MICHIGAN: Gov. Rick Snyder will unveil his energy plan today. (MLive)

WIND: The Department of Energy says wind power — without subsidies — will be cheaper than natural gas within a decade. (Bloomberg)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join venture capitalists, civic leaders, and industry executives on April 14 at the Clean Energy Challenge in Chicago to watch fourteen cleantech startups compete for $1 million in total funding.***

BIOFUELS: Legislation to encourage advanced biofuels in Minnesota is criticized by clean-water advocates who say it will encourage more reliance on corn. (Midwest Energy News)

OIL AND GAS:
• Union leaders have reached a deal to end a nationwide refinery strike. (Reuters)
• A poll finds most North Dakotans support tougher rules on flaring. (Bismarck Tribune)
• North Dakota officials find more illegally dumped radioactive oil field waste. (Associated Press)
• Researchers develop a tool to compare the climate impact of different types of crude oil. (ClimateWire)
• Chesapeake Energy still has high hopes for Ohio’s Utica Shale. (Columbus Business First)

CLIMATE: More research suggests a warming Arctic is altering the jet stream, causing more extreme summers and winters. (Washington Post)

SOLAR:
• More than half of North American utility requests for proposals for clean energy last year were for solar power. (Bloomberg)
• An Ohio college gets the go-ahead to build a solar project on a biological reserve. (Columbus Dispatch)
• An Iowa county scales back its solar plans after meeting with MidAmerican Energy. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)

TECHNOLOGY: A Wisconsin company introduces a new battery for on-site energy storage. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

COAL: We Energies seeks to sell a small coal plant near Milwaukee. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

COAL ASH: House Republicans seek to “bring much-needed certainty” to coal ash regulation. (The Hill)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join Wind on the Wires March 19 for the “Energizing the Future” gala featuring former FERC Chair Jon Wellinghoff & former Congressman Bob Inglis. Reduced rates for NGOs.***

NEWSMAKER: Naomi Oreskes, author of “Merchants of Doubt,” discusses the current state of climate change denial. (InsideClimate News)

COMMENTARY:
• Michigan’s governor should veto “the counterproductive mess bubbling up from the legislature.” (Huffington Post)
• A Michigan conservative group is not opposed to energy mandates. (MLive)
• A former Ohio regulator argues that rooftop solar is overvalued. (Utility Dive)

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.

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