CARBON CAPTURE: Few utilities are taking advantage of federal incentives to install carbon capture equipment, even as an EPA rule would require the shutdown of fossil fuel plants if they don’t use the technology. (E&E News)
OIL & GAS: The Biden administration announces $650 million in grants to help states plug abandoned oil and gas wells. (The Hill)
PIPELINES: A federal court halts construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline in a national forest while it considers arguments that Congress violated the separation of powers doctrine when it included a provision to force completion of the project in the debt deal. (Roanoke Times)
SOLAR:
• “It was a bad deal:” New York lawmakers and analysts lament the state’s $1 billion deal to land a SolarCity factory that, a decade later, looks more like “the single biggest economic development boondoggle in American history.” (Wall Street Journal, subscription)
• A new Minnesota law allows community solar developers to build bigger projects farther away from subscribers in an effort to reinvigorate the state’s program and ensure lower-income customers can participate. (Energy News Network)
CLIMATE:
• Intense rainfall brings flooding to eastern New York and Vermont worse than 2011’s Hurricane Irene, killing at least one person, washing out roads, and leaving some towns inaccessible. (NPR, Associated Press)
• Northeastern flooding is just one example of a “new normal” filled with worsening weather as the climate changes, experts say. (New York Times)
• The White House announces $5 million to establish two research centers dedicated to addressing extreme heat and how it affects underserved communities. (The Hill)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: The United Auto Workers union sees this year’s contract negotiations with automakers as a crucial opportunity to ensure representation in future electric vehicle jobs. (WDIV)
CLEAN ENERGY:
• States’ renewable portfolio standards and clean electricity mandates can help predict their total renewable energy production, though Texas and Midwest states’ clean electricity output tends to outpace their goals, a report finds. (Utility Dive)
• North Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming added zero renewable energy projects in 2022. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
NUCLEAR:
• A wave of bipartisan bills working their way through Congress would drive a massive nuclear buildout. (E&E News)
• Nuclear decommissioning company Holtec is disassembling power plants across the U.S. with aspirations to replace them with small modular reactors built at a New Jersey factory. (HuffPost)
ELECTRIFICATION:
• Eugene, Oregon’s city council repeals its ban on natural gas hookups in new construction, citing public opposition and a court ruling tossing a similar ordinance in Berkeley, California. (Eugene Register-Guard)
• Federal energy efficiency regulators and state building code officials have begun to promote policies encouraging people to choose heat pumps when replacing air conditioning systems. (Canary Media)
HYDROPOWER: A peer-reviewed study finds Western fossil fuel generation and associated emissions surged during recent years as utilities attempted to offset drought-diminished hydropower generation capacity. (Grist)
COMMENTARY: Clean energy advocates say recent capacity auctions show that the “antiquated, status quo grid” isn’t equipped to handle the transition to electrification and rising demand. (Natural Resources Defense Council)
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