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UTILITIES: Minnesota consumer advocates say Xcel Energy’s ongoing rate case seeking a more than 24% increase for residential customers is an opportunity to provide rate relief for low-income customers. (Energy News Network)
PIPELINES:
• The oil that spilled from the Keystone pipeline in Kansas last week was diluted bitumen, which tends to sink in water and will complicate cleanup efforts. (Reuters)
• Federal regulators unanimously approve the continued operation of a controversial St. Louis-area natural gas pipeline; opponents vow to challenge the decision. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
• A carbon pipeline developer and an ethanol plant owner file lawsuits against two more South Dakota counties that seek to halt a proposed project through a moratorium, bringing their total lawsuits up to four. (Aberdeen News)
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RENEWABLES: A central Michigan county has become a model for developing renewable energy projects, in part by leaving siting decisions to county rather than township officials. (Bridge Michigan)
HYDROPOWER: A utility plans to cut the size of a proposed South Dakota pumped storage hydropower project in half in response to public concerns over the plan. (Mitchell Republic)
DIVESTMENT: The school board in St. Paul, Minnesota, votes to end the school district’s investments in fossil fuels, citing concerns around justice and equity. (Sahan Journal)
CLIMATE: Years of Republican opposition to climate action have created pent-up demand for Democrats in Minnesota and Michigan to act aggressively. (E&E News, subscription)
SOLAR:
• Iowa county officials sign off on a utility’s plan for a 150 MW solar project with a 75 MW battery storage component. (Tri States Public Radio)
• Ohio regulators deny an application for a utility-scale solar project near Dayton based on local governments’ opposition. (WYSO)
• A Wisconsin solar grant program will help spur more than $1.2 million in renewable energy investments across the state. (La Crosse Tribune)
• Analysts forecast U.S. utility-scale solar installations to drop 40% this year compared to 2021 because of trade barriers and supply chain disruptions. (Utility Dive)
• Nebraska landowners organize against a developer’s leasing efforts for a potential utility-scale solar project. (McCook Gazette)
TRANSPORTATION: Two electric truck makers with Illinois operations call on Gov. J.B. Pritzker to adopt more aggressive policies to phase out large gas and diesel-engine vehicles. (Chicago Sun-Times)
WASTE-TO-ENERGY: Advocates in Gary, Indiana, ask a judge to revoke a state permit for a proposed project that would burn waste to produce jet fuel, citing inadequate disclosures about potential emissions. (WFYI)
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CLEAN ENERGY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture awards more than $1.5 million in rural energy grants to help Illinois farmers install renewable energy systems and make efficiency improvements. (WGLT)
COMMENTARY: A former Iowa regulator and state lawmaker, as well as a clean energy advocate, say renewable energy alongside transmission investments is the best short-term way to increase grid reliability. (Des Moines Register)
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