UTILITIES: A public advocacy group’s report says ComEd has dragged its feet on offering tools or programs to help Illinois customers unlock savings from smart meters. (Energy News Network)

PIPELINES: A Minnesota agency approves the final permit needed for Enbridge to start construction on the Line 3 replacement and expansion in northern Minnesota. (Star Tribune)

OHIO:
• An Ohio bill would halt most large-scale solar and wind energy development for up to three years, which critics say reflects a continued hostility toward renewable energy among some state lawmakers. (Energy News Network)
• The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio begins the process of replacing former Chairman Sam Randazzo after he resigned last month. (Cleveland.com)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: GM scales back a planned partnership with Nikola that includes scrapping plans to manufacture the EV startup’s battery powered pickup truck. (Bloomberg)

SOLAR:
• South Dakota regulators approve plans for a 128 MW solar project, which will be the state’s largest. (KNBN)
• Invenergy is developing plans for a 300 MW solar project in southwestern Ohio. (News Journal)
• A North Dakota public school’s career academy includes a new focus on training students in solar energy. (Bismarck Tribune)
• Kansas is among states with upcoming major regulatory decisions on rate design that will affect rooftop solar customers. (E&E News, subscription)
• A member of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa says “solar is bringing a different kind of energy to Red Lake — more than anything gaming could ever do.” (MinnPost)
• A $100 million housing development planned in Ann Arbor, Michigan, includes plans for onsite solar and to be serviced entirely by electricity instead of including natural gas. (MLive) 

CLIMATE:
• Advocates say President-elect Joe Biden’s climate plans could help shape Wisconsin’s clean energy development and transition from fossil fuels. (Wisconsin Public Radio)
• U.S. Rep. Sean Casten of Illinois says federal climate policies should “better allocate” the economic benefits of clean energy to benefit both consumers and investors. (RTO Insider, subscription)

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.