NUCLEAR: While utilities have mostly stopped building large nuclear power facilities, many are supporting manufacturers as they develop small modular reactors that could eventually be made in factories. (Wall Street Journal)
OIL & GAS:
• The ExxonMobil lobbyist who described the company’s work against climate action in a secretly recorded video is on the advisory board for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, which has declined to remove him. (Sludge)
• The Interior Department launches its review of the Trump administration’s decision to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge after determining the reopening has “legal deficiencies.” (The Hill)
• A federal appeals court rules federal regulators need to further analyze how two proposed liquefied natural gas terminals in Texas will impact greenhouse gas emissions and low-income or minority communities. (Reuters, E&E News)
PIPELINES:
• After a close call with the now-canceled Byhalia Connection pipeline, environmental justice advocates urge Memphis-area governments to pass ordinances to distance pipelines from residential areas and to create a new permitting process for such projects. (MLK50)
• Enbridge pledged to hire thousands of local workers for its Line 3 project in northern Minnesota, but the public may not know whether it fulfilled that promise until the project is complete. (Minnesota Reformer)
EFFICIENCY:
• The U.S. Energy Department submits a rule reversing Trump administration exemptions to appliances’ energy and water conservation standards. (The Hill)
• Virginia’s decision to join an East Coast carbon cap-and-invest enterprise will fund weatherization programs for low- and moderate-income families struggling to pay electric bills. (Energy News Network)
RENEWABLES:
• US Wind will expand an offshore wind project off the Ocean City, Maryland, coast from 270 MW to 1.2 GW and build a steel manufacturing facility nearby — a “game-changing” plan according to the governor. (Associated Press)
• First Solar says its recently announced factory in Ohio will be the largest fully vertically integrated solar manufacturing complex outside of China. (Utility Dive)
TRANSPORTATION:
• The Biden administration is expected to unveil new emissions rules for cars tomorrow. (E&E News)
• Facing possible impeachment following a sexual harassment investigation, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo may no longer have enough influence to push forward his plans to revamp New York City public transit. (The City)
CARBON CAPTURE: More than 160 environmental groups, labor unions and companies sign on to a letter urging U.S. Congress members to include carbon capture and storage funding in infrastructure bills. (Axios)
GRID: AES Ohio is working with Google’s “moonshot” innovation division to simulate and model how to improve reliability and increase renewables on its electric distribution grids in Ohio and Indiana. (Dayton Daily News)
BIOFUELS: A baked good industry trade group urges the EPA to reduce biofuel blending requirements as they could lead to a shortage of oils needed for baking. (The Hill)
POLITICS: Texas’ top power companies shower state lawmakers in campaign contributions, raising questions about whether the legislature let oil, gas and the broader energy industry off too easily after February’s winter storm. (Texas Tribune)
COMMENTARY: The federal government’s system of auctioning offshore wind leases “constrains competition” and needs a reconfiguration, an energy consultant writes. (Utility Dive)