COAL:
• U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio vows to hold up work on any other legislation until lawmakers address maintaining health and pension benefits for retired coal miners. (USA Today)
• By paying back a loan term early, bankrupt Peabody Energy could save more than $12 million in interest payments. (St. Louis Business Journal)
SOLAR:
• Rural Minnesota businesses are embracing solar power to reduce electricity costs. (Forum News Service)
• A municipal utility in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is on track to open a community solar project next summer. (Marquette Mining Journal)
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PIPELINES:
• The Dakota Access developer is “fully committed” to completing the project without rerouting it. (Forum News Service)
• President-elect Donald Trump has not said what he’ll do about the Dakota Access pipeline as he faces pressure from industry groups to overturn the Obama administration’s decision. (Associated Press)
• An attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council says: “Legally, this is an action that can be overturned easily.” (Mother Jones)
• The leader of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has asked protesters to return home and seeks to meet with Trump about the future of the pipeline. (Reuters)
• Work on the Dakota Access pipeline is nearly complete in Iowa. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
• Enbridge is confident that its plan to replace and increase the capacity of a pipeline through northern Minnesota will move forward. (Forum News Service)
OIL AND GAS:
• Local officials in Ohio reject a company’s request to build portions of the NEXUS gas pipeline on city-owned land. (Toledo Blade)
• The Dakota Access project is the latest in a series of U.S. fossil fuel projects that have been canceled, rejected or delayed. (InsideClimate News)
RATES: According to a state analysis, Ameren Illinois ratepayers will see lower electric bills in the short-term as a result of a major bill passed last week. (Champaign News-Gazette)
INFRASTRUCTURE: Energy infrastructure is one of four key sectors outlined in a report identifying areas in need of improvement in Michigan. (MLive)
TRANSPORTATION: A trade group representing major automakers is making a last-ditch effort to block the U.S. EPA from finalizing tough fuel economy standards. (Reuters)
NUCLEAR: Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner will sign a bill Wednesday to save struggling nuclear plants in the town where one of them is located. (Quad-City Times)
CLIMATE: It would take a “herculean political effort” for the Trump administration to reverse its responsibility to reduce greenhouse gases. (ClimateWire)
TRANSITION: U.S. Rep. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota is under “advanced consideration” to be U.S. Energy Secretary. (Forum News Service)
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UTILITIES: Kansas regulators will hold a public hearing next week on the planned $12.2 billion acquisition of Westar Energy by Great Plains Energy. (Kansas City Business Journal)
COMMENTARY:
• Four reasons why 30 percent wind and solar “is technically no big deal.” (Utility Dive)
• While Minnesota has scored well for air quality, “this should not be misinterpreted to suggest our work is finished or that burning coal is a clean source of electricity.” (Duluth News Tribune)