ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• The U.S. Department of Energy will provide a $2.5 billion loan to a joint venture by General Motors and LG that is opening battery manufacturing plants in Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. (CNN)
• Stellantis will close an Illinois production facility and lay off 1,350 employees, citing increasing costs related to electric vehicle production. (CNN)
PIPELINES: Federal regulators order the Keystone pipeline’s operator to temporarily shut down part of the pipeline until it completes an investigation of last week’s 14,000-barrel crude oil spill in Kansas. (Kansas Reflector)
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BIOFUELS:
• A planned gasification plant and refinery in Gary, Indiana, to convert regional trash into jet fuel faces strong opposition from local environmental advocates. (Inside Climate News)
• Local officials and private companies are still seeking a long-term solution for handling waste from a former Nebraska plant that was shut down over pollution concerns. (Lincoln Journal Star)
WIND:
• Minnesota wind project operators examine the potential for recycling turbine blades, though most options remain cost-prohibitive. (Star Tribune)
• Developers pursuing a 200 MW North Dakota wind project hope to start commercial operations by 2025. (KFYR)
• Rural Michigan school districts say they would face budget deficits if Consumers Energy is allowed to claw back millions of dollars in disputed tax revenues from wind turbines. (MLive)
AIR POLLUTION:
• More than 100 health care professionals urge Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker to set targets for phasing out diesel fuel engines in exchange for electric trucks to reduce emissions. (Chicago Sun-Times)
• Advocates work to strengthen air quality monitoring in greater Cleveland and seek new ways of identifying sources of air pollution to cause enforcement actions. (Eye on Ohio)
SOLAR:
• Ohio township officials consider a plan to ban utility-scale solar projects as allowed under a recent state law. (Yellow Springs News)
• A 150 MW solar project starting construction next summer will be the largest solar project in Iowa. (WGEM)
• A northern Michigan city is analyzing the results of a study that considered ways to power a wastewater treatment plant with solar. (Traverse City Ticker)
COAL: Residents criticize Omaha Public Power District officials for a lack of outreach as the utility plans continued operations of a North Omaha coal plant. (Omaha World-Herald)
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UTILITIES: Michigan officials encourage residents to sign up for bill assistance programs as residential natural gas prices are expected to jump nearly 30% this winter. (MLive)
COMMENTARY:
• A Wisconsin editor says We Energies’ most recent rate increase could push residents to call for municipally owned utilities. (Capital Times)
• A Kansas ratepayer advocate says state regulators should strengthen utility energy efficiency programs to save customers money amid escalating energy costs. (Topeka Capital-Journal)
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