ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• General Motors formally announces a $7 billion investment in two Michigan cities where it will build electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facilities and create up to 4,000 jobs. (Bridge Michigan)
• A newly created state economic development fund provided the Detroit-based automaker with $824 million in grants and incentives for the projects. (Crain’s Detroit Business)
ALSO:
• Consumers Energy officials say they are “preparing the grid” for a coming influx of electric vehicles by studying driving and charging patterns. (WOOD-TV8)
• Ford’s CEO wants to make the company a leader in electric vehicle software and the electric commercial vehicle market. (Reuters)
OHIO: A former FirstEnergy lobbyist who pushed for the passage of House Bill 6 resigns from a Public Utilities Commission board that helps select nominees to the regulatory body. (Columbus Dispatch)
HYDROGEN: Wisconsin-based WEC Energy Group will launch a first-of-its-kind pilot project in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula that will co-fire hydrogen with natural gas for power generation. (WLUC)
WIND: NextEra Energy continues development work on a planned $400 million, 200 MW wind project in southwestern Minnesota. (The Globe)
SOLAR:
• Alliant Energy’s first community solar project is now operating in southeastern Wisconsin. (Fond du Lac Reporter)
• Indiana county officials consider rescinding a 10-year property tax incentive for a large solar project following opposition from local residents. (Muncie Star Press)
CLIMATE: U.S. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota believes there is a “path forward” to pass a scaled-version of the Build Back Better plan that focuses on climate initiatives. (S&P Global)
UTILITIES:
• AES Indiana begins a series of public meetings on its long-term energy plan that builds on a short-term goal to retire its coal generation by next year. (WFYI)
• The CEO of AES Ohio says the utility is in a “very fragile” financial condition that could be improved with various smart grid investments. (Dayton Daily News)
PIPELINES: A panel of federal judges appeared unconvinced by an Ohio city’s arguments that an environmental review should be redone for the Nexus natural gas pipeline. (Bloomberg Law, subscription)
OIL & GAS:
• The vast majority of a 32-person panel of economists says a proposal to cut Ohio’s gasoline tax is a bad idea that would dry up infrastructure funding and remove incentives to conserve energy. (Ohio Capital Journal)
• Despite the Midwest’s coldest day so far this winter, spot natural gas prices have moved downward amid an influx of new gas supply and an increase in wind generation. (S&P Global)
BIOFUELS: Iowa lawmakers revisit Gov. Kim Reynolds’ revised proposal to boost ethanol sales after a similar effort stalled last year. (Radio Iowa)