COAL: The cleanup of Alpha Natural Resources’ mining operations hinges on its now approved plan to emerge from bankruptcy. (Washington Post)
ALSO:
• Arch Coal says its has cleared key hurdles to emerge from bankruptcy. (St. Louis Business Journal)
• A letter-writing campaign to the imprisoned former CEO of Massey Energy Don Blankenship vents frustration with how he ran the mining company. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• The trial for a class-action lawsuit over a spill in West Virginia of a coal-cleansing chemical is rescheduled for October 25. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
• Exports from the nation’s largest coal terminal in Hampton Roads, Virginia are down nearly 30 percent from the same period in 2015. (The Virginian-Pilot)
TRANSPORTATION: In Chattanooga, Tennessee – once dubbed the “dirtiest city in America” – clean transportation is thriving. (Southeast Energy News)
SOLAR:
• North Carolina’s green push helps it land more than half the money in a federal rural loan program. (Greensboro News & Record)
• A panel manufacturer in Mississippi cuts its staffing goal in half. (Mississippi Business Journal)
• Southern Co. and Ted Turner’s renewables business ink their second purchase of a solar system in North Carolina. (SeeNews)
• A home builder in South Carolina looks to replicate its success with solar. (GSA Business)
• The latest cooperative in Virginia to help homeowners go solar forms on the state’s peninsula. (Daily Press)
NUCLEAR: The board of directors of Santee Cooper in South Carolina authorizes it to “fix” certain costs of two reactors under construction. (The Berkeley Independent)
COAL ASH:
• The cause and responsibility for arsenic found in the lake that supplies Charlotte with water have yet to be determined. (Charlotte Observer)
• The test of a well at a Georgia Power plant reveals elevated levels of arsenic. (Savannah Morning News)
CLIMATE: Commissioners in Miami-Dade County suggest developers there should pay “impact fees” to deal with rising sea levels. (Miami New Times)
OIL & GAS:
• The spokesman for a gas-processing plant in Mississippi balks at predicting when it will restart after a June 27 explosion there. (Associated Press)
• Officials in Henrico County, Virginia are monitoring a petroleum spill. (RVA News)
UTILITIES: The CEO of Alabama Power says his mission is “to make Alabama a better place.” (Alabama Media Group)
WEST VIRGINIA: Elected officials scramble to deal with the drop in state revenues due to coal’s decline. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
PIPELINES: Southern Co. agrees to by a one-half stake in a pipeline system from Kinder Morgan. (Fuel Fix)
COMMENTARY:
• Utilities are finding their way to higher profits through natural gas pipelines paid for by captive customers. (Power for the People VA)
• A shuffle by North Carolina lawmakers resembles the “electric slide” dance. (Greensboro News & Record)
• Predictable energy costs for web server farms in Virginia and elsewhere lead Amazon and others to contract for renewable energy. (Greentech Media)
• The federal government should heed South Carolina mayors and other officials and halt moves to authorize offshore drilling there. (The Post and Courier)