UTILITIES: A southern Maine town complains to the state utility regulator that Central Maine Power tried to disconnect power to its fire station; the utility claims it never received payment, which town officials contest. (Lewiston Sun Journal, subscription)
ALSO:
• Three Washington, D.C., councilmembers met with utility lobbyists without disclosing the meetings, despite signing a pledge to do so; some of the officials say they plan to disclose meetings biannually. (Washington City Paper)
• Supporters of the investor-owned utility takeover bill in Maine say they’ll force a voter referendum on the matter if Gov. Janet Mills vetoes the legislation. (News Center Maine)
GRID:
• With Tropical Storm Elsa looming, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont tells utilities to avoid a repeat of the much-derided clean-up and recovery effort that followed a tropical storm last summer. (Patch.com)
• Eversource says it has contracted hundreds of extra crews from around the country to help respond to the storm. (WFSB)
• Before Elsa even hits New Jersey, thunderstorms caused thousands of ratepayers, mainly in PSEG’s service territory, to lose power on Thursday. (NJ.com)
HYDROGEN: The New York Power Authority announces a plan to study the use of renewable hydrogen in a natural gas peaker plant on Long Island. (Newsday, subscription)
RENEWABLE ENERGY: Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee vetoes a bill that would have shifted interconnection costs of new renewable energy projects to National Grid ratepayers. (Providence Journal, subscription)
TRANSPORTATION: In the Northeast and beyond, Amtrak wants to replace dozens of its decades-old trains with newer models, some of which would run on both diesel and electricity. (CBS Boston)
NATURAL GAS:
• In Massachusetts, Pittsfield health officials decide to ask the owner of a local natural gas-fired peaker plant to look into greener energy sources to improve local air quality. (Berkshire Eagle)
• Forward gas prices for this upcoming winter have strongly risen in the Northeast markets as the regional storage deficit widens. (S&P Global Platts)
OFFSHORE WIND: Massachusetts officials show off a New Bedford warehouse that will be used to train and recertify experienced offshore wind farm workers, complete with a deepwater pool and obstacle course. (Standard-Times)
CLIMATE: A local non-profit wants to conserve 20,000 acres of northwest Vermont forestland by 2030 to preserve natural resources, protect wildlife paths and mitigate the climate crisis by acting as a carbon sink. (VT Digger)
COMMENTARY: A New Jersey farm manager says crops that can flourish alongside solar panels are limited and that the state should be cautious about allowing development on prime farmland. (NJ Spotlight)