SOLAR: Iowa lawmakers look to boost funding for a popular statewide solar tax credit that supporters say has helped nurture the industry there. (Midwest Energy News)
CLEAN POWER PLAN: Republican-led states in the Midwest take a predictable path of holding off on compliance following last week’s Supreme Court stay. (EnergyWire)
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PIPELINES: Enbridge pushes back the operational date for the North Dakota-to-Wisconsin Sandpiper project as well as a pipeline replacement as it completes environmental assessments. (Minnesota Public Radio)
FRACKING:
• A Republican Senate candidate in Ohio says the state should gradually increase the severance tax on fracking to align with other states. (Columbus Dispatch)
• A new anthology spans 50 authors and 26 states chronicling areas where fracking is happening and impacting communities. (Radio Iowa)
COAL:
• Analysts say even a recent Supreme Court ruling on the Clean Power Plan won’t be a “saving grace” for the coal industry. (SNL/IEEFA)
• A national mining official says the industry is “simply in a survival mode.” (National Public Radio)
• The U.S. EPA has concerns over air pollution from a southern Illinois coal plant. (Alton Telegraph)
OIL AND GAS:
• North Dakota’s energy regulator is concerned about hedge funds and other investment groups buying up oil assets across the state with little experience in the industry. (Reuters)
• Opponents pack a metro Detroit auditorium to speak out against a church’s plan to drill for oil on its property. (CBS Detroit)
• North Dakota’s governor urges a major oil company to preserve the environment around a drilling operation near a state park. (Bismarck Tribune)
• A North Dakota county will appeal to the state Supreme Court to allow the local government to have jurisdiction over oil and gas zoning. (Bismarck Tribune)
WIND:
• At 8.6 gigawatts, wind energy was the top source of new generation capacity in 2015, surpassing solar and natural gas. (Transmission & Distribution World)
• A Kansas community sees the economic benefits of wind development spread across other sectors. (Marysville Advocate)
OHIO:
• Dynegy’s CEO says the two “bailout requests” by AEP and FirstEnergy “only exist for Wall Street.” (Columbus Business First)
• FirstEnergy finished 2015 with more than $500 million in net profits as it pitches an income-guarantee request to state regulators. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A former General Motors executive says widespread adoption of electric vehicles will happen in the coming years as it becomes easier and cheaper to build them. (Forbes)
NATURAL GAS: Local officials near Chicago plan a 4-cent-per-gallon tax on compressed natural gas refueling. (Daily Herald)
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STORAGE: A Michigan researcher says cross-disciplinary work will help overcome challenges with energy storage. (MLive)
COMMENTARY:
• Chicago should start making serious investments in electric vehicle charging infrastructure. (Chicago Tribune)
• Major Michigan utilities have a “perverse and destructive relationship” with state government. (Detroit News)
• Minnesota’s taconite industry stands to benefit from the manufacturing demand for wind turbines. (Duluth News Tribune)