UTILITIES: About 30,000 Duke Energy Florida and Tampa Electric Co. customers lost power in October after utilities resumed disconnections for non-payment. (Tampa Bay Times)
ALSO:
• Amid the pandemic, Duke Energy reports more than $170 million in delinquent bills for its customers across North Carolina, a 12% increase from last year. (WLOS)
• Mississippi Power announces it will build a “smart neighborhood” of between 100 and 150 homes. (Smart Energy International)
***SPONSORED LINK: Whether you’re aware of it or not, clean energy is working for you right now. Support NCSEA’s efforts to continue building a clean energy future that works for all North Carolinians by giving a tax-deductible donation before December 31. www.energync.org/cleanworks .***
FOSSIL FUELS: A new study says most fossil fuel plants will reach their useful life spans by 2035, and replacing them will be less expensive than previously thought. (Energy News Network)
GAS & OIL: Dominion Energy cancels plans for a 500 MW natural gas peaking plant at an industrial park in southern Virginia. (Danville Register & Bee)
PIPELINES:
• Kyle, Texas, receives the first part of a $2.7 million settlement from Kinder Morgan for a 430-mile gas pipeline that will affect five miles in the city. (Austin American-Statesman)
• A southern Virginia lawmaker coordinated with an energy lobbyist to support an extension of the construction deadline for the Mountain Valley Pipeline. (Energy and Policy Institute)
COAL:
• Explosives destroy a giant 1,001-foot smokestack as part of an effort to clean up what used to be the Tennessee Valley Authority’s biggest coal power plant in Alabama. (AL.com)
• West Virginia residents express concerns about the environmental effects of a proposed underground mine testing facility. (The Inter-Mountain)
SOLAR:
• Residents in a central Texas county organize to fight a 1,700-acre, 200 MW solar farm. (Austin American-Statesman)
• A local advocacy group wants a moratorium on solar projects in a central Virginia county until it revamps its ordinance to address water quality and other issues. (Kenbridge Victoria Dispatch)
• A western Virginia county sets a January public hearing for an 880-acre solar project, after turning down a previous project in 2019 after months of debate. (The News Leader)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Volvo Trucks North America will begin making a battery-powered electric truck at its western Virginia plant in 2021. (Virginia Business)
• An Atlanta suburb installs a section of solar roadway that produces energy for an electric vehicle charging station. (Smart Cities World)
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ENERGY EFFICIENCY:
• A Florida home-energy financing program falters after a newspaper investigation found that companies were sticking participants with risky loans tied to their property tax bills. (Tampa Bay Times)
• As Virginia leaders plan a significant shift toward clean energy in coming years, energy efficiency plays an important role in reducing grid load and smoothing the transition. (Virginia Mercury)
• Northwest Florida State College reduced its energy consumption by two-thirds and saved $6 million over seven years after implementing a sustainability plan. (University Business)
WIND: South Texas border counties hope for bumps in tax revenue and economic activity from a series of wind energy projects. (Border Report)