ELECTRIC VEHICLES: South Korean automaker Hyundai is expected to announce next week during President Joe Biden’s visit to South Korea that it’s building a new electric vehicle plant in Georgia. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Associated Press)

ALSO: The CEO of electric vehicle maker Canoo tells investors he’s optimistic despite a recent federal filing that shows it’s financially struggling and worried about its survival. (CNHI Oklahoma)

COAL ASH: Records reveal the Tennessee Valley Authority decided to transport coal ash from a now-defunct power plant to a landfill near a primarily Black and low-income community in Memphis, Tennessee, months before informing the public. (Tennessee Lookout)

EMISSIONS:
• A new report finds four Louisiana refineries released the cancer-causing chemical benzene last year at levels higher than federal limits. (NOLA.com)
• A Virginia city joins an eight-state pilot project to transition vehicle fleets to clean fuels and advanced vehicle technologies. (Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star)

SOLAR:
• An Arkansas bank completes construction of a 4.8 MW solar array to power its headquarters and up to 40 state branch locations. (Talk Business & Politics)
• A Kentucky city and pipeline company announce a solar-powered park bench that can charge electric devices. (Messenger-Inquirer)
• A new report finds Nashville, Tennessee, is ranked 64th out of 67 major cities for solar capacity per capita. (WTVF)

WIND: A company announces commercial production of the first utility-scale spiral-welded towers for wind turbines at its Texas factory that previously served as an oil and gas facility. (Renews)

OIL & GAS: Analysts anticipate the volume of crude oil flowing from the Permian Basin to Gulf Coast export hubs could jump to pre-pandemic levels by October, although still falling short of pipeline capacity. (Reuters)

COAL:
• Advocates pressure U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia to restore and extend a coal production tax that funds a trust fund for coal miners with black lung disease. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• A clean energy think tank develops a strategy to transition a 440 MW lignite coal-fired power station in Mississippi by using power purchase agreements and other long-term contracts to finance construction of clean energy sources. (CleanTechnica)
• West Virginia coal sees a labor shortage as demand increased 6% last year. (Fox Business)

UTILITIES: The Tennessee Valley Authority will increase its wholesale rates by 10% because of higher gas and coal prices. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

GRID: Florida Power & Light prepares for the hurricane season with scenario training and grid-hardening measures such as drones to assess storm damage and a three-ton concrete pole capable of withstanding strong winds. (Capitolist, WFOR, Hometown News Brevard)

HYDROGEN: Two companies partner on a plan to build a low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia production and export facility in Texas. (news release)

COMMENTARY:
• Skyrocketing power bills based on rising fuel costs should incentivize South Carolina to pursue a transition from oil and gas-fired power to renewables, writes a state lawmaker. (Post and Courier)
• The director of a nonprofit environmental advocacy group marks the 20th anniversary of a landmark North Carolina air pollution law by calling on the state to better respond to climate change. (WRAL)

More from the Energy News Network: Midwest | Southeast | Northeast | West

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.