POLICY: Independent power producers in Michigan have banded together to challenge a major utility that wants to pay them less for their generation under the federal PURPA law. (Midwest Energy News)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Kansas regulators raise objections to a utility’s plan to build out electric vehicle charging stations, saying the proposal is anti-competitive and would require customers to subsidize a handful of EV drivers. (Midwest Energy News)
• Meanwhile in Missouri, state regulators are set to vote today on another utility’s EV infrastructure pilot project, which regulatory staff say could be treated like pay phones. (EnergyWire)
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PIPELINES:
• Dakota Access pipeline protesters prepare for a confrontation with police. (Associated Press)
• Financial disclosures show Donald Trump owns stock in Energy Transfer Partners, the company developing the Dakota Access pipeline. (Associated Press)
• The Trump and Clinton campaigns remain mum on taking a position on the Dakota Access pipeline. (Politico)
WIND:
• Turbines that are nearing retirement are also ready with transmission connections in high-wind areas, making them ideal candidates for what the industry calls “repowering.” (Utility Dive)
• South Dakota regulators are being asked to settle a pricing dispute between a wind-power company and an investor-owned utility under federal PURPA rules. (Rapid City Journal)
• A Minnesota town will receive $18,000 a year by leasing land for a wind-solar project. (Detroit Lakes Online)
• Whirlpool breaks ground on a $3.3 million wind project in Ohio that will generate more than 30 percent of one of its plant’s needs. (Toledo Blade)
• Conservation groups plan to sue the Ohio Air National Guard over a wind project the groups say violates the Endangered Species Act and other federal laws. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
NUCLEAR:
• A new report predicts the end of nuclear power in the U.S. without more government support. (Bloomberg)
• Officials with the Nuclear Energy Institute lament the closing of a small nuclear plant in Nebraska. (Toledo Blade)
GRID: Three rural electric projects in Missouri are getting $108 million in federal loans to modernize transmission infrastructure, while a Wisconsin electric cooperative receives $87 million in federal financing. (Associated Press, LaCrosse Tribune)
REGULATION: A race for a seat on the Public Utilities Commission in South Dakota pits an establishment Republican and current member against a political newcomer pushing for more renewable energy. (Sioux Falls Argus Leader)
OIL AND GAS: Ohio-based Murray Energy sells nearly 6,000 acres of land in the Utica shale oil and gas play f0r $63.6 million to focus on its core business of coal. (Columbus Business First)
WASTE-TO-ENERGY: Federal officials have launched an investigation into a Nebraska waste-to-energy plant after an employee was exposed to hydrogen sulfide. (Sioux City Journal)
CLEAN ENERGY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture issues grants and loans for four Iowa businesses to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency. (WHO-TV)
COAL: U.S. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio visits a coal mine and processing facility in his home state to tout his plan for tax incentives for “clean coal.” (New Philadelphia Times-Reporter)
BIOFUELS: A Nebraska ethanol plant receives a $500,000 grant to support energy efficiency projects onsite. (Sioux City Journal)
EFFICIENCY: An industry group touts the importance of developing energy efficiency projects in Iowa. (WHO-TV)