CLIMATE: President Biden orders federal agencies to evaluate climate risks facing the country and develop plans to help mitigate them as part of a government-wide strategy. (Reuters)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Ford’s joint venture with battery maker SK Innovation will eventually produce batteries for roughly 600,000 electric vehicles per year. (Associated Press)
• A Korean auto supplier will invest $10 million and hire 285 people in Georgia to make battery modules and energy storage systems. (Associated Press)
• California regulators adopt a rule requiring electric vehicles to account for 90% of rideshare trips by 2030 while acknowledging there’s little they can do to prevent companies from passing costs on to drivers. (Reuters)
• New Jersey proposes a rule to transition medium- and heavy-duty trucks to electric, earning applause from environmentalists and little opposition from critics. (NJ Spotlight)

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EFFICIENCY: The White House takes its first step to revise light bulb efficiency standards, asking stakeholders for input on its proposed changes. (The Hill)

EMISSIONS:
• Air pollution from fossil fuels annually costs Americans an average of $2,500 in additional medical bills and contributes to an estimated 107,000 premature deaths, a report from the Natural Resources Defense Council and health professionals concludes. (Grist)
• Several states have adopted carbon pricing schemes or are discussing them, but momentum has not made it to the federal government. (Politico)

OIL & GAS:
• Texas oil and gas companies complain that renewables receive unfairly large subsidies despite being heavily subsidized themselves. (Texas Monthly)
• A 635 MW natural gas-fired power plant in New York will continue operating now that local officials have reduced its property taxes. (Times Union)
• Some cryptocurrency miners use trailers to capture stray natural gas at oil drilling sites in the Great Plains to power operations. (Reuters)
• Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso introduces a bill to allow oil and gas leasing on some public lands currently designated as wilderness areas. (E&E News, subscription) 

PIPELINES:
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approves two pipeline projects despite high emissions impacts, but specifies the decision shouldn’t “serve as precedent” for any future orders. (Utility Dive)
• Kentucky landowners on the losing side of an eminent domain case argue that a 12-mile Louisville Gas and Electric Co. pipeline would serve a private rather than a public use — specifically Jim Beam’s distilleries. (Courier Journal)

BIOFUELS: The EPA will reportedly leave biofuel blending standards unchanged from last year’s as it addresses weak fuel demand during the coronavirus pandemic. (Reuters)

COMMENTARY:
• Federal subsidies for electric vehicles “transfer wealth upward” by rewarding affluent buyers who could already afford to purchase one, a columnist writes. (Washington Post)
• When the federal government offers tax credits “as a delayed refund for renewable energy projects” instead of awarding cash upfront, it largely benefits Wall Street, a columnist writes. (New Republic)
• The $40,000-plus electric Ford F-150 is still too expensive to be the mass-market electric vehicle the U.S. needs to fully transition from gas-powered cars, a columnist argues. (Vox)

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Kathryn Krawczyk

Kathryn brings her extensive editorial background to the Energy News Network team, where she oversees the early-morning production of ENN’s five email digest newsletters as well as distribution of ENN’s original journalism with other media outlets. From documenting chronic illness’ effect on college students to following the inner workings of Congress, Kathryn has built a broad experience in her more than five years working at major publications including The Week Magazine. Kathryn holds a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism and information management and technology from Syracuse University.