CLIMATE: An analyst calls President-elect Biden’s win part of a “historic tipping point” on climate change that could help put the goals of the Paris Agreement “within striking distance.” (The Guardian)

ALSO:
• As the incoming administration lists climate change as a top priority on its transition website, observers say there will be “ample opportunity” for Biden to use executive orders to make progress on climate change, even if Democrats fail to win control of the Senate. (NPR, E&E News, Vox)
• Carbon capture may provide opportunities for bipartisan legislation on climate, but some experts warn it could forestall more effective solutions. (InsideClimate News)
• A new report says Nevada will be unable to reach its 2050 emissions target without more ambitious policies. (Nevada Independent)

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POLITICS:
• Sources say it was support for equity training, not carbon pricing, that led President Trump to demote Neil Chatterjee as chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a move a House lawmaker calls “an outrageous attack on an independent agency.” (E&E News, The Hill)
• Trump’s executive order calling such trainings “divisive” is likely to be among the first that will be overturned as President-elect Biden takes office in January. (USA Today)

COAL: Arizona’s largest electric utility offers a $144 million plan to help three coal country and Native American communities impacted by the closures of the company’s remaining coal-fired power plants. (Arizona Republic)

OIL & GAS:
• Oil and gas companies expect it will be more difficult to do business on federal land or obtain permits for pipeline projects under President-elect Biden. (Bloomberg)
• A Houston political science professor expects the Biden administration will show “some pretty hard love” for Texas energy companies but ultimately push them in ways they’ve already been moving anyway. (Houstonia)

UTILITIES: California’s consumer watchdog says utility Southern California Gas should pay $255 million in fines for blocking energy efficiency rules and local electrification efforts. (Los Angeles Times)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Electric transportation will be a challenge in rural states like Maine, but advocates point to incentives and policy changes that can speed the transition. (Energy News Network / Maine Monitor)

RENEWABLE ENERGY:
• The Minnesota attorney general’s office raises concerns about state utility regulators’ call for clean energy proposals to help boost the state’s economy during the pandemic, citing potential costs to ratepayers. (Star Tribune)
• Advocates say Maine faces a daunting challenge in generating renewable energy in-state in the wake of public opposition to a power line to transmit Canadian hydropower. (Maine Monitor)

SOLAR:
• Wisconsin’s largest solar project, a 150 MW utility-scale development on 800 acres near Lake Michigan, begins operations. (Wisconsin State Journal)
• A largely rural Virginia county grapples with the pros and cons of a proposed $200 million, 149 MW solar farm. (Culpeper Star-Exponent)

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OHIO: All 46 Ohio lawmakers who voted in favor of the state’s power plant subsidy law at the center of a corruption scandal won re-election last week. (Ohio Capital Journal)

COMMENTARY:
• Professor and author Leah Stokes says President-elect Biden has a clear mandate on climate change and outlines steps the administration can take to make quick progress. (Boston Globe)
• The Ohio legislature continues to “twiddle its thumbs” by failing to act on repealing HB 6 even though federal law enforcement, state regulators and FirstEnergy have taken steps to address alleged corruption, an editorial board says. (Cleveland.com)

 

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.