ELECTRIFICATION: A research group predicts as many as 48 million U.S. homes will need electric panel upgrades costing around $2,000 before they can decarbonize, presenting a “$100 billion impediment to residential electrification.” (Utility Dive)

ALSO: Vermont recently launched incentives to spur installation of ground-source heat pumps, but high costs and logistical challenges still put them out of reach for most homeowners. (Energy News Network)

STORAGE: A new energy storage technology in development with support from the U.S. Department of Energy could drastically cut charging times in comparison with lithium-ion batteries, research shows. (Utility Dive)

OIL & GAS:
• President Joe Biden’s administration announces it will open 80 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico and potentially hundreds of thousands more onshore for oil and gas exploration as it seeks to comply with a court order. (Reuters)
• U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva introduces legislation to end oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and increase drilling royalties elsewhere. (Reuters)
• Early reports to state and federal officials confirm numerous releases of oil in southeastern Louisiana on the day before and the day of Hurricane Ida’s arrival. (NOLA.com)
• Opponents plan to continue Line 3 pipeline protests in public and in court even as construction wraps up and legal options to stop the project dwindle. (MPR News)
• Oil and gas pipeline operators see major business opportunities with carbon dioxide pipelines to support carbon storage. (Financial Times)

GRID:
• Entergy New Orleans predicts it could begin restoring power to the city as early as this afternoon, although numerous downed lines will delay its work. (NOLA.com, New York Times)
• The outages triggered by Hurricane Ida raise questions about Entergy’s hurricane preparedness since it recently completed a $100 million grid upgrade. (Washington Post)
• California grid operators say the state’s growing fleet of storage equipment is working as envisioned by shifting energy produced during low-priced hours to high-priced hours of the day. (Utility Dive) 

OFFSHORE WIND: There’s enough offshore wind in planning stages to get the U.S. to President Biden’s goal of 30 GW of capacity by 2030, an Energy Department report finds. (Axios)

EMISSIONS: A federal court declines to hear Republican-led states’ challenge to the Biden administration’s plans to account for the social cost of carbon emissions. (E&E News)

COMMENTARY:
• By aiming for carbon neutrality instead of lobbying for actual climate action, businesses are playing into the fossil fuel industry’s hands, a sustainability executive at a ski resort writes. (New York Times)
• Line 3 pipeline protests will continue to demand that President Biden “live up to his promises and (lift) our voices for climate justice,” a Minnesota environmental advocate says. (Minnesota Reformer)

Kathryn brings her extensive editorial background to the Energy News Network team, where she oversees the early-morning production of ENN’s five email digest newsletters as well as distribution of ENN’s original journalism with other media outlets. From documenting chronic illness’ effect on college students to following the inner workings of Congress, Kathryn has built a broad experience in her more than five years working at major publications including The Week Magazine. Kathryn holds a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism and information management and technology from Syracuse University.