GRID: More than 585,000 people in Michigan and 118,000 in Illinois were without power late Wednesday as snow and ice storms socked the region. (CBS News)
ALSO: An investor-owned utility trade group is working with Congress and federal regulators to pass reforms that would make it easier to build transmission projects. (Utility Dive)
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OHIO:
• Former House Speaker Larry Householder’s political strategist and general fixer testifies that the lawmaker benefited from FirstEnergy contributions that he accepted as loans and never repaid. (Ohio Capital Journal)
• A former Republican state lawmaker testifies that Householder pressured her to vote in favor of the HB 6 power plant bailout, though she voted against the measure. (WOSU)
COAL: Environmental groups criticize Indiana legislation that would prevent the state from creating coal ash cleanup regulations that are stricter than the federal government’s. (Indiana Public Radio)
CLEAN ENERGY: Republican-leaning states with plentiful wind and sunshine, along with significant rural and industrial communities, are poised to benefit from clean energy development under the Inflation Reduction Act. (The Guardian)
PIPELINES:
• The Keystone pipeline operator is transporting thousands of cubic yards of oil-soaked soil from a recent spill site in Kansas to a Nebraska landfill. (KETV)
• An Iowa county advances proposed restrictions on siting hazardous pipelines and decommissioning requirements as a company seeks to build a carbon pipeline through the area. (Waverly Democrat)
CARBON CAPTURE:
• An Indiana Senate committee rejects a bill that would have required local government approval for carbon capture and sequestration projects, which critics called an “extra layer of bureaucracy.” (Indiana Environmental Reporter)
• A growing number of farmers in Kansas and Missouri are adopting practices that allow them to sell carbon offset credits as an additional revenue source. (Flatland)
WIND:
• CenterPoint Energy is waiting to sign a development contract before releasing details about a planned $636 million wind project, though it will be located outside of Indiana. (Courier & Press)
• North Dakota lawmakers approve a bill requiring landfills to get state approval before accepting wind turbine blades. (Bismarck Tribune)
RENEWABLES: A Nebraska lawmaker seeks to ban the use of eminent domain for wind or solar projects, even though utilities say they have never used eminent domain when building generation facilities. (KLKN)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• As Michigan notches major electric vehicle and battery investments, questions remain about consumer interest and effects on traditional auto suppliers. (Bridge Michigan)
• A southeastern Minnesota city joins a program that will prepare it for electric vehicle infrastructure and adoption. (Winona Daily News)
SOLAR: A central Illinois county rejects a developer’s proposal for a 5 MW solar project. (WMBD)
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