UTILITIES: In an op-ed, SoCalGas CEO Scott Drury pledges the utility will achieve net-zero emissions by 2045 — including fuel delivered to customers — though the company has not detailed how it will make that calculation. (CalMatters)

ALSO:
• California fire officials say last year’s deadly and destructive Zogg fire was caused by a tree falling on a PG&E transmission line. (Sacramento Bee)
• Stakeholders say a proposal by California’s utility regulator to strengthen the state’s grid during the summer fails to do enough to support demand response efforts and overly prioritize gas resources. (Utility Dive)
• Despite Tri-State Generation and Transmission efforts to cut emissions, member cooperatives are still seeking to exit their contracts. (Utility Dive)

COAL:
• Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon wants Congress to support a federal bill co-sponsored by Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney that would provide low-income loans and grants for carbon capture infrastructure development. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• Wyoming lawmakers advance bills aiming to slow coal plant closures. (Casper Star-Tribune)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A car manufacturer’s future in Washington state is in doubt after the company announces plans for an electric vehicle manufacturing plant elsewhere. (Spokesman-Review)

PUBLIC LANDS:
• Conservation groups sue the Bureau of Land Management over a rushed oil and gas lease sale in central California last December. (news release)
• Nevada utility regulators approve an NV Energy proposal that would create three new transmission lines and nearly 5,000 MW of renewable energy projects on public lands. (KSNV)

GRID:
• California regulators are seeking more data on how electric vehicles can be used to help stabilize the grid, as a pilot project between PG&E and BMW begins its third phase of testing. (E&E News, Tech Crunch)
• A northern California city is working on a comprehensive strategy to follow state goals on using electricity for all power usage and decarbonizing the grid. (Chico Enterprise-Record)

RENEWABLE ENERGY: A Portland General Electric program that helps large companies and cities choose renewable energy could be a model for other utilities to follow. (GreenBiz)

CLIMATE: The University of Utah is taking steps toward divesting its financial portfolio from fossil fuels. (Salt Lake Tribune)

COMMENTARY:
• A climate adviser for the UN secretary general warns net zero will become an “empty slogan” if it keeps being used to describe offsets and not real emissions reductions. (Washington Post)
• Two Washington environmentalists say the state can be an example of successfully siting solar energy installations through collaboration between the state and stakeholders. (Everett Herald)
• A Colorado grassroots organizer says requiring the state’s oil and gas industry to clean up wells and be responsible for land reclamation should result in cleaner air and decreased impact on both state and federal budgets. (Steamboat Pilot & Today)

Lisa is a Lenape and Nanticoke Native American freelance journalist, editor and writer currently based in the U.K. She has more than two decades’ experience working in corporate communications and print and digital media. She compiles the Western Energy News daily email digest. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Temple University; her specializations include data journalism and visualization. She is a member of the Native American Journalists Association, Investigative Reporters & Editors, Society of Professional Journalists, and the National Union of Journalists (U.K.).