SOLAR: Minnesota solar developers say a state law requiring community solar subscribers to live near projects is limiting growth. (Energy News Network)
ALSO:
• Ohio regulators set public hearings for two solar projects totaling 435 MW of capacity. (Farm and Dairy)
• Eastern Michigan township officials extend a moratorium on new solar projects as local planners draft zoning regulations. (Sanilac County News)
PIPELINES:
• Minnesota appeals court judges raise doubts about whether Enbridge and state regulators properly forecasted demand to justify the need to expand Line 3. (Duluth News Tribune)
• Law enforcement agencies prepare for an increase in Line 3 pipeline protests this spring as construction nears the Mississippi River. (The Intercept)
RENEWABLES:
• NIPSCO signs agreements to buy power from a 204 MW solar project and purchase a 200 MW wind project after it is built in northwestern Indiana. (Times of Northwest Indiana)
• Indiana county officials object to proposed wind and solar siting rules that they call an “assault on local home rule.” (WLFI)
• Siting large wind and solar projects may prove to be a land use challenge under President Biden’s clean energy targets, researchers say. (E&E News, subscription)
ADVOCACY: Wisconsin lawmakers pass a bill approving $900,000 in annual funding for an independent nonprofit that advocates for utility customers in rate cases. (Wisconsin State Journal)
OIL & GAS:
• A North Dakota tribal leader urges state lawmakers to change an oil tax sharing agreement with the state to bring more equity and certainty. (Bismarck Tribune)
• St. Louis-area natural gas customers could see bills increase by 15% as a result of supply shortages during last month’s cold weather snap. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
FINANCE: A Wisconsin farming cooperative will offer farms low-interest loans to complete clean energy projects. (Wisconsin Public Radio)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Two Illinois school districts unveil electric school buses equipped with vehicle-to-grid technology allowing the bus batteries to store energy when it’s not immediately needed on the grid. (WMBD)
WIND:
• “I don’t speak in hyperbole when I say this bill ends the renewable energy industry in Kansas,” a clean energy lobbyist says of proposed restrictions on wind development that are drawing widespread opposition from clean energy supporters. (E&E News, subscription; Kansas Reflector)
• The legislation is pushed by GOP state Sen. Mike Thompson, who has been an outspoken critic of renewable energy and climate science. (Topeka Capital-Journal)
UTILITIES: Illinois regulators announce an agreement with utilities to limit outstanding customer debt and prevent utility disconnections related to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Daily Energy Insider)
STORAGE: Clean energy advocates challenge grid operator MISO’s request for a three-year extension to comply with a federal order that energy storage be allowed to participate in wholesale markets. (RTO Insider, subscription)