NOTE TO READERS: The Energy News Network will be taking a two-week break for the holidays. Northeast Energy News will return on Monday, January 4. Thank you for your support this year!

EFFICIENCY: After nine years at No. 1, Massachusetts loses its ranking as the most energy efficient state to California by a national advocacy. (CommonWealth Magazine)

ALSO: An annual campaign in Vermont to promote weatherization goes virtual this year due to the pandemic. (Energy News Network)

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TRANSPORTATION: Northeast states may on Monday release a long-awaited plan to create a cap-and-invest program for tailpipe emissions. (E&E News, subscription)

NATURAL GAS:
• Critics of a 650 MW natural gas power plant say an approval by state officials runs counter to Connecticut’s climate goals. (Energy News Network)
• A Rhode Island town endorses a plan to solve an energy shortage in a part of the state that does not require construction of new natural gas infrastructure. (Newport Daily News)
• The natural gas impact fee collected from unconventional well drilling in Pennsylvania will fall to a record low this year as prices on which it is based tumble due to the pandemic. (The Center Square)

TRANSMISSION:
• A Maine court rules an anti-transmission line group must disclose its donors to the state Ethics Commission in an investigation of whether it should register as a political committee. (Bangor Daily News)
• Three First Nations in Quebec challenge the transmission line through Maine saying the power destined for it is generated illegally. (Sun Journal)

WIND: Developers say the 72.6 MW Weaver Wind project in Maine is now operating. (news release)

DIVESTMENT: Two dozen Boston College alumni and supporters ask the Massachusetts attorney general to investigate the school’s investment in fossil fuels with an eye on compelling divestment. (National Catholic Reporter)

GRID: PJM and two utilities conduct an exercise to test the response to an unplanned natural gas pipeline disruption during extreme weather.  (Daily Energy Insider)

COMMENTARY:
• An environmental journalist says a company announcement that it will supply hydroelectricity to 21 New England towns misrepresents its status as federal relicensing permits are months into the future. (VT Digger)
• A Delaware interfaith leader says the state should follow the lead of its neighbors and commit to offshore wind to promote jobs, cleaner air and combat climate change. (Cape Gazette)
• A Vermont company transitioning to clean energy says a missing piece is reducing transportation emissions, so it endorses a multi-state initiative to cap them. (VT Digger)
• A Maryland manufacturer in the clean transportation vehicle sector says the state should formally join the Transportation Climate Initiative when its program is released. (Maryland Matters)

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Bill Opalka

Bill is a freelance journalist based outside Albany, New York. As a former New England correspondent for RTO Insider, he has written about energy for newspapers, magazines and other publications for more than 20 years. He has an extensive career in trade publications and newspapers, mostly focused on the utility sector, covering such issues as restructuring, renewable energy and consumer affairs. Bill covers Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire and also compiles the Northeast Energy News daily email digest.