MICHIGAN: Emails released as part of the ongoing Flint water crisis also shed light on Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder’s energy policy and the attorney general’s “awkward” pursuit of an injunction against the Clean Power Plan. (Midwest Energy News)
PIPELINES:
• Michigan officials want more information from Enbridge about the safety of the company’s pipeline beneath the Straits of Mackinac. (Michigan Radio)
• A segment of pipeline in North Dakota is shut down after a leak was discovered spilling gasoline this week. (Associated Press)
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CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Uncertainty clouds the timeline of meeting goals following the U.S. Supreme Court’s stay and states are questioning whether they will be “caught flat-footed if they stop planning.” (ClimateWire)
• For Peabody Energy, the Clean Power Plan is a “red flag” for potential investors into the company. (EnergyWire)
COAL:
• A Peabody Energy spokesman declares: “Coal is going to be around for a long time, and Peabody is going to be around for a long time.” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
• Peabody also tells the Illinois attorney general that it is “committed” to restoring the land at three of its coal mines in the state. (Southern Illinoisan)
FRAC SAND: In “quite a reversal” from 2014, two Wisconsin frac sand mining companies announce 134 layoffs as declining oil prices take their toll on the industry. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
SOLAR: Xcel Energy announces plans for an up to 3-megawatt community solar project in Wisconsin. (Ashland Daily Press)
RATES:
• A new study shows Wisconsin has the highest electric rates in the Midwest, but electric bills are still below the region’s average. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• Customers of a western Minnesota utility will see their rates increase, though state regulators ordered the utility to scale it back within 10 days. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
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FRACKING: Industry attorneys say the negative publicity around “frackquake” lawsuits may do more damage to the industry than any legal outcomes. (Forbes)
UTILITIES: The $9.1 billion merger last year that created Wisconsin’s largest utility — WEC Energy Group — also brought a 12 percent pay increase for board members. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)