UTILITIES: Connecticut utility regulators authorize $28.6 million and $1.2 million civil penalties against Eversource and United Illuminating, respectively, for poor storm management in 2020, in addition to ordered profit reductions. (NBC Connecticut)

ALSO:
• Central Maine Power customers will see a double-digit bill increase next month as Maine regulators approve an 11.5% increase in the utility’s transmission and distribution rates; regulators blamed much of the increase on federal mandates. (Associated Press)
• PSE&G makes a deal with New Jersey regulators to reduce transmission rates and save customers about 3% per month. (news release)

NATURAL GAS:
• Several suburban Boston towns are trying new strategies to ban new fossil fuel infrastructure after the state attorney general struck down one town’s attempt to do so. (Energy News Network)
• A gas delivery company will pay an $850,000 settlement for delivering sub-par petroleum diesel fuel to Massachusetts agencies while charging for more sustainable biodiesel blends. (MassLive)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Connecticut approves a yearslong incentive program to spur electric vehicle infrastructure installations at homes and workplaces; some enticements include up to $40,000 for apartment building owners to build charging areas. (Associated Press)

GRID:
• Several Maine lawmakers call for a halt to work on a controversial transmission line project, claiming Central Maine Power cannot meet tree cutting and preservation requirements. (Bangor Daily News)
• New Jersey regulators suggest the state remain in the PJM Interconnection as a new presidential administration brings a more receptive view of clean energy development to the grid. (NJ Spotlight)
• Completing construction of its microgrid on schedule, Pittsburgh International Airport claims to be the first airport in the world to be entirely powered by solar and natural gas. (news release)

WIND:
• Although Maine whittled down the area of interest for a proposed offshore wind project after discussions with fishers, industry representatives still worry about unstudied impacts to fisheries. (Mainebiz)
• Researchers at the University of Maine and University of Rhode Island receive a $1.2 million federal grant for floating offshore wind turbine research. (Providence Business News)
• An unused area of a New Bedford, Massachusetts, port is set to be redeveloped into an offshore wind project staging area, a move hailed by the mayor as “a major breakthrough.” (WPRI)

SOLAR:
• A solar developer’s plan to tear down a decades-old drive-in movie theater, which claims to be the country’s only theater to show 35 mm films every weekend, aggravates local cinephiles. (Morning Call)
• A Vermont art and design museum installs a 500 kW ground-mounted solar array nearby. (news release)

COMMENTARY: An environmental advocate argues that, given its immense wind and solar potential, Pennsylvania should be leading the renewable energy transition. (Pennsylvania Capital-Star)

Bridget is a freelance reporter and newsletter writer based in the Washington, D.C., area. She compiles the Northeast Energy News digest. Bridget primarily writes about energy, conservation and the environment. Originally from Philadelphia, she graduated from Emerson College in 2015 with a degree in journalism and a minor in environmental studies. When she isn’t working on a story, she’s normally on a northern Maine lake or traveling abroad to practice her Spanish language skills.