CLIMATE: A report by New York regulators says the state’s ambitious climate plan will yield $8 billion in benefits at a cost of $3.6 billion. (Albany Times Herald)

ALSO:
• San Diego officials will release details this month on how the city will transition to 100 percent renewable energy. (ClimateWire)
• A new report finds the oil industry spends $115 million a year on efforts to “obstruct” climate policy. (Bloomberg)
• An Oregon judge rejects motions to dismiss a climate lawsuit raised by kids along with scientist James Hansen. (Eugene Register-Guard)

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COAL:
• A review finds major coal executives were paid millions in bonuses as their companies slid toward bankruptcy. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• The outlook for coal grows darker as economists predict low natural gas prices for years to come. (The Guardian)

SOLAR:
• Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is expected to sign a compromise today designed to revive the state’s solar industry. (Boston Globe)
• A state-backed report criticizes Xcel Energy’s handling of its community solar program in Minnesota, particularly for its slow approval process. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
Colorado advocates will turn to the legislature to make community solar more accessible. (Denver Post)
New Hampshire’s Republican-led state Senate passes a bill to raise the state’s net metering cap. (Concord Monitor)
• Hundreds of jobs hang in the balance in Maine’s solar debate. (Portland Press Herald)
• San Diego is becoming a national leader in solar power. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• SolarCity appoints former FERC chair Jon Wellinghoff as its new chief policy officer. (Utility Dive)

RENEWABLES: A report projects the growth rate of new renewable energy will slow through 2025. (Bloomberg)

NUCLEAR:
• Providing a lifeline for a struggling nuclear plant under a recent “bailout” deal comes as both economics and public opinion are shifting against nuclear generation. (Midwest Energy News)
• The TVA moves to ask regulators for permission to build up to 12 small modular reactors next to the Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• Georgia Power says every dollar and every day invested in building two new reactors at Plant Vogtle are necessary to do it safely and correctly. (EnergyWire)

WIND:
• Developers announce plans for a $613 million, 400-megawatt wind project in southwestern Kansas, which would be the second-largest in the state; Google plans to buy half of the output from the project. (Lawrence Journal-World, Topeka Capital-Journal)
• The first new Wyoming wind farm since 2010 is expected to go online later this year. (Casper Star-Tribune)
• How transmission roadblocks continue to stifle Midwest wind energy. (CleanTechnica)

OIL AND GAS:
• After nearly 17,000 gallons of oil leaked from the Keystone pipeline, company officials said over the weekend that the pipeline was ready to operate again. (Associated Press)
Researchers find hundreds of methane leaks as they fly over shale formations. (PublicSource)

BIOENERGY: Vermont regulators approve a biodigester that will produce pipeline-ready natural gas, the first facility of its kind in the state. (Vermont Public Radio)

EFFICIENCY: How efficiency and demand response could prevent blackouts in California this summer. (Greentech Media)

INDUSTRY: Low energy costs aren’t enough to rescue a Maine paper mill. (Portland Press Herald)

COMMENTARY:
• Light bulb efficiency standards didn’t make the sky fall after all. (Washington Post)
• Why wind energy caught on in Texas. (Law Street Media)
• Should liberals support fracking? (New York Times)

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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