NUCLEAR: Exelon threatens to shut down two reactors in upstate New York if regulators don’t approve a “compensation” plan for the facilities. (EnergyWire)
CLIMATE:
• Exxon asks a federal court to throw out a subpoena related to an investigation into whether it misled investors on climate risks. (Reuters)
• California Gov. Jerry Brown seeks to extend the state’s cap-and-trade law to 2020. (Los Angeles Times)
SOLAR:
• Maryland regulators approve a framework for community solar. (CleanTechnica)
• Despite strong potential, solar is slow to catch on at the University of Wyoming. (Laramie Boomerang)
WIND: Developers of a Colorado wind farm push for an accelerated hearing in order to avoid losing out on $125 million in tax breaks. (Denver Post)
RENEWABLES: An Xcel Energy executive says concerns about the intermittency of wind and solar are overblown. (Albuquerque Business First)
GRID: California regulators push to deploy demand response and solar to address shortfalls caused by the shutdown of the Aliso Canyon natural gas facility. (Greentech Media)
TRANSMISSION:
• A new report warns the U.S. is falling behind on planning for new transmission. (Utility Dive)
• A relatively low-cost upgrade in New York connects renewable energy resources to cities. (Greentech Media)
• A bill aimed to stop the Clean Line transmission project across Arkansas, Tennessee and Oklahoma passes a U.S. House committee as a matching bill in the Senate awaits action. (Arkansas News)
COAL:
• In a victory for North Dakota, a federal appeals court upholds a ruling that a 2007 Minnesota law illegally regulates out-of-state utilities by restricting coal electricity imports. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• An Illinois researcher is using 150-year-old technology to increase the efficiency of removing greenhouse gas pollutants from coal emissions. (Midwest Energy News)
• A Wyoming coal mine announces another round of layoffs. (Gillette News Record)
ELECTRIC CARS: California’s new budget cuts off funding for low-emission vehicle subsidies. (Los Angeles Times)
FRACKING: Pennsylvania lawmakers approve new regulations for fracking, but keep existing rules in place for conventional drilling. (PennLive)
EQUITY:
• Solar incentives are still leaving low-income homeowners behind. (Public Source)
• Residents of a Los Angeles neighborhood question whether they’ll benefit from a proposed zero-emissions pilot project. (Los Angeles Times)
COMMENTARY:
• “Right now, there is no charge for using the sky as one giant dumping ground.” (High Country News)
• Why Oregon is a “shining example” on clean energy. (Oregonian)