COAL:
• Under a new filing by grid operator MISO, Upper Peninsula ratepayers would be on the hook for nearly $50 million in costs to operate aging coal plants there in 2014-2015. (Midwest Energy News)
• Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton vows to appeal last week’s appeals court ruling against the state’s law restrictions on importing coal-fired electricity. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
WIND:
• North Dakota regulators approve a $153 million, 100-megawatt wind project and associated transmission line. (Associated Press)
• Opponents and supports gear up for a second attempt at gaining regulatory approval in Missouri for the Grain Belt Express transmission project. (Columbia Daily Tribune)
***SPONSORED LINK: The Michigan Energy Fair announces two new partners: The Sustainable Living Summit 2016 and The Great Lakes Emergency Preparedness Expo, June 24-25, Ingham County Fairgrounds, Mason, Michigan. For complete information go to www.glrea.org ***
SOLAR:
• A solar project at Michigan State University may be in jeopardy after local officials reject the developer’s request for a 25-year tax abatement. (Lansing State Journal)
• A Wisconsin electric co-op is sponsoring an initiative that demonstrates solar power at schools. (Winona Daily News)
• Minnesota landowners claim a nearby solar project is reducing their property values. (Marshall Independent)
• Construction begins on a portion of what will be a 100-megawatt solar project spread across multiple sites in Minnesota. (Willmar Radio)
• The former head of an Illinois solar startup is sentenced to 15 months in jail for cheating a U.S. Energy Department grant program. (Great Lakes Echo)
• Local officials unveil a new solar installation at the downtown convention center in South Bend, Indiana. (Inside Indiana Business)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Major U.S. car companies are turning to a Chicago-based startup to develop cheaper and longer-lasting electric car batteries. (Chicago Tribune)
RENEWABLES: Ratepayers of an Ohio municipal utility will see $2.2 million in rebates from the sale of renewable energy credits. (Energy Manager Today)
NUCLEAR: Exelon formally notifies federal nuclear regulators that it will close two of its Illinois plants in 2017 and 2018. (Bloomington Pantagraph)
FRACKING: A law professor says she is frustrated that opponents of the Obama administration’s fracking rules misinterpreted her work in fighting against the policy. (E&E Daily)
BIOFUELS: A Minnesota ethanol plant is fined nearly $40,000 for environmental violations. (Associated Press)
COMMENTARY: Coal companies are leaving behind mining sites in the Illinois basin that could harm the ecosystem and local watershed. (Natural Resources Defense Council)