COAL: Nearly two dozen economists in a recent survey say coal plant subsidies from Ohio’s power plant bailout law do not “have economic benefits that outweigh their costs.” (Ohio Capital Journal)

ALSO: U.S. coal generation is expected to be 22% higher this year compared to 2020 due to soaring natural gas prices and relatively stable coal prices, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. (Reuters)

TRANSMISSION: A Wisconsin judge temporarily halts construction on a controversial power line through southwestern Wisconsin while the court considers challenges to the project permit. (Wisconsin State Journal)

SOLAR:
• Construction is set to begin next year over three phases on a $1.5 billion, 1,300 MW solar project in northwestern Indiana. (Times of Northwest Indiana)
• Solar advocates say proposed zoning regulations in a southern Indiana county lack provisions to encourage community-owned projects. (Courier & Press)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• So far this week, five major automakers have announced plans for electric vehicle component and assembly plants, or plans to raise capital for the transition from internal combustion vehicles. (Associated Press)
• Missouri officials say the state could be in the running for a new $1.29 billion electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant recently announced by Toyota. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

OVERSIGHT: Ohio’s residential ratepayer advocate says the state’s utility regulatory commission should have at least one member who represents ratepayers after recent decisions involving FirstEnergy have been overturned by the Ohio Supreme Court. (WOSU)

POWER PLANTS: Equipment problems have kept a three-year-old natural gas plant from operating since spring, increasing costs for customers and posing challenges for AES Indiana’s planned transition from coal. (Indianapolis Business Journal) 

UTILITIES:
• Advocates of a plan to create a municipally owned utility in Ann Arbor, Michigan, say a recent proposal focusing on renewable energy purchases falls far short of moving the city to 100% renewable energy generation. (MLive)
• Minnesota Power seeks to sell hundreds of lakefront lots north of Duluth that are no longer needed for its hydropower operations. (Star Tribune)

OIL & GAS: North Dakota regulators approve plans for a second well in which oil field waste mixed with saltwater would be injected deep underground in an economical and “extremely safe manner.” (Bismarck Tribune)

BIOFUELS: Iowa Sens. Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley say the Biden administration is dragging its feet with a promised $700 million to biofuel producers still struggling from the pandemic. (Des Moines Register)

WIND: Kansas City-based utility Evergy issues a request for proposals to purchase up to 1,000 MW of wind energy that would be online by 2026 or earlier. (Kansas City Business Journal)

COMMENTARY: A Minnesota climate activist says the state’s iron mining operations can play a key role in manufacturing components for new forms of battery storage. (Duluth News Tribune)