OIL & GAS: The coronavirus pandemic and a flooded oil market are buying Gulf Coast communities time to fight oil companies proposing major projects. (Texas Observer)

ALSO:
• Some oil and gas projects along the Gulf Coast are still forging ahead or staying open, despite the spread of the coronavirus. (DeSmog)
• An energy company offers shippers storage in its crude oil pipeline system in Texas because of the urgent need for space. (Reuters)
• President Trump promises federal support for oil companies hit by the pandemic, as Louisiana lawmakers pressure him to provide relief. (Washington Post, Daily Advertiser)

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UTILITIES: A quietly passed bill restoring Virginia regulators’ oversight of the Dominion Energy’s cost recovery for early retirements of power plants is a big step for breaking up the utility’s monopoly, watchdogs say. (Energy News Network)

SOLAR: Tampa Electric Company announces plans to increase its solar energy generation by 600 MW before the end of 2023. (Osprey Observer)

WIND: Construction continues on two major wind energy projects in Oklahoma despite the pandemic: an 88-turbine farm expected to be completed later this year, and a 250 MW wind, solar and storage project. (Enid News & Eagle)

NUCLEAR: A worker at the Plant Vogtle nuclear project tests positive for COVID-19, according to Georgia Power. (E&E News, subscription)

OVERSIGHT: West Virginia regulators approve certificates for a major natural gas plant, a solar array and a new transmission line. (WBOY)

COAL: West Virginia communities honor the 29 men who died 10 years ago in the Upper Big Branch mining disaster. (WVPB)

COMMENTARY:
• South Carolina utility Santee Cooper’s fiscal problems are going to be even worse because of the coronavirus, a chamber of commerce leader says. (The State)
• This year could be big for residential solar in Georgia with proposed net metering policies that grant consumers more independence from Georgia Power, a college instructor writes. (Saporta Report)
• An editorial board lays out what a Green New Deal would look like in Virginia and how it could help coal communities. (Roanoke Times)

Lyndsey Gilpin is a freelance journalist based in her hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. She compiles the Southeast Energy News daily email digest. Lyndsey is the publisher of Southerly, a weekly newsletter about ecology, justice, and culture in the American South. She is on the board of directors for the Society of Environmental Journalists.