POLICY: While the bill is unlikely to pass, Michigan Democrats say a proposal for a 50 percent renewable energy standard is intended to “set up a new frontier of where we should be looking.” (Midwest Energy News)

WIND: Michigan regulators approve a plan for Consumers Energy to start construction on a wind project three years ahead of schedule. (Associated Press)

PIPELINES:
• Oil shippers say they were surprised by a judge’s ruling this week ordering further environmental review of the Dakota Access pipeline, but they are optimistic it won’t cause a long-term disruption of service. (Associated Press)
• Advocates are preparing for the next round of deliberations over the Dakota Access pipeline, hoping to shut down the flow of oil. (Reuters)

SOLAR:
• An Illinois school district says it could generate new revenue and lower maintenance costs by building a solar project at a former landfill site. (Lake County News-Sun)
• Students at the University of Missouri are researching lighter, more portable and cheaper solar cells to be deployed in developing countries. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

NUCLEAR:
• A new analysis shows more than half of the nuclear reactors in the U.S. are losing money, with losses totaling about $2.9 billion a year. (Bloomberg)
• Ohio State University and the University of Michigan will each receive about $1.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop nuclear research projects. (Toledo Blade)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Minnesota’s Department of Transportation installs signs promoting electric vehicle charging stations along a portion of the Interstate 94 corridor. (WCCO)

GRID:
• Utility executives convening at an annual conference say they hope a Department of Energy grid study will reaffirm that “changes to the U.S. power mix do not threaten reliability.” (Utility Dive)
• A survey by grid operator MISO says the Midwest and central U.S. corridor has ample electricity capacity to meet demand over the next five years. (E&E News, subscription)

FINANCE: A youth sports center near Cincinnati is the first facility to finance energy efficiency upgrades and solar panels through Ohio’s Property Assess Clean Energy program. (Cincinnati Business Courier)

COAL: Representatives with the North Dakota coal industry say there is a shortage of workers with highly technical skills. (Bismarck Tribune)

COMMENTARY:
• A wind advocacy group says easing restrictions on turbine setbacks in Ohio will “bring new opportunities for prosperity to rural communities throughout the state.” (American Wind Energy Association blog)
• Clean energy advocates say it’s time Ohio lawmakers reject the bailouts of outdated and uneconomical coal plants and focus on the future. (Natural Resources Defense Council)
• A Minnesota advocacy group says “now is not the time to rest on our laurels” when it comes to advancing clean energy. (MinnPost)

Andy compiles the Midwest Energy News digest and was a journalism fellow for Midwest Energy News from 2014-2020. He is managing editor of MiBiz in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and was formerly a reporter and editor at City Pulse, Lansing’s alternative newsweekly.

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