ENERGY EFFICIENCY: With its approval of an integrated resource plan, the Tennessee Valley Authority’s board values energy efficiency for the first time on par with other forms of power. (Associated Press)

SOLAR:
• The “Solarize South Carolina“initiative seeks to outfit 2,000 homes with solar in the next 18 months. (The Post and Courier)
• A “system glitch” draws complaints over how Florida Power & Light handled rebates for solar systems in January. (Palm Beach Post)
• A reduction in the federal solar tax credit could add five years to the payback period for a solar system in Georgia. (Athens Banner-Herald)
Solar cell-maker Suniva says it will invest nearly $100 million to expand its metro Atlanta headquarters, creating up to 500 jobs. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)

CLIMATE: A science center in Danville, Virginia is spotlighted by the White House for its climate change education initiatives. (Danville Register-Bee)

UTILITIES:
Ratepayers of Dominion Virginia Power are paying for tens of thousands of dollars of donations it has made to politically connected charities, according to the Associated Press. (Associated Press)
• Utility workers recall how they responded to Hurricane Katrina 10 years ago. (Utility Products)

TECHNOLOGY: A Georgia plant that makes electrical transformers is trying to transform itself to better compete with manufacturers abroad. (Savannah Morning News)

FOSSIL FUELS: The CEO of Murray Energy sounds off against the Obama administration’s efforts to regulate coal- and natural gas-fired power generation. (Wheeling News-Register)

OIL TRAINS: Documents released from a probe of the 2014 derailment of a CSX oil train in Lynchburg, Virginia have yet to answer why a company official took two hours to respond on site. (Associated Press) 

COMMENTARY:
• Heightened earthquake risks and cheaper alternatives  should prevent the authorization of a  a third nuclear reactor at Dominion’s North Anna complex. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• How offshore drilling could forever alter the economies along the Southeast coast. (Huffington Post)
• The new integrated resource plan by the TVA underestimates the potential of energy efficiency and renewables to provide low cost electricity to its customers. (Southern Environmental Law Center)

Jim Pierobon

Jim Pierobon, a policy, marketing and social media strategist, was a founding contributor to Southeast Energy News. He passed away after a long battle with pancreatic cancer in 2018.

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