GRID: Newly confirmed Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and climate czar Gina McCarthy both warn that climate change will make events like the Texas power crisis a more common occurrence. (NPR, Associated Press)

ALSO:
• Analysts estimate the Texas outages will create billions of dollars in windfall profits for some energy companies while operators of the state’s power plants will take a significant hit. (Washington Post)
• The oldest and largest power cooperative in Texas files for bankruptcy after receiving a nearly $2 billion bill from the state grid operator. (Reuters)

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CLIMATE:
• The Biden administration increases the social cost of carbon estimate to $54 a ton — up from the $8 figure used by his predecessor — with a more comprehensive revision expected early next year. (Politico)
• Energy Secretary Granholm says she will make the department central in “developing and deploying the technologies that will deliver a clean energy revolution.” (E&E News)

POLITICS: In his first public appearance since leaving office, former President Donald Trump amplifies falsehoods about the Keystone XL pipeline and the Texas energy crisis. (E&E News, subscription) 

PUBLIC LANDS: Surveys and polls show that Republicans’ claims that Interior Secretary nominee Deb Haaland’s views on climate are too “radical” are out of step with the perspectives of mainstream Americans. (Washington Post)

UTILITIES: Electric cooperatives serve 42 million customers across the U.S., but many have been reluctant to turn away from coal. (Inside Climate News)

TRANSPORTATION:
• A growing number of states are following California’s lead on regulating vehicle emissions. (The Hill)
• A pilot program in a California city aims to “price the curb” by only allowing electric vehicles to park in certain areas while another California city is banning new gas stations. (E&E News, Fast Company)
• Michigan automotive suppliers begin to shift operations in preparation for the electric vehicle transition as automakers and public officials announce new targets. (MiBiz)

WIND:
• A Wyoming bill would allow used wind turbine blades to be buried in former coal mines as part of the reclamation process. (Associated Press)
• A startup champions a smaller-scale wind turbine in Vermont that it hopes would encounter less public objection than large utility scale machines. (Energy News Network)
• Renewable energy developer Avangrid hopes to breed California condors in captivity, aiming to replace those that are killed by wind turbines. (Los Angeles Times)

SOLAR: Iowa taxpayers could save $375 million over the life of solar projects installed at county facilities and school districts, the state’s auditor reports. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

TRANSMISSION: Researchers install ultraviolet spotlights on Nebraska power lines to limit sandhill crane collisions. (Lincoln Journal Star)

COAL: The last coal-fired power plant in New Hampshire will run until mid-2025 as a successful bidder in the recent capacity auction for the New England power grid. (Concord Monitor)

PIPELINES: Tribal leaders in Minnesota ask Gov. Tim Walz to issue an executive order halting Line 3 pipeline construction amid ongoing lawsuits challenging the project. (MPR News)

COMMENTARY: A Texas editorial board defends the wind industry as a growing source of inexpensive power that’s helping to diversify the state’s energy mix. (Houston Chronicle)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.