OIL: North Dakota regulators had little to say to state legislators about an 11-day delay in reporting a 20,000 barrel oil spill to the public, one said the spill’s remote location away from water supplies was “the best place it could’ve occurred.” (Bismarck Tribune)
MEANWHILE: Tesoro, which operates the ruptured North Dakota pipeline, has no timeline for restarting; also, a 25-year-old oil field worker died Friday after an accident on the job earlier in the week. (Reuters, Bismarck Tribune)
TRANSPORTATION: As Midwest cities consider congestion pricing, drivers in Sweden are already sold. (Midwest Energy News)
COAL: Illinois officials, under pressure from advocacy groups, remove kids’ sections from a state pro-coal website. (Yes Magazine)
ALSO: FERC signs off on Ameren’s plan to transfer ownership of five Illinois coal plants, though the deal still hinges on state approval to delay pollution upgrades; Ameren says it has also found a buyer for the remainder of its Illinois power plants. (Reuters, St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
OHIO: In a Q&A, American Electric Power CEO Nick Akins talks about the impact of deregulation on the industry. (Columbus CEO)
TRANSMISSION: American Transmission Co. proposes a new transmission line to improve reliability in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
TECHNOLOGY: A study finds a surge in renewable energy patents over the past decade; meanwhile, investment in clean energy is declining amid a “weakening of political will” to deal with climate change. (The Hill)
SOLAR: A California company says using robots to build and maintain solar installations can help make them competitive with fossil fuels. (New York Times)
BIOFUELS: Iowa announces a new initiative to promote ethanol blender pumps around the state. (Des Moines Register)
EFFICIENCY: Utilities will help weatherize 1,000 low-income Indiana homes, and an Ohio school district considers an efficiency plan projected to save $500,000 a year. (Evansville Courier & Press, Toledo Blade)
MEDIA: Activists urge other newspapers to follow the L.A. Times lead in refusing to publish letters denying that humans are causing climate change. (The Hill)
COMMENTARY: Myth-busting American media coverage of Germany’s energy transition. (SmartPlanet)