COAL: After receiving a lifeline from Ohio’s power plant bailout law, the owner of a major coal plant announces that it will close or sell the plant by June 2023, five years earlier than expected. (Cleveland.com)
ALSO: Federal EPA data show Indiana coal plants account for more than half of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions. (WFYI)
CARBON CAPTURE: Illinois environmental groups warn landowners about potential safety and financial hazards as developers seek to make the state a “superhighway” for carbon dioxide pipelines and underground storage. (Energy News Network)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Shares of Michigan electric vehicle startup Electric Last Mile Solutions plunged nearly 50% after the company disclosed a federal Securities and Exchange Commission probe. (Reuters)
PIPELINES:
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers selects a Maryland firm to perform a multi-year environmental review of a proposed underground tunnel for Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac. (MLive)
• Wisconsin landowners and tribes raise pollution concerns over Enbridge’s planned use of horizontal directional drilling for a Line 5 relocation project. (WXPR)
NUCLEAR: After abandoning nuclear power technology more than 30 years ago, a Wisconsin utility explores small-scale reactors to replace retiring coal plants. (Wisconsin State Journal)
SOLAR:
• Developer Invenergy hopes to submit a permit application to state regulators within the next month for a 250 MW solar project in western Ohio. (WHIO)
• Local officials consider plans for a 3,200-acre solar project between Lincoln and Omaha that would be one of the largest projects in Nebraska. (KETV)
• Siting and interconnection delays continue to challenge the buildout of community solar in several states as the Biden administration pursues an 80% clean energy goal by 2030. (PV Magazine)
OIL & GAS: Minnesota consumer and clean energy advocates reach a settlement agreement with natural gas utility CenterPoint Energy that would raise residential rates but also reduce potential incentives to extend the natural gas system. (Star Tribune)
UTILITIES: North Dakota regulators plan to start discussions with electric and natural gas utilities over how they plan to spend an influx of federal infrastructure funding. (Prairie Public Broadcasting)
GRID: FirstEnergy expects to complete more than $400 million in grid infrastructure upgrades this year that aim to reduce the number of and duration of outages. (WKYC)
WIND: Two nearly 20-year-old wind turbines are demolished in North Dakota after operating them was no longer economically feasible. (Minot Daily News)