COAL ASH: Duke Energy and its opponents end a years-long legal fight over coal ash, with the utility agreeing to dig up nearly 80 million tons of ash and move it to lined storage. (Energy News Network)
GRID: Wholesale electricity prices last year fell nationwide except in Texas, where prices soared largely due to record demand during heat waves; grid managers say this year will be better with more gas and renewables online. (Houston Chronicle)
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COAL:
• Attorneys for bankrupt coal company Blackjewel ask a federal judge to let them examine the finances of its former CEO, alleging he took millions of dollars for personal gain. (Associated Press)
• The U.S. Department of Energy awards the University of Kentucky a grant to research how to turn coal tar pitch into carbon fiber. (WYMT)
PIPELINES: As Kinder Morgan prepares to build the Permian Highway Pipeline through Texas Hill Country, communities and landowners plan actions to oppose it. (Environmental Health News)
RENEWABLES: Environmental activists in southwest Virginia will travel to Richmond to lobby for more renewable energy development in the state. (Kingsport Times News)
ECONOMY: The Ohio Valley’s economy could see slower growth in 2020 amid concerns about trade and possible downturns in energy and manufacturing, according to economists. (Ohio Valley Resource)
COMMENTARY:
• The Kentucky Coal Association president says the group does not condone companies that fail to pay miners wages they’re owed. (Lexington Herald-Leader)
• If North Carolina wants a thriving beer scene, the state needs more clean energy to entice companies, writes a Sierra Nevada executive. (Asheville Citizen-Times)