MICHIGAN: In an interview with Midwest Energy News, Gov. Rick Snyder praises recent legislation and discusses Michigan’s energy future.

OHIO:
• State renewable energy standards will resume this year after Gov. John Kasich vetoed a bill to make them voluntary; state Sen. Bill Seitz, who has tried for years to thwart the standards, accuses the governor of “appeasing his coastal elite friends.” (Cleveland Plain Dealer, Columbus Business First)
• Developers plan a new 1,650 MW natural gas plant in eastern Ohio. (Columbus Business First)

***SPONSORED LINK: Connect with more than 650 of the region’s best and brightest at MEEA’s 2017 Midwest Energy Solutions Conference, February 22-24 in Chicago, featuring unparalleled networking, insightful panels and more. Register today!***

SOLAR:
• “Solar is taking off in Minnesota” as a new utility-scale array doubles the state’s capacity and becomes the first solar farm integrated into the Midwest’s wholesale market. (Minneapolis Star Tribune, Utility Dive)
• Cuyahoga County, Ohio is assessing the potential of former landfills for solar farms. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

IOWA: A new report discusses ways to advance clean energy in Iowa beyond wind. (Midwest Energy News)

COAL:
• North Dakota’s largest power plant makes operational changes to ramp up and down more quickly. (Bismarck Tribune)
• Peabody Energy files a plan to exit bankruptcy. (St. Louis Business Journal)
• Researchers at Ohio University seek to develop new uses for coal. (Athens News)

PIPELINES:
• Protesters climb rafters to hang a giant “Divest” banner at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis during a Minnesota Vikings game. (Associated Press)
• Despite protests, a section of the Dakota Access pipeline beneath the Mississippi River has been completed. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
• Victories by Dakota Access and Keystone XL protesters have emboldened activists around the country. (InsideClimate News)

CLEAN POWER PLAN: A group of Democratic state attorneys general adviseDonald Trump not to repeal the Clean Power Plan, telling him the decision would lead to an inevitable lawsuit. (The Hill)

BIOFUELS: Trump’s advisory team includes some harsh critics of federal ethanol policy. (Bloomberg)

NUCLEAR:
• Closure of the Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan will cost hundreds of millions of dollars. (MLive)
• Another Michigan nuclear plant reports its diesel backup generators are inoperable. (MLive)

EFFICIENCY: Ohio regulators approve a gas utility’s plan to expand efficiency programs. (Columbus Dispatch)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join Dairyland Power Cooperative CEO Barbara Nick and the “Michael Jordan of solar policy,” Adam Browning of Vote Solar, at RENEW Wisconsin’s “Clean Energy Goes Mainstream” Summit. Thursday, Jan. 19 in Madison. Register Today!***

WASTE TO ENERGY: A Wisconsin tribe sues the city of Green Bay over a withdrawn permit for its planned waste-to-energy plant. (Associated Press)

COMMENTARY:
• Illinois and Michigan are among eight states that made major strides on clean energy policy in 2016. (Union of Concerned Scientists)
What Ohio could learn from Texas on wind energy. (Akron Beacon-Journal)
• Renewable energy means “more local, good-paying jobs” in Wisconsin. (Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter)

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.

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