UTILITIES: Rural electric cooperatives continue to shut off services to people, including in rural North Carolina, despite pressure to halt shut-offs during the pandemic. (Huffington Post)
ALSO: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper announces an executive order prohibiting utilities from disconnecting people unable to pay for the next 60 days. (WYFF)
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EFFICIENCY: Energy efficiency contractors have been largely sidelined by virus fears and shelter-in-place orders, but some are optimistic for a quick rebound when work can resume. (Energy News Network)
WIND: Offshore wind in the U.S. will exceed 1 GW of capacity by 2024 and add more than that amount annually by 2027, according to a research firm — but to date, only one project has been approved in federal waters. (Utility Dive)
OIL & GAS:
• Louisiana will collect $155.7 million in offshore oil revenue to fund coastal restoration projects this fiscal year — about $58 million more than the previous year. (NOLA.com)
• Federal regulators allow Kinder Morgan to begin construction on a natural gas project along the Gulf Coast of Texas, despite concerns about coronavirus. (S&P Global)
• “The picture looks bleak.” Oil and gas companies in the Southeast worry about the impact of low prices on the industry. (New York Times)
COAL ASH: For the first time, Georgia Power says it will repurpose coal ash stored at a Georgia power plant, turning it into cement for construction. (WFXL)
COAL:
• A Kentucky electric cooperative reduces its monthly delivery amounts with four barge coal suppliers by 20%. (S&P Global)
• Production halts temporarily at Virginia’s leading underground coal mine due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. (Bristol Herald Courier)
COMMENTARY: More than a dozen organizations in Tennessee and Alabama pressure utilities to halt service disconnection and late fees during the coronavirus pandemic. (Appalachian Voices)