TONIGHT: Join us in Chicago for the official release of Closing the Cloud Factories, our new ebook about the fight to shut down the Fisk and Crawford coal plants.
GRID: Amid reliability concerns, grid operators are increasingly stepping in to delay retirement of uneconomic power plants, even offering subsidies to keep them online. (Midwest Energy News)
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EPA: Republicans will try to block funding for enforcement of carbon regulations, and what we know so far about the impact of the new rules. (Bloomberg, Associated Press)
OHIO: As expected, Gov. John Kasich on Friday signed a two-year freeze to the state’s renewable energy and efficiency laws; and another bill expected to be signed this week could severely limit wind development in the state. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, Columbus Dispatch)
SOLAR: A report by Michigan regulators outlines ways to advance solar power in the state. (Crain’s Detroit Business)
ALSO: A Minnesota solar manufacturer halts production after cracks are found in some panels; an Ohio State lab researches solar panel efficiency; and Columbus, Ohio lags other cities in per capita solar power. (Minneapolis Star Tribune, Columbus Dispatch)
COAL: A St. Louis company bets on Illinois coal. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
NUCLEAR: The shutdown of the Kewaunee nuclear plant will make it harder for Wisconsin to hit carbon targets. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
UTILITIES: Efficiency advocates say the “utility death spiral” is overblown. (Greentech Media)
FRACKING: An Ohio advocate says selling water for fracking could leave the Muskingum watershed more vulnerable to drought. (Mansfield News Journal)
TRANSPORTATION: Minnesota becomes the first state to require off-peak charging rates for electric cars, automakers save fuel with lighter materials, and new compressed natural gas buses are expected to save Lincoln, Nebraska $1.3 million over their lifetime. (Autoblog, Associated Press, Lincoln Journal Star)
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MICHIGAN: How an Escanaba man went from power plant employee to owner. (Escanaba Daily Press)
COMMENTARY: Is the party over for small modular reactors? (NRDC Switchboard)