GRID: Texas doesn’t track natural gas production outages in real time, creating a problem for a state electric grid that relies largely on gas-fired power plants. (Bloomberg)

ALSO:
• A Houston energy expert says development of more renewable energy is key to making the Texas electric grid more reliable during sharp increases in demand such as last year’s winter storm. (Houston Public Media)
• Appalachian Power plans to rebuild a substation and transmission lines in eastern Tennessee to improve grid reliability. (Bristol Herald-Courier)

SOLAR:
• A Virginia county board delays a vote on a solar ordinance after speakers say it would be too restrictive in limiting the size of solar farms, the total acreage in the county that can be used for them, and what materials can be used. (Roanoke Times)
• A Virginia county approves a permit for a 20 MW solar farm. (Winchester Star)
• A company secures financing and power purchase agreements on a 135 MW solar project in Arkansas and a 345 MW solar farm in Louisiana. (PV Magazine)
• Brightridge and Solar Ranch partner with the Tennessee Valley Authority to begin operation of a 9 MW solar facility in eastern Tennessee, with plans to build another 4 MW facility soon. (WCYB, Johnson City Press)
• A Florida electric cooperative is building three solar farms to be used for power purchase agreements. (Solar Builder Mag)
• Solar Ranch and the renewable energy supplier for 38 Georgia cooperatives finalize an agreement to develop 252 MW of solar projects across the state. (PV Magazine)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s proposed 2022-23 budget includes $125 million for land and training costs for electric vehicle maker Rivian’s planned factory near Atlanta. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Rivian’s plans for its recently announced Georgia plant include several massive buildings, an onsite “adventure trail” and a large charging station with 144 stalls. (Teslarati)
• A southwestern Virginia company holds a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate that it will use Volvo’s first electric tractor-trailer truck. (WSLS)
• An 87-year-old engineer who became a leading expert in electric vehicles and battery development over three decades with the Tennessee Valley Authority dies. (Chattanoogan)

CLIMATE: A new study finds the frequency of heat waves in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay is increasing and could encompass more than half the year by 2100. (Virginia Mercury)

UTILITIES: The San Antonio city council approves a rate increase for its municipal utility. (Texas Public Radio)

COMMENTARY:
• Texas stands well-positioned to become a world leader in developing clean hydrogen, but business and political leaders’ fixation on oil and gas holds it back, writes a columnist. (Houston Chronicle)
• West Virginia should build on the momentum of this week’s announcement of a forthcoming electric bus maker to secure more green industrial jobs, writes an editorial board. (Parkersburg News and Sentinel)
• Legislation to revamp Florida’s net-metering rules will benefit the state’s largest utilities while forcing solar homeowners to pay more, with no guarantee of cost savings for other customers, writes an editorial board. (Tampa Bay Times)

Mason has worked as a journalist since 2001, covering Appalachian communities and the issues that affect them. He compiles the Southeast Energy News digest. Mason previously worked as a wildlife biologist before moving into journalism by freelancing at Coast Weekly in Monterey, California, before taking an internship in 2001 at High Country News. He wrote for the Enterprise Mountaineer in western North Carolina and the Roanoke Times in western Virginia before going freelance in 2012. His work has appeared in Southerly, Daily Yonder, Mother Jones, Huffington Post, WVPB’s Inside Appalachia and elsewhere. Mason was born and raised in Clifton Forge, Virginia, and now lives with his family and a small herd of goats in Floyd County, Virginia.