CLEAN POWER PLAN: A federal court grants North Carolina’s request to withdraw from a legal challenge to the Clean Power Plan; meanwhile, President Trump is expected to order the Justice Department to stop defending the plan, likely leaving the case in legal limbo. (WFAE, E&E News)

SOLAR:
• Georgia is the top state for solar power developed by rural co-ops, according to a new report. (Solar Industry Magazine)
• Alabama’s largest solar farm is complete and will provide enough electricity to power 15,000 homes. (Yale Climate Connections)
• A new report says the U.S. solar market is poised to triple in size over the next five years. (Greentech Media)

NUCLEAR:
• Florida Power & Light’s project to fix pollution issues issues at the Turkey Point Nuclear station is approved by the state. (Miami New Times)
• A public hearing will be held on March 23 on Dominion Virginia Power’s controversial application for a license to build a new nuclear reactor. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

OIL AND GAS:
• While Florida’s House majority leader doesn’t support a ban on fracking, he says a bill moving through the legislature could initiate a compromise on drilling oversight. (WFSU)
• West Virginia’s oil and gas drillers are asking the state for help on regulations as the state is “sitting on so much oil and gas that is just waiting to be developed.” (The Intelligencer/ Wheeling News-Register)
• West Virginia lawmakers are considering a bill that exempts the oil and natural gas industry from the state’s chemical tank safety law. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

EFFICIENCY:
• While a similar project at Duke University is on hold, Duke Energy is moving forward with a $50 million combined heat and power plant at Clemson University. (Charlotte Business Journal)
• Duke Energy says higher costs for efficiency programs is one factor driving a proposed North Carolina rate increase. (Charlotte Business Journal)

COMMENTARY:
• The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy says Georgia lawmakers should not “punish innovation” through fees on electric vehicles.
• Former deans of Duke University say a building a new natural gas plant on campus would “send a dangerous signal to those that look to Duke as a model.” (Raleigh News & Observer)
• Allowing Florida Power & Light to charge customers for speculative fracking is “a corporate handout” to the company. (Tampa Bay Times)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.