ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Hyundai negotiates with Georgia officials as it looks to build a new electric-vehicle manufacturing plant. (Reuters)

ALSO:
• Mississippi looks to expand its electric vehicle infrastructure as construction proceeds on a Tesla dealership and the state receives about $50 million to install vehicle chargers. (WLBT)
• Kentucky elementary school students compete in races with student-built electric vehicles. (Murray Ledger & Times)
• A Virginia school system moves to buy two electric school buses with state funding. (Roanoke Times)
• An Alabama city announces the installation of eight electric vehicle chargers. (news release)

OIL & GAS: A Louisiana lawmaker introduced, co-sponsored and voted on at least seven pieces of legislation to benefit the oil company her husband works for, including efforts to shield it from lawsuits by people and communities it has adversely affected. (Floodlight/Guardian/Louisiana Illuminator)

COAL ASH:
• Georgia Power plans to leave millions of tons of coal ash in unlined pits where it is in contact with groundwater, fueling concern about drinking water quality in nearby communities. (Georgia Recorder)
• Three Georgia environmental groups file suit against utilities’ legal effort to block a federal crackdown on coal ash ponds. (Capitol Beat News Service)

NUCLEAR: A new financial report shows Georgia Power’s expansion of nuclear Plant Vogtle is now forecast to cost more than $30 billion. (Associated Press)

SOLAR: Dominion Energy’s chief executive says a federal investigation of Asian solar imports could result in a cost increase representing less than 1% of its capital budget, and it may be able to recover those costs through filings with state regulators. (Utility Dive)

EMISSIONS: A coalition of Texas governments blames pollution drifting from Mexico for San Antonio’s poor air quality as federal officials move to trigger stricter air quality regulations. (San Antonio Report)

UTILITIES: As Memphis, Tennessee, considers breaking with the Tennessee Valley Authority for a new power provider, the local chamber of commerce releases a study touting TVA’s economic impact. (Commercial Appeal)

WORKPLACE:
• Tampa Electric Co. pleads guilty to violating a federal workplace rule in a 2017 explosion at a Florida power plant that resulted in the death of five workers. (Tampa Bay Times)
• Emails reveal behind-the-scenes discord between leaders of a West Virginia mining safety agency and proponents of failed state legislation to reduce inspectors’ enforcement powers and abolish the agency. (Charleston Gazette-Mail, subscription)

CRYPTOCURRENCY:
• Cryptocurrency mining companies attracted to remote parts of Texas for cheap power and land try to learn how to operate in areas lacking basic services like restaurants, gas stations and hotels. (Bloomberg)
• A new cryptocurrency mining center begins operations in Texas. (Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)

COMMENTARY:
• Florida should shift its energy policies to spur growth of solar as a less expensive, more environmentally friendly alternative to natural gas, writes the president of a conservative conservation group. (Tampa Bay Times)
• Alabama Power’s coal ash storage puts an Alabama river at risk, even as other utilities move to transport the toxic material to dry, lined landfills away from rivers or recycle it into building materials, writes an author. (New York 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.