VX News checked in with Gene Seroka, Executive Director of the Port of Los Angeles, to illuminate how tariff uncertainty is reshaping global trade flows—and the cascading effects these disruptions are having on American workers, consumers, and supply chains.

With California’s economy rising to rank 4th largest globally, CA Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis joined LAEDC’s 10th annual Select LA Summit on May 8 to reflect on the factors driving the state’s position as a global economic engine.

VX News excerpts a May 12 press conference on the Port of Long Beach’s far-reaching economic benefits as well as the drastic and immediate impacts uncertain US tariff policies are having on port operations and the logistics industry and anticipated supply chain disruptions absent stable, certain and long-term US trade strategy.

VX News shares framing remarks from Jigar Shah, co-host of the Open Circuit podcast and former director of the USDOE Loan Programs Office, and Robert Chun, Chief of Staff to California Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild, who elaborate on the necessity and advantages of battery storage for meeting the state’s energy and affordability needs as well as actions taken by the state and the CEC to ensure safe deployment of grid-scale battery technology.

With the causes and impacts of the Eaton & Palisades Wildfires in Los Angeles and Moss Landing fire bringing into sharp focus both the resilience opportunities that Distributed Energy Resources affords as well as safety concerns surrounding battery deployment in communities, VX News shares this excerpt from a recent episode of the EPRI Current podcast elaborating on the evolving safety protocols, research and resources—including EPRI’s Battery Electric Storage System Failure Incident Database and Analysis on Failure Root Cause—informing operational best practices for deployment of battery and energy storage technologies.  

Angelina Galiteva highlights the importance of clear, consistent, and transparent policies to drive down hydrogen costs and attract long-term investments, emphasizing that, as with solar and wind, California can reduce the price of hydrogen through scale and security.