UTILITIES: Climate activists criticize Duke Energy for relying too much on natural gas in its newly proposed “Carbon Plan,” whose four pathways to emission reductions all include over 3 GW of new natural gas plants and lack preparation for offshore wind growth. (Energy News Network)

ALSO: Duke Energy asks North Carolina regulators for flexibility in meeting state targets for reducing carbon emissions. (Winston-Salem Journal)

WIND: Environmental groups and ratepayer advocates argue Virginia regulators should shield customers from cost overruns and other risks as Dominion Energy plans a nearly $10 billion offshore wind farm. (Associated Press, Richmond Times-Dispatch)

SOLAR:
• An Arkansas court issues a ruling generally backing net-metering and favoring solar developers in a legal battle between solar companies, utilities and state regulators. (Arkansas Business)
• An energy company announces plans for a 138 MW solar farm in central Virginia. (Daily Progress)
• Virginia awards a nearly $50,000 grant to evaluate a shuttered manufacturing facility for use as a solar farm. (Winchester Star)
• A Mississippi commissioner authorizes construction of a solar plant to power a Toyota factory about 95 miles away. (WMC-TV)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Louisiana lawmakers advance a bill to charge electric and hybrid vehicle owners an annual fee for using state roads and bridges. (Lafayette Daily Advertiser)
• Hyundai is expected to announce Friday it will build a Kia electric vehicle plant near Savannah, Georgia. (Savannah Morning News)
• Critics of electric vehicle maker Rivian’s plan to build a Georgia plant complain a recent community engagement event was invitation-only. (Covington News)
• The University of Virginia will add four 35-foot electric buses as part of its transition from diesel-powered vehicles. (Daily Progress)

OIL & GAS:
• Developers of the three intrastate gas pipelines announce brownfield expansions to boost delivery of oil and gas from the Permian Basin into other markets. (S&P Global)
• A Louisiana action group denounces liquified natural gas plants on the Gulf Coast for compromising coastal barriers and eroding land. (KPLC)

GRID:
• Texas officials credit power reserves, a directive urging generators to keep plants online, and conservation for preventing the grid from slipping into emergency conditions on Friday, but face a new test with high temperatures and demand expected today. (Houston Chronicle, Reuters)
• Analysts express concern about Texas’ aging fleet of power plants, which includes roughly 30 GW from plants that are more than 30 years old. (KHOU)
• Grid operator MISO announces plans to increase imports and possibly emergency resources to ensure it can meet peak power demand across its 15-state territory this summer. (Talk Business & Politics)

EFFICIENCY: The Tennessee Valley Authority will provide energy upgrades to 160 schools in its territory. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

COAL:
• Environmental groups ask a judge to hold a coal company in contempt for failing to file a court-ordered cleanup plan to address pollution at two West Virginia mine sites. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• Coal companies owned by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice negotiate with a major creditor over a $690 million debt, with a settlement potentially involving increased coal production. (Weirton Daily Times)

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Mason has worked as a journalist since 2001, covering Appalachian communities and the issues that affect them. He compiles the Southeast Energy News digest. Mason previously worked as a wildlife biologist before moving into journalism by freelancing at Coast Weekly in Monterey, California, before taking an internship in 2001 at High Country News. He wrote for the Enterprise Mountaineer in western North Carolina and the Roanoke Times in western Virginia before going freelance in 2012. His work has appeared in Southerly, Daily Yonder, Mother Jones, Huffington Post, WVPB’s Inside Appalachia and elsewhere. Mason was born and raised in Clifton Forge, Virginia, and now lives with his family and a small herd of goats in Floyd County, Virginia.