Note to readers: Northeast Energy News is taking a break for the holiday and will be back on Monday, Nov. 30. Thank you for reading!

CLEAN ENERGY: An agreement is within reach in New Hampshire on how to spend $5.2 million in clean energy funds that were set aside three years ago after the state’s largest utility divested its power plants. (Energy News Network)

ALSO: New York produced the fourth-highest amount of renewable energy in the U.S. and greatest east of the Mississippi in 2019. (Renewables Now)

TRANSPORTATION: Massachusetts transit officials approve the purchase of 45 diesel-electric hybrid buses after receiving assurances that diesel won’t be used when driving through an environmental justice community. (CommonWealth Magazine)

COAL: A western Pennsylvania coal mining company is developing a power plant that would convert mining waste into energy with reduced emissions. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

NUCLEAR: Federal regulators approve the sale of the Indian Point nuclear plant to a company that will decommission it over the objections of state and local officials. (Poughkeepsie Journal)

POLITICS: Even though President Trump easily won a Pennsylvania county with 1,000 natural gas wells, few residents took the claim seriously that President-elect Biden would ban fracking. (Philadelphia Inquirer)

SOLAR:
• A Massachusetts solar company wins a lawsuit against its insurance company for lost revenue after a town ordered a complete shutdown of an array in which only a portion of its panels were damaged in a fire. (New England In-House)
• Work begins on a Connecticut solar array that received approval from a state siting board a few weeks ago. (Torrington Register Citizen)

UTILITIES:
• Utility executives and consultants tell New Jersey regulators that smart meters not only help in the transition to a cleaner grid but also help speed up outage restoration. (NJ Spotlight)
• Officials in New Jersey are concerned that a shutoff moratorium during the pandemic has been confused with bill forgiveness as state funds for heating assistance go unclaimed. (ROI-NJ.com)

COMMENTARY:
• The CEO of New Jersey’s largest utility says the company will double its investment in energy efficiency from what it spent over the past decade to implement the state’s Energy Master Plan. (NJ.com)
• A heat pump proponent says a Massachusetts alliance is developing ways to operate them more efficiently as they are a cheaper alternative to oil and electric heat. (Wicked Local)
• A Pennnsylvnaia state senator and an environmental advocate urge residents to support the state’s membership in a region emissions agreement as opponents have misrepresented its costs and benefits. (Pennlive)

Bill is a freelance journalist based outside Albany, New York. As a former New England correspondent for RTO Insider, he has written about energy for newspapers, magazines and other publications for more than 20 years. He has an extensive career in trade publications and newspapers, mostly focused on the utility sector, covering such issues as restructuring, renewable energy and consumer affairs. Bill covers Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire and also compiles the Northeast Energy News daily email digest.