NOTE TO READERS: Midwest Energy News is taking a break for Independence Day. The email digest will return on Wednesday, July 5.
PIPELINES:
• Next week, Michigan officials plan to publicly release a highly anticipated draft report about Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline through the Straits of Mackinac, though advocates are uncertain whether it will lead to action. (Midwest Energy News)
• A North Dakota regulatory board accuses a private security firm hired by the Dakota Access pipeline developer of operating in the state without a license. (Forum News Service)
SOLAR:
• Six months after signing major energy legislation, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner is backing a bill that would divert for general uses up to $160 million allocated to develop solar power in low-income neighborhoods. (Crain’s Chicago Business)
• A 100-megawatt solar project spanning 16 sites comes online in Minnesota. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• Officials in Ann Arbor, Michigan are considering whether to add $2.3 million in tax incentives for a housing redevelopment project to include a solar installation. (MLive)
OHIO: State lawmakers remove provisions in a budget bill that would have eased restrictive zoning setbacks for wind turbines as well as allow utilities to seek rate increases solely to improve their credit rating. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
FRAC SAND: Responding to an anticipated resurgence in frac sand mining, a Wisconsin lawmaker introduces legislation to increase oversight of the industry. (LaCrosse Tribune)
GRID:
• An outgoing member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission says renewable energy deployment does not harm grid reliability: “I say bring on more renewables.” (Reuters)
• A report prepared for the Natural Resources Defense Council cautions against focusing on outdated coal and nuclear plants’ “baseload” attributes. (Utility Dive)
EMISSIONS: Two recent industry reports rank Exelon’s generating fleet among the cleanest and most efficient in the nation. (Quad-City Times)
WIND:
• Wind development in Michigan since 2008 has brought a wave of support and opposition. (MLive)
• An equipment malfunction leads to a wind turbine blade breaking off at a project in eastern Michigan. (MLive)
COAL: A dredging project in a river near a former coal gasification plant in Flint, Michigan aims to remove legacy coal tar waste. (Michigan Radio)
OIL AND GAS: An American Petroleum Institute study predicts two million new jobs will be created in the natural gas industry by 2040. The study also says Ohio has the fourth-most natural gas pipelines in the country. (New York Business Journal, Columbus Business First)
NUCLEAR: Federal regulators are investigating a cyber intrusion affecting multiple U.S. nuclear generators this year (E&E News)