UTILITIES: Florida’s NextEra Energy, New Orleans-based Entergy, and Oklahoma Gas & Electric are among the largest utilities that have not committed to fully eliminate their carbon emissions. (Greentech Media)
ALSO: South Carolina’s Santee Cooper and a fledgling municipal utility are in a legal tug-of-war over who gets to supply electricity to an aluminum smelting plant. (Post and Courier)
***SPONSORED LINK: The National Solar Tour is going virtual! Sep. 24-Oct. 4. Meet solar owners from around the country. Hear about their experience going solar. Explore new technologies. Learn about solar’s role in energy equity and community empowerment.***
OVERSIGHT:
• West Virginia environmental regulators are proposing to reduce the fines that a coal company owned by the state’s governor could pay for water pollution violations. (Mountain State Spotlight)
• Virginia air pollution regulators expand public notification requirements for constructing or making major changes to fossil fuel plants. (Virginia Mercury)
OIL & GAS:
• Chesapeake Energy plans to lay off 200 workers today, primarily in Oklahoma City, due to the continued downturn in global oil markets. (Oklahoman)
• The Texas Oil and Gas Association holds a virtual summit where leaders said they need to do more to explain fossil fuels’ value to the public. (NewsWest9)
PIPELINES: Dominion Energy paid North Carolina more than $1.5 million to offset potential and actual damage from construction and operation of the now-defunct Atlantic Coast Pipeline. (Progressive Pulse)
SOLAR:
• Florida utility regulators are flooded with more than 16,000 emails in support of the state’s net metering program and say the rules won’t change for at least a year. (Tampa Bay Times)
• One of the nation’s largest solar developers is setting up operations in South Carolina, investing $20 million into four solar projects as part of a fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreement approved yesterday. (SCNow)
• A Virginia county says it’s being “inundated” with applications from solar developers and is considering hiring a third-party engineer to review them. (Free Lance-Star)
• A West Virginia college announces the completion of a solar canopy on its campus that includes four electric vehicle chargers. (MetroNews)
• A South Carolina county board approves a zoning change for a 34 MW solar project that’s expected to create $5.4 million in tax revenue. (Index Journal)
• A Florida city will begin receiving solar power in 2023 as part of a regional partnership that will build nearly 150 MW of capacity. (WUFT)
***SPONSORED LINK: National Clean Energy Week Policy Makers Symposium is September 21-25. Register to hear from members of Congress and leading clean energy innovators. Register today at https://nationalcleanenergyweek.org.***
TECHNOLOGY:
• A private university in Houston launches a clean energy technology accelerator program to support early stage energy startups. (Midland Reporter-Telegram)
• An analysis by researchers in Texas and Georgia maps solar generating potential at interstate exits across the country. (Traffic Technology)
COMMENTARY:
• Clean energy offers a massive opportunity for Austin, Texas, as it tries to climb out of the COVID-19 recession, writes a member of a local economic prosperity commission. (Austin Business Journal)
• Alabama regulators announce the first of several draft permits being sought by Alabama Power to cap and store millions of cubic yards of coal ash at six sites. (Southern Environmental Law Center)