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)