers TerraPower and Oklo and has struck a deal with the power producer Vistra to purchase and expand the generation output of three plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Financial details weren’t disclosed, but the arrangements are among the most sweeping and ambitious so far between tech companies and nuclear-power providers. Vistra and Oklo shares both rose about 15% shortly after the stock market opened. TerraPower is privately held.

Meta aims to see the first new reactors delivered as early as 2030, a speedy target even for more-conventional power projects. Its purchase of nuclear power from Vistra starts later this year and will keep power on the grid.

• Lawmakers from both parties want to usher in a new era of nuclear energy, but some Democrats say are uneasy. (WSJ)

The U.S. solar landscape has felt gloomy since the Trump administration slashed incentives for renewable power and labeled sun- and wind-powered energy “the scam of the century,” Clara Hudson writes.

But a series of recent tech and other industry deals across the country signal that some in solar are persevering. Solar—a relatively inexpensive option that is quick to get up and running—can make practical and financial sense, particularly for businesses that have pledged to lower their emissions.

• Solar company Aspen Power said that it just secured a boon from Deutsche Bank with a $200 million capital raise to help it grow.
• Coach parent company Tapestry said its partner Pivot Energy completed the development of three community solar projects in Illinois.
• Google in November agreed to a 15-year power purchase agreement for 100 megawatts from the Redfield Solar Project in Arkansas.

The deals come as the Trump administration recently took a surprising turn by unshackling a major solar project. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management in December said it would allow the Libra Solar Project in Nevada to move ahead after months of limbo.

• President Trump said he might prevent Exxon Mobil from drilling in Venezuela after the company’s top executive expressed concerns. (WSJ)
   
• China auto giant Geely is eyeing an expansion to the U.S., in what would be a watershed moment for domestic carmakers. (WSJ)
   
• Lightsmith led a $20 million investment in Tive, valuing the shipment-tracking systems developer at slightly more than $500 million. (WSJ)
   
• Equitable Earth raises $14.7 million to advance certification standard for nature-based carbon projects (ESG Today)
   
• Is the chief sustainability officer becoming irrelevant? It’s debatable. (Trellis)
   
• Almost half of U.S. homeowners surveyed by an insurance firm said they might relocate this year over climate concerns. (Dow Jones Risk Journal)
   
• Singapore opened the world’s tallest vertical farm, as the city-state tries to reduce its reliance on imported food. (Bloomberg)
   
• China's "artificial sun" reactor shatters major fusion limit — a step closer to near-limitless clean energy. (Live Science)

WSJ Pro Sustainable Business gives you an inside look at how companies are tackling sustainability. Send comments to bureau chief Perry Cleveland-Peck at perry.cleveland-peck@wsj.com and reporters Clara Hudson at clara.hudson@wsj.com and Yusuf Khan at yusuf.khan@wsj.com. Follow us on LinkedIn at perrycp, clara-hudson and yusuf_khan.