POLITICS: No one is expecting great things from Congress on energy, but there are signs the partisan deadlock may be easing.; and President Obama is expected to lay out his second-term push for climate change action during tonight’s State of the Union address. (Midwest Energy News, The Hill)
FRAC SAND: Citizens in Red Wing, Minnesota, pledge to recall the city’s mayor after he accepted a job lobbying for a frac sand industry group. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
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FRACKING: Geologists say “there’s no way to tell” just how much shale gas the U.S. will be able to extract, and a draft version of an Interior Department rule will allow drillers to use an industry-developed chemical-disclosure database. (EnergyWire)
TRANSPORTATION: Tesla CEO Elon Musk accuses the New York Times of publishing a misleading account of a reporter’s test drive of a Model S, and says data from the car’s on-board computer — which he has yet to release — backs him up. (Bloomberg Businessweek)
WIND: Industry representatives worry efforts by Kansas lawmakers to repeal or weaken the state’s renewable energy standard will cost jobs. (Topeka Capital-Journal)
KEYSTONE XL: Pipeline opponents argue in court that Nebraska’s governor lacked the authority to approve a revised route through the state, and Republicans in Congress post a “Keystone Clock” online to track the number of days the review process has taken. (Lincoln Journal Star, The Hill)
SOLAR: Greentech Media highlights the state of solar energy in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
COMMENTARY: What President Obama can do about climate change, why the fight over natural gas exports may be overblown, and why electricity and water are inseparable issues in Michigan. (Grist, Washington Post, Muskegon Chronicle)