WIND: North Carolina takes the first step toward what observers say is a crucial study of the state’s offshore wind manufacturing potential. (Energy News Network)

ALSO:
• Amazon says it will add 615 megawatts of solar to its portfolio, including an installation in Virginia, a hotspot for corporate renewables. (Greentech Media)
• Southern Power has acquired the 56-megawatt Beech Ridge 2 wind farm in West Virginia from Invenergy for an undisclosed price. (Renews)
• Wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa appoints a new North American on-shore chief executive, based in Orlando, Florida. (Renews)  

***SPONSORED LINK: Applications are now open for the Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship, a yearlong program for high-performing, high-potential military veterans in advanced energy, presented by the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. Learn more at www.vetsenergyproject.org/fellowship.***

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• San Antonio officials are hoping to convince Tesla to consider the region for its next electric cybertruck factory. (Rivard Report)
• Tennessee will use $5.7 million in Volkswagen settlement money to buy electric and diesel-hybrid buses in three cities. (Associated Press)
• A Virginia energy company provides 10 electric vehicles to Richmond healthcare workers to use for their commutes during the pandemic. (WTVR-TV)

SOLAR:
• A homeowner claims in a petition to the Florida Supreme Court that state regulators have ceded authority to Florida Power and Light and allowed the utility to disincentivize large residential solar. (PV Magazine)
• The Southeast installed more utility-scale solar capacity than any other region over the past three years, according to federal data. (Today in Energy)

RENEWABLES: U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and two Republican colleagues sign a letter asking the Trump administration to extend deadlines for federal renewable energy tax credits due to pandemic-related delays. (news release) 

UTILITIES:
• Tennessee Valley Authority’s top executive says he is offering Memphis’ municipal utility a 20-year deal that would lower costs and add renewables if it continues to buy power from the federal utility. (Daily Memphian) 
• Entergy New Orleans will offer $100 monthly bill credits for four months to customers who can prove they are unemployed. (NOLA.com)

NUCLEAR:
• Tennessee Valley Authority confirms that an employee at its Sequoyah Nuclear Plant has tested positive for COVID-19. (News Channel 9)
• Georgia Power says nearly all of the 230 Plant Vogtle workers who tested positive for coronavirus have recovered. (Athens Banner-Herald) 

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SUSTAINABILITY: A University of Georgia researcher says society’s siloed approach to energy and resource conservation may lead to cheaper prices and more consumption and environmental decay. (news release) 

COMMENTARY:
• It’s time for Virginia to adopt policies promoting electric heating and cooking, a clean energy advocate and building consultant write. (Virginia Mercury)
• An Alabama state senator says investments in electric vehicles could sustain the state’s next wave of auto manufacturing. (Alabama Political Reporter)

Dan has two decades' experience working in print, digital and broadcast media. Prior to joining the Energy News Network as managing editor in December 2017, he oversaw watchdog reporting at the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, part of the USA Today Network, and before that spent several years as a freelance journalist covering energy, business and technology. Dan is a former Midwest Energy News journalism fellow and a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and mass communications from University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.