OHIO: Voters approve a ballot measure in Columbus, Ohio, enabling the city to negotiate a cleaner energy supply on behalf of residents. (Columbus Dispatch, Energy News Network archives)
ALSO: Former House Speaker Larry Householder was headed toward re-election despite his arrest on bribery charges, though Republicans have indicated they may expel him in the next session. See latest official results here. (Cleveland.com)
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UTILITIES:
• Amid credit downgrades and an ongoing SEC investigation, FirstEnergy’s board creates an investigative committee to review the company’s internal governance policies. (Utility Dive)
• A federal appeals court declines requests by environmental groups to revisit Energy Harbor’s bankruptcy plan as its former parent company FirstEnergy is investigated in an alleged corruption scheme. (Wall Street Journal, subscription)
• Exelon officials consider reorganizing the company but say it would be complex to separate its regulated utilities, including ComEd, from unregulated power plants and energy sales. (Crain’s Chicago Business)
• Alliant Energy expects pandemic-related electricity sales to rebound in Iowa and Wisconsin as it pursues a major transition to renewables. (S&P Global)
• Voters in a Minneapolis exurb appear to reject a ballot measure that would have dissolved the city’s municipal utility. See latest official results here. (Southwest News Media)
COAL:
• An insurance company files a lawsuit demanding $128 million in collateral from Peabody Energy, citing the coal company’s “deteriorating” financial condition. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
• Industry analysts “see a near-zero probability of new coal-fired” power plants being built in the U.S. (S&P Global)
PIPELINES: A federal appeals court today wades into the yearslong dispute led by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe over the Dakota Access pipeline and whether a lower court was justified in shutting it down pending reviews. (E&E News, subscription)
COMMENTARY:
• Four researchers specializing in water quality, ecosystem assessment and public health are “shocked at how independent science has been largely ignored” during the Line 3 permit review process. (MinnPost)
• Ohio lawmakers should prioritize repealing the state’s power plant bailout law in the upcoming lame duck session and use 2021 to replace the policy at the center of a corruption scandal, an editorial board says. (Columbus Dispatch)
CLARIFICATION: Ford CEO Jim Farley said the company plans to produce more affordable electric vehicles but he did not specify a price. A story we linked to in yesterday’s email was later corrected to clarify his remarks.