SOLAR: How the “contagion” effect helps solar power spread among homeowners. (Vox)

ALSO:
• A Nevada utility unveils a program that would let large customers subscribe to a new solar array. (PV Magazine)
• In some parts of New Hampshire, the state’s new net metering cap has already been hit. (New Hampshire Business Review)
• Local officials approve plans for Maine’s largest solar farm, a 50 MW project sited at an airport. (Portland Press Herald)

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NATURAL GAS:
Flawed welds are suspected as the cause of a recent pipeline explosion in Pennsylvania. (Associated Press)
• Costs associated with the Aliso Canyon natural gas leak have reached $665 million. (Los Angeles Times)

COAL: Plans to shut down Illinois coal mines will hit bankrupt producers especially hard. (SNL Energy)

COAL ASH: A South Carolina bill would curtail the public’s right to sue for enforcement of coal ash and other pollution laws. (The State)

WIND:
• The Fish and Wildlife Service moves forward with a plan to allow 30-year “take” permits for eagles, which will require developers to implement conservation measures. (Greenwire)
The first quarter of 2016 for wind installations was the strongest since 2012. (Smart Grid News)

RENEWABLES:
• Amazon says “renewable energy is high up on the chop list” as it selects sites for data centers. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
• A renewable energy siting bill in Vermont may face questions of constitutionality. (Burlington Free Press)
• A poll finds a majority of Texans support advancing clean energy regardless of what happens with the Clean Power Plan. (Texas Tribune)

TRANSMISSION: A proposed $1.5 billion underwater transmission line will help connect renewable energy sources to New York City. (Utility Dive/RTO Insider)

OIL:
• Tens of thousands of residents are evacuated as a wildfire in the heart of Alberta’s oil sands spreads to nearby towns. (Associated Press)
• How the chemical business has helped keep oil companies afloat. (Bloomberg)

FRACKING: Environmental groups sue the U.S. EPA over the agency’s alleged failure to stop the disposal of drilling waste that can threaten groundwater supplies and trigger man-made earthquakes. (Associated Press)

UTILITIES: A Nevada utility drops plans for a new $1 billion natural gas power plant, and will buy a facility in Arizona instead. (Las Vegas Sun)

TECHNOLOGY: A Texas company’s natural gas power plant prototype is designed to reach full capacity in five minutes. (Houston Chronicle)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: North Carolina is called out for blocking sales of Teslas which reportedly source 30 components from the state. (CleanTechnica)

COMMENTARY:
• With 100,000 MW of coal retired since 2010, a “profound energy transition” is underway. (Huffington Post)
• How shifting utility business models will pose a challenge for regulators. (Greentech Media)

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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