Midwest Energy News

Ohio board lifts ‘poison pill’ restriction on Lake Erie wind project

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WIND: The Ohio Power Siting Board reverses an earlier decision that would have likely doomed the first offshore wind project in Lake Erie by limiting when it could operate. (Cleveland.com)

UTILITIES:
• Ohio regulators will require FirstEnergy to show whether customers paid for political or charitable spending related to the state’s power plant bailout law but won’t require an independent audit. (Eye on Ohio/Energy News Network)
• A coalition pushing to repeal the state’s power plant bailout law, HB 6, says polling shows little public support for the law. (WOSU)

***SPONSORED LINK: MnSEIA’s 7th annual Virtual Gateway to Solar event is less than a month away. Join speakers, sponsors, and attendees from across the country for 2 days of on-demand educational sessions, highlighting Diversity & Inclusion training and COVID-19 recovery.***

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Ford Motor Co.

Midwest Energy News

Improving transmission between Midwest grid territories a complex task

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GRID: Xcel Energy is updating an online mapping tool that details grid congestion, which would help clean energy developers determine where to site projects. (Energy News Network)

ALSO: Improving transmission along the seam of the Southwest Power Pool and grid operator MISO’s territory could unlock large amounts of wind power, but doing so remains complex. (Greentech Media) 

***SPONSORED LINK: MnSEIA’s 7th annual Virtual Gateway to Solar event is less than a month away. Join speakers, sponsors, and attendees from across the country for 2 days of on-demand educational sessions, highlighting Diversity & Inclusion training and COVID-19 recovery.***

WIND: The Ohio Power Siting Board is expected to reject calls to revisit a May ruling that critics say would doom the first offshore wind project in the Great Lakes. (Cleveland.com)

UTILITIES: Xcel Energy is among the five biggest U.S. utilities that have made net-zero carbon pledges by 2050.

Midwest Energy News

FirstEnergy under separate investigation by financial regulators

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SOLAR: Five months after the Kansas Supreme Court ruled it illegal, utility Evergy continues to collect a demand fee from customers who own solar panels. (Energy News Network)

ALSO:
• A historic Detroit pottery studio adds solar panels to reduce its energy costs and help offset revenue losses during the pandemic. (Crain’s Detroit Business)
• Four central Illinois nonprofits will install solar projects with no upfront costs through the state’s Solar for All program. (WGLT)

***SPONSORED LINK: MnSEIA’s 7th annual Virtual Gateway to Solar event is less than a month away. Join speakers, sponsors, and attendees from across the country for 2 days of on-demand educational sessions, highlighting Diversity & Inclusion training and COVID-19 recovery.***

EFFICIENCY: Chicago architects work to balance needed energy efficiency upgrades with the design integrity of historic buildings.

Midwest Energy News

Rural southern Indiana to benefit from planned solar buildout

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SOLAR: Critics say Consumers Energy has failed to provide data justifying its proposal to significantly reduce compensation for customers who send excess solar power back to the grid. (Energy News Network)

ALSO:
• Three large solar projects planned in southern Indiana are expected to double the state’s solar capacity and boost local rural economies. (Indiana Public Media)
• An eco-village outside of Detroit launches a crowdfunding campaign to install solar-powered streetlights. (Model D)
• A Chicago nonprofit is delivering solar-powered lights to areas of Louisiana still recovering from Hurricane Laura. (KPLC)

***SPONSORED LINK: MnSEIA’s 7th annual Virtual Gateway to Solar event is less than a month away.

Midwest Energy News

Minnesota Republicans oust commissioner amid Line 3 challenge

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The Energy News Network’s 40 Under 40 is now live! Meet this year’s cohort at energynews.us/40Under40

EMISSIONS: Federal officials attempt to crack down on the use of defeat devices that remove pollution control systems from diesel vehicles, but the equipment remains readily accessible. (Fair Warning)

PIPELINES:
• The GOP-led Minnesota Senate ousts the state’s commerce commissioner after the agency continued legal challenges to the Line 3 pipeline replacement. (Star Tribune)
• A U.S. Coast Guard report shows a barge was inspected twice in the weeks leading up to its dragging an anchor in the Straits of Mackinac that dented the Line 5 pipeline and severed transmission cables. (Detroit News)

***SPONSORED LINK: There’s still time to register for MnSEIA’s virtual Gateway to Solar Conference, Oct.