ELECTION: A Republican-held Congress and an opportunity to appoint one or more Supreme Court justices means Donald Trump is “poised to dramatically reshape energy and environmental policy.” (E&E Daily)
ALSO:
• Washington state voters reject what would have been the country’s first carbon tax on fossil fuels. (Seattle Times)
• Florida voters reject a misleading amendment designed to limit rooftop solar in the state. (Miami Herald)
• Republican Bob Burns wins re-election to the Arizona Corporation Commission with the help of $4 million from the state’s largest electric company. (Capitol Media Services)
• South Dakota Republican Chris Nelson is elected public utilities commissioner, defeating a green energy entrepreneur. (Associated Press)
• An environmentalist-backed Democrat wins Nevada’s Senate race, defeating a Republican who opposes the Clean Power Plan. (Mother Jones)
• Transit measures win approval across the Southeast, with voters approving ballot measures to improve bus service and build rail projects. (Southeast Energy News)
• Industry experts say the next president will not radically change the energy sector. (PV-Tech)
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TECHNOLOGY: Researchers at Virginia Tech develop a flexible solar panel that can absorb diffused indoor light as well as direct sunlight. (TreeHugger)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Tesla buys a German engineering company in an effort to ramp up production of electric cars more than sixfold by 2018. (Reuters)
• Electric vehicles could provide up to 5 gigawatts of capacity to the grid by 2025, according to new report. (Greentech Media)
RENEWABLE ENERGY:
• Lower gasoline prices and a double-digit increase in renewable energy capacity are predicted for 2017, according to a recent energy forecast. (Denver Business Journal)
• Many bankers believe phasing out tax credits will have a positive effect on renewable energy. (Utility Dive)
OIL & GAS:
• Natural gas production slows nationwide, but output jumps 13 percent in Ohio. (Bloomberg)
• Several big oil and gas lawsuits will likely be affected by the outcome of the presidential election. (EnergyWire)
• A class action suit filed in federal court accuses ExxonMobil of misleading investors about a drop in its oil and gas reserves. (Bloomberg BNA)
PIPELINES: North Dakota regulators could fine the company building the Dakota Access Pipeline at least $15,000 for not getting proper approval to proceed with construction after finding Native American artifacts. (Associated Press)
FRACKING:
• State regulators order the shutdown of seven disposal wells near the epicenter of a magnitude 5.0 earthquake in Oklahoma. (Associated Press)
• Environmentalists say a surge of earthquakes in Oklahoma are linked to fracking and will inevitably lead to “catastrophic damage.” (Common Dreams)
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COAL: A new program launches to help coal-company employees start and grow businesses in southwestern Pennsylvania. (Pittsburgh Business Times)
COMMENTARY: Don’t expect Donald Trump to move on promises like restoring coal jobs: “Once in office reality will set in and the fact that the president doesn’t determine energy markets will become abundantly clear and quickly.” (Forbes)