UTILITIES: Wisconsin regulators approve plans to nearly double a utility’s fixed rate request increase. (Midwest Energy News)

TRANSMISSION: Developers of a wind energy transmission line want Iowa regulators to split proceedings on the need for the project and land acquisition issues. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)

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WIND: Why Minnesota’s largest utility wants to own more of its own wind farms. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

SOLAR:
• Activists question a northern Minnesota utility’s community solar program. (Midwest Energy News)
• A solar industry group is under fire from some advocates. (Utility Dive)

MICHIGAN: A new report stresses the economic impacts Michigan’s renewable and efficiency standards have had on the state’s economy. (Midwest Energy News)

OHIO:
• Opponents say the proposed agreement between FirstEnergy and Ohio will hurt competition. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
A second power company joins in opposition, seeking to stop an anti-competitive settlement.” (Columbus Business Journal)

CLIMATE:
• Documents show an eager Bush and Reagan administration ready to lead the world on climate change. (Washington Post)
• Former defense secretary and Nebraska senator Chuck Hagel warns Republicans not to undermine Paris climate negotiations. (Politico)
• The Paris climate talks hit home in Wisconsin. (Wisconsin Public Radio)

CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• As Missouri fights the Clean Power Plan, the state’s regulators zero on in a compliance approach. (EnergyWire)

COAL: Utilities are burning less coal than had been previously forecast. (Platts)

OIL AND GAS:
• Oil and gas production continue to rise in Ohio. (Columbus Dispatch)
• New rules allowing radioactive landfills closer to oil wells in North Dakota face a final step next week. (Grand Forks Herald)
• A researcher who has been studying drilling impacts in the Marcellus shale sets his sights on North Dakota. (EnergyWire)

NUCLEAR: Federal regulators hear comments on whether the Fermi 2 plant should be allowed to continue operating. (Toledo Blade)

EFFICIENCY: The bankruptcy of a recycling company leaves a Michigan utility’s appliance rebate program “in a lurch.” (MLive) 

NEWSMAKER: Amy Francetic, the CEO of the Chicago-based Clean Energy Trust, is stepping down. (Crain’s Chicago Business)

COMMENTARY: Why Illinois’ solar future just got a little brighter. (Environmental Defense Fund)

 

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.

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