ELECTRIC CARS:
• More than 134,000 people – some camping out overnight – have already put down deposits for Tesla’s new $35,000 Model 3, which doesn’t go on sale for another year. (Reuters, Bloomberg)
• Elon Musk calls the Model 3 “the final step in the master plan, which is a mass market, affordable car.” (New York Times)
UTILITIES:
• Ohio regulators approve two modified, eight-year income-guarantee requests for two utilities’ aging coal and nuclear plants, saying the plan “benefits ratepayers and the public interest.” (Cleveland Plain Dealer, SNL Energy)
• New York utilities will partner with MIT to develop a new pricing plan for distributed generation. (EnergyWire)
• The CEO of Chicago-based ComEd wants the utility to be a leader in developing distributed energy systems, helping to bring a “third industrial revolution.” (Utility Dive)
SOLAR:
• The Florida Supreme Court authorizes a utility-backed solar amendment for the November ballot. (Associated Press)
• California’s transportation agency is exploring using “solar road” technology on state highways. (Bakersfield Californian)
• A report finds more than 500 projects valued at $617 million are in limbo as Massachusetts debates solar policy. (PV Tech)
COAL:
• Arch Coal joins Peabody in announcing layoffs at Wyoming mines, bringing the total to 430. (Billings Gazette)
• An initiative planned in Illinois looks to institute a 5 percent severance tax on coal mining that would help bolster state and local budgets. (Midwest Energy News)
• Washington’s governor says he’ll sign a bill authorizing a state utility to set aside funds for shutting down two units at a Montana coal plant it owns a stake in. (Associated Press)
• A Montana utility executive says the prospect of taking over the two coal units “is very inconsistent with the risk profile that we have.” (Billings Gazette)
• A unit at a Wyoming coal plant will shut down rather than convert to natural gas. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• Thousands of miners and supporters are set to rally today near Pittsburgh over bankrupt companies dumping their benefits. (West Virginia Metro News)
FRACKING:
• A Gallup poll finds more than half of Americans now oppose fracking, up from 40 percent a year ago. (UPI)
• The debate over fracking escalates in the Colorado legislature. (Denver Post)
NATURAL GAS:
• A study finds a significant explosion hazard from Boston’s aging natural gas network. (InsideClimate News)
• The New York Times takes a deeper look at the causes and impacts of the Porter Ranch natural gas leak.
PIPELINES: FERC delays a decision on a proposed East Coast natural gas pipeline until December. (Allentown Morning Call)
BIOFUELS: An oil industry group decides not to pursue a ballot measure challenging Oregon’s renewable fuels standard. (Portland Business Journal)
EFFICIENCY: Energy efficiency moves to the center stage for reducing greenhouse gas emissions as the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan is on hold. (ClimateWire)
COMMENTARY: The outspoken critics of Solyndra are strangely silent on federal subsidies for coal. (Huffington Post)