SOLAR: Troubled solar manufacturers Suniva and SolarWorld make their case for solar tariffs during a hearing at the International Trade Commission, saying they’re “not out to kill the industry.” (New York Times, Greentech Media)
ALSO:
• If the International Trade Commission sides with Suniva and SolarWorld on implementing solar tariffs, the case will quickly become political, with the final decision up to President Trump. (Greentech Media)
• The city council of El Paso, Texas, says a proposed rate increase on rooftop solar customers would harm the solar industry. (Houston Chronicle)
• A utility on the Hawaiian island of Kauai wants to provide customers with two new options to receive credit when installing a solar system: “customers self-supply” and “smart export.” (Pacific Business News)
• After a failed legislative effort to keep rooftop solar incentives in Maine, groups are challenging regulators’ new solar rule in court. (Portland Press Herald)
• Arizona utility regulators approve a rate increase and cuts to net-metering payments for new rooftop solar customers. (Associated Press)
WIND: Duke Energy issues a request for proposals to increase its wind energy capacity in North Carolina by 2022. (Asheville Citizen-Times)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Electric vehicle batteries can help the grid without being degraded, and a two-way power exchange with the grid could even extend a battery’s useful life, according to a new study. (Vox)
CLEAN TECH: A workshop in Chicago aims to inspire girls to pursue careers in clean energy. (Midwest Energy News)
BIOFUEL: A U.S. appeals courts says the EPA used too strict of a test when it ruled that Sinclair Oil Corp did not qualify for a hardship waiver for small refiners under federal biofuel regulations. (Reuters)
NUCLEAR:
• Georgia regulators passed a resolution Tuesday instructing Georgia Power to determine by the end of month whether it intends to finish or abandon the Vogtle nuclear project. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
• The Florida Public Service Commission approves Duke Energy Florida’s request to recover $50 million related to its Crystal River nuclear plant, which closed in 2013. (Tampa Bay Times)
• South Carolina Electric & Gas withdrew its request that state regulators approve its plans to abandon the Summer nuclear project, though plans to do so have not changed. (Associated Press)
COAL:
• A federal judge blocks a proposed 176-million-ton coal mine expansion in Montana pending a new round of environmental studies. (Associated Press)
• Some legal experts say the lawsuits filed by the family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice on behalf of its coal company are acts of intimidation against government officials seeking to hold the company accountable for breaking the law. (Think Progress)
OIL & GAS:
• A federal court rejects a challenge brought by the Sierra Club that alleged the Department of Energy didn’t comply with environmental laws before approving a major liquefied natural gas export terminal in Texas. (The Hill)
PIPELINES:
• North Dakota regulators agree to delay a hearing involving a dispute over the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline. (Associated Press)
• A company disputes allegations that it was providing “security and private investigative services” during Dakota Access pipeline protests. (Forum News Service)
• The U.S. Department of Justice awards North Dakota $10 million to help cover the costs of policing Dakota Access pipeline protests. (Forum News Service)
POLICY: As the Ohio legislative session resumes next month, subsidies for nuclear generation and 1950s-era coal plants are expected to once again be on the table. (Midwest Energy News)
COMMENTARY:
• An analysis explains why U.S. carbon emissions have fallen 14 percent since 2005. (Carbon Brief)
• A guest columnist says the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline will be “the largest disturbance of land and water” in Virginia since interstate highways were built. (News Leader)