GRID: Southeastern utilities including Duke Energy, Dominion and Southern Company unveil plans to create a regional grid-balancing market, which could help integrate renewables and reduce wholesale energy costs. (Greentech Media)

PIPELINES:
• President Trump travels to Atlanta today where he is expected to announce a new federal rule to speed up environmental review for pipelines and other infrastructure. (Associated Press)
• Critics call the move a cynical attempt to dismantle a 50-year-old environmental law signed by Richard Nixon to make sure poor and minority communities have a voice in projects that threaten to pollute their neighborhood. (Washington Post)

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OVERSIGHT: Only one Black person has ever served on the Georgia Public Service Commission, and a lawsuit from a conservation group seeks to change that by reforming how members are elected. (11Alive)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper signs a pact with 14 other states to collaborate on a goal of making sure 100% of medium- and heavy-duty trucks are zero-emission vehicles by 2050. (Utility Dive)

OIL & GAS:
• A group of West Virginia senators ask Berkshire Hathaway to consider investing in natural gas projects in the state. (MetroNews)
• A new wind farm south of Lubbock, Texas, is powering pumps and other equipment in Exxon Mobil’s Permian Basin oil field, part of a surprising trend of using renewable energy to extract fossil fuels. (E&E News, subscription required)
• As polls show a tight race in Texas, President Trump claims that he “saved the oil industry” and won’t lose the state. (E&E News, subscription required)
• Oklahoma officials approve a former oil and gas company CEO to head the state’s land office despite his company having shorted the state on royalty payments. (Oklahoman)

COAL: A new report says 27 coal-dependent counties could lose an average of 20% of their revenue because of the fuel’s decline. (E&E News, subscription required)

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SOLAR: A northern Virginia car wash cuts the ribbon on a new 71-kilowatt, roof-mounted solar array, the largest in the county. (Winchester Star)

COMMENTARY:
• The Southern Environmental Law Center calls for transparency after utilities announce a plan “hatched in secret” to form a regional grid-balancing market.
• Dominion Energy’s pivot to clean energy will be successful “only if it’s equitable and cost-effective, and therefore truly sustainable for the long-haul,” a clean energy group’s state policy director writes. (NRDC Expert Blog)
• A southwest Florida conservation group claims victory after a company withdraws plans for an “extremely destructive oil project.” (Naples Daily News)

Dan has two decades' experience working in print, digital and broadcast media. Prior to joining the Energy News Network as managing editor in December 2017, he oversaw watchdog reporting at the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, part of the USA Today Network, and before that spent several years as a freelance journalist covering energy, business and technology. Dan is a former Midwest Energy News journalism fellow and a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and mass communications from University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.