SOLAR: Maryland companies are developing a solar-powered barge to bring oyster farming to deeper waters of the Chesapeake Bay. (Washington Post)

ALSO:
• Consultants to New Jersey regulators say a new set of incentives for solar development should use competitive solicitations to minimize costs and encourage a diverse project fleet. (RTO Insider, subscription required)
• Two solar projects near Albany approved by New York siting officials would develop 90 MW and occupy 1,700 acres. (Albany Times Union)
• A Pennsylvania farmer is reluctant to lease his land for solar development though many of his neighbors apparently have signed on with a developer. (Lancaster Farming)
• A Connecticut solar developer is encouraging concurrent agricultural uses like sheep grazing and pollinator fields for its project sites to lessen opposition. (Hartford Business)
• A solar developer in central New York says scammers are going door-to-door pretending to represent it to gain personal information from consumers. (Syracuse.com)

OFFSHORE WIND: A Long Island hamlet opposition group with significant funds leads opposition to a proposed offshore wind farm that could be the first large-scale project in the U.S. (E&E News, subscription required)

GRID: Platts Analytics says power demand in PJM would be lower than the grid operator projects in a recent forecast due to greater efficiency and behind-the-meter generation. (S&P Global)

UTILITIES: The amount of money owed by Pennsylvania utility customers soars by 70% from over a year ago even before the most expensive months for home heating. (Philadelphia Inquirer)

NUCLEAR: Environmentalists say a plan to revive a New Jersey nuclear site with newer technology is a public health threat, but former workers there see it as an opportunity. (NJ Spotlight)

CLIMATE: Boston planning officials prepare tougher regulations in low-lying areas to better protect against storm surges. (E&E News, subscription required)

CLEAN ENERGY: New York made significant progress last year in pursuit of its clean energy goals. (RTO Insider, subscription required)

COMMENTARY: An environmental advocacy group says New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo now has an ally in the federal government in his attempt to stop the repowering of a natural gas plant along the Hudson river. (WAMC)

Bill is a freelance journalist based outside Albany, New York. As a former New England correspondent for RTO Insider, he has written about energy for newspapers, magazines and other publications for more than 20 years. He has an extensive career in trade publications and newspapers, mostly focused on the utility sector, covering such issues as restructuring, renewable energy and consumer affairs. Bill covers Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire and also compiles the Northeast Energy News daily email digest.