EFFICIENCY: A new report shows the growth potential in Ohio for industrial efficiency through combined heat and power and waste heat to power. (Midwest Energy News)
SOLAR: Legal analyses make the case in support of third-party financing in Wisconsin and Minnesota, potentially leading to industry growth in both states. (Midwest Energy News)
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COAL:
• A district heating and cooling provider in St. Paul voluntarily transitions its system off coal. (Midwest Energy News)
• Peabody Energy is seeking relief from paying retiree benefits into a fund that covers 12,000 retired miners, their widows and their dependents. (ProPublica)
ETHANOL:
• Despite a court challenge by local residents, developers are moving forward with a $140 million ethanol plant in South Dakota. (Associated Press)
• In Iowa, support for ethanol is not as widespread among presidential candidates as it was in years past. (Iowa Public Radio)
OIL AND GAS: An area in southern Kansas has seen more earthquakes in the past two weeks than it did between 1990 and 2013, though it’s unclear whether they’re linked to drilling or disposal wells. (Washington Post)
RAIL: Major companies that transport coal are cutting workers as profits decline. (Richmond Register)
NUCLEAR: Federal regulators say U.S. nuclear plants are safe to continue operating but some may need a more in-depth analysis to study earthquake hazards. (Reuters)
WIND: Officials in a Nebraska county are leaning toward more stringent wind siting rules that could place a 50-turbine project in jeopardy. (Lincoln Journal Star)
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WASTE-TO-ENERGY: A St. Louis-area company is partnering with a major food producer on a $120 million project to make natural gas out of livestock manure. (St. Louis Business Journal)
TRANSMISSION: A Wisconsin cooperative receives a $13 million loan from the federal government to make transmission upgrades and install smart grid systems. (Telegraph Herald)
CORRECTION: An item in Tuesday’s digest incorrectly identified the location of a new solar project that broke ground in Michigan. It is in southwest Michigan.