UTILITIES: Critics say a December cold snap exposed flaws in a first-of-its-kind Southeast energy trading platform as utilities effectively stopped using it during a three-day period of rolling blackouts in the region. (E&E News)
ALSO:
• Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin amends and signs legislation to change how state regulators oversee and set profit rates for Dominion Energy. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• A West Virginia task force that includes utilities and large manufacturers releases a report studying a market-based rate system to rework electric rates for large commercial and industrial customers. (Parkersburg News and Sentinel)
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CARBON CAPTURE: A new federal tax credit sparks a rush of proposals to build more than two dozen carbon-capture facilities in Louisiana, but experts wonder if the projects can stand alone without the incentives. (Floodlight/The Lens)
OIL & GAS: The Biden administration announces 73.3 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico will be auctioned off for oil and gas drilling. (Guardian)
SOLAR:
• North Carolina regulators approve Duke Energy’s proposal to reduce net-metering rates as well as incentives for those who install batteries along with solar. (Canary Media)
• Virginia regulators cite a company that operates seven solar farms for erosion and sediment control issues. (Roanoke Times)
• A solar company works with a faith-based organization to install a 1.85 MW solar facility at a Virginia retirement community. (Solar Power World)
• An energy company breaks ground on a Tennessee solar learning lab that will be open to the public. (WJHL)
WIND: An energy company boosts its outreach in North Carolina to allay concerns about its planned 190-turbine offshore wind project. (Coastal Review)
GRID: A Texas grid regulatory commission appeals a court ruling that found it exceeded its authority by maximizing power rates during the 2021 winter storm and keeping them there even after power restoration began. (Dallas Morning News)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A West Virginia city approves the purchase of its first publicly available electric vehicle chargers. (Beckley Register-Herald)
RENEWABLES: Northern Virginia remains the global center of a growing datacenter push that now demands nearly 9 GW in 100% renewable energy in Virginia alone and 40 GW nationally. (S&P Global)
COAL:
• A West Virginia coal mine was cited by federal regulators for safety and health violations 85 times since 2019 before a miner was killed there last week. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• A bank wants to garnish West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s wages to pay off a $185,000 debt settlement against one of his family’s coal companies. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
EMISSIONS: Two Texas companies agree to pay fines and make equipment improvements after they’re cited by the U.S. EPA for pollution violations in the Permian Basin. (Associated Press)
POLITICS:
• An anti-Dominion Energy political advocacy group announces endorsements and a plan to boost its spending by nearly $700,000 in Virginia’s pivotal state legislative elections in November. (Associated Press)
• U.S. House Republicans drum up support for a Louisiana Congress member’s bill to dramatically escalate energy production, which President Biden has threatened to veto because it rolls back clean energy investments. (NOLA.com)
COMMENTARY:
• Discussions about building offshore wind facilities near Louisiana need to include more focus on helping oil and gas workers transition into the new industry, write two organizers with a workers advocacy group. (NOLA.com)
• Virginia’s recent near-miss with a lithium plant shows its potential to take part in the Southeast’s emerging “battery belt,” which encompasses at least 15 new factories or expansions since 2021, writes an editor. (Cardinal News)
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