OIL & GAS: A U.S. Supreme Court case later this year could lift the blockade that’s been keeping municipalities’ climate lawsuits against fossil fuel companies out of courts for years. (Grist)
FINANCE: The Energy Department’s loan programs leader Jigar Shah shares how he turned the “essentially dormant” office into a clean energy-lending powerhouse. (Guardian)
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POLITICS:
• Sen. Joe Manchin and the ranking Republican member on the Senate energy committee share criticism of the Biden administration’s clean energy programs, signaling that they may collaborate to boost oversight. (E&E News)
• Manchin and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz propose a bill to bar the Consumer Product Safety Commission from banning gas stoves, though the agency isn’t considering doing so. (The Hill)
• In the newly Republican-led House, the term “environmental justice” is scrubbed from Energy and Commerce Committee documents. (E&E News)
WIND: After a year and a half of study, a New York utility regulator finds environmental impacts, transmission difficulties and other potential challenges would make building wind turbines on the Great Lakes unfeasible. (NNY360)
CLEAN ENERGY:
• The Minnesota Senate passes a bill requiring 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040, marking a “turning point” in the state’s fight against climate change; Gov. Tim Walz has vowed to sign it. (Star Tribune)
• Researchers find achieving net zero emissions in the Western U.S. via widespread electrification is technologically and economically feasible and can be environmentally sustainable. (Anthropocene)
GRID:
• Texas’ power grid largely held during this week’s winter storm, but numerous localized outages spur calls for additional reform. (Texas Tribune, Associated Press)
• A national solar trade group urges federal regulators to lift grid operator MISO’s ban on renewable energy producers’ ability to sell ancillary services, which could open up new revenue streams for generators. (Utility Dive)
STORAGE: U.S. senators question the Biden administration’s decision to award $200 million to a Texas battery manufacturer that plans to partner with General Motors on a Tennessee plant because of its ties to China. (Houston Chronicle)
EMISSIONS: Environmental attorneys predict the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a suit challenging California’s right to set automobile emissions standards stricter than the federal government’s. (E&E News)
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EFFICIENCY: About two-thirds of Minneapolis homes listed for sale have inadequate insulation, highlighting a hidden barrier to the city’s climate goals and financial obstacles for homeowners. (Energy News Network)
COMMENTARY: While the U.S. electric grid was built for a world with less severe storms, sustained planning and investment can boost its resiliency, an energy fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations writes. (Wilson Quarterly)
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