UTILITIES:
• DTE Energy’s electricity shut offs during the pandemic far outpaced other regulated utilities in Michigan, and its nearly 180,000 disconnections in 2021 were its highest annual total since 2016. (ProPublica)
• Attorneys for FirstEnergy and its shareholders argue that they shouldn’t be required to disclose the identity of company officials who ordered political bribes in exchange for favorable legislation. (Ohio Capital Journal)

COAL: Illinois coal plants generation rose by 39% last year, the biggest jump among the top 10 coal-burning states, amid high natural gas prices and a pandemic rebound in electricity demand. (Inside Climate News/Chicago Sun Times)

SOLAR: Wisconsin regulators approve three utilities’ $433 million purchase of a 200 MW solar project with 110 MW of storage capacity. (Wisconsin State Journal)

RENEWABLES:
• A Kansas Republican state senator who has used a key committee chairmanship to criticize renewable energy now faces pushback from environmental groups, big utilities and GOP colleagues. (Associated Press)
• Northeastern Nebraska county officials reject calls for an 18-month moratorium on wind and solar development as comprehensive zoning rules are developed. (Norfolk Daily News)

PIPELINES:
• A federal appeals court revives part of a lawsuit alleging North Dakota law enforcement officers seriously injured a man and violated his civil rights during Dakota Access pipeline protests five years ago. (Bismarck Tribune)
• South Dakota regulators hold their last hearing over the canceled Keystone XL pipeline, which spent 13 years before the Public Utility Commission. (South Dakota Public Broadcasting)
• An Ohio agency has limited ability to punish the owner of the Rover natural gas pipeline for causing diesel spills in waterways because the agency didn’t act quickly enough to certify the company’s discharge permit, the Ohio Supreme Court rules. (Cleveland.com)

WIND:
• Kansas’ clean energy transition is well underway as nearly one-third of the state’s 105 counties produce wind energy. (Kansas Public Radio)
• State regulators unanimously reject a developer’s request for a rehearing to consider a planned $92 million wind project in northern Ohio. (Toledo Blade)
• Northern Ohio county officials will hold a public hearing next month on whether to effectively ban utility-scale wind projects. (Telegraph Forum)

CLEAN ENERGY: Local officials seek up to $2 million in federal funding to decarbonize an Ann Arbor, Michigan neighborhood through solar installations and energy efficiency upgrades. (MLive)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Electric vehicle adoption and infrastructure were key themes from dozens of governors’ state of the state speeches this year, a review finds. (S&P Global)
• A South Korean conglomerate invests hundreds of millions of dollars to expand its footprint in eastern Michigan to produce a key electric vehicle component. (Crain’s Detroit Business)

Correction: A Chicago outdoor educator highlighted in yesterday’s digest works with high school students, not middle school.