MICROGRIDS: Polar explorer and climate change activist Will Steger closes in on a longtime goal of completing a large off-the-grid conference center in rural Minnesota. (Midwest Energy News)
OHIO: AEP and FirstEnergy contend that the value in gaining income guarantees for some of their Ohio fleet is in the length of the contracts. (SNL)
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SOLAR:
• Electric co-ops are leading the way in solar development in Wisconsin. (Greentech Media)
• Five solar projects are sprouting up across a central Indiana city. (Muncie Star Press)
EFFICIENCY: The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week on whether electricity providers should be required to give customers incentives for cutting their power use during times of high demand. (Greenwire)
FRAC SAND: Low oil prices are forcing Wisconsin sand mining companies to cut jobs. (Associated Press)
PIPELINE: South Dakota regulators struggle with permitting process for Dakota Access project: “This has not been easy for any of us.” (Rapid City Journal)
RENEWABLES: As coal and gas falter across the country, wind and solar are on the rise and becoming cost competitive. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
FRACKING: A new study shows that drinking water contamination is not common in areas where wells are drilled and that it likely did not come from deep underground. (NPR)
BATTERIES:
• Wisconsin-based Johnson Controls Inc. is unveiling this week its first products for the energy storage market for buildings. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• Construction on a 7-megawatt storage facility that’s attached to a 4-megawatt solar system in Ohio is expected to start this month. (PV Magazine)
CLIMATE: A new federal report shows climate change will wreak havoc on the U.S. electric industry. (Utility Dive)
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TRANSMISSION: Construction is completed on a controversial section of a new transmission line connecting the Twin Cities with western Wisconsin. (LaCrosse Tribune)
COMMENTARY:
• A Minnesota lawmaker says coal must be a part of the state’s energy mix to provide reliability. (St. Cloud Times)
• An Ohio legislative committee “used the Clean Power Plan as their scapegoat and cherry picked data to fit their preferred conclusion.” (NRDC Switchboard)