GRID: A new iPhone feature is transforming the 118 million devices into a U.S. grid management resource, automatically turning charging on and off as clean electricity supplies peak and fall. (Washington Post)
OIL & GAS:
• Environmentalists prepare to fight the Biden administration and Republican lawmakers, who became unlikely allies after the former’s approval of the massive Willow oil drilling project in Alaska. (E&E News)
• The U.S. Energy Department awards $47 million to researchers working to develop technologies to detect, quantify and reduce methane emissions from oil and gas facilities. (news release)
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SOLAR:
• A bipartisan group of House members look to re-establish tariffs on solar component imports from Southeast Asia after the Biden administration suspended them last summer. (Axios)
• U.S. houses of worship host a relatively large number of solar panels on non-residential buildings, presenting a unique opportunity to build out solar capacity. (PV Magazine)
• California researchers develop agrivoltaic-friendly, semi-transparent organic solar panels that generate power without blocking light to plants. (electrek)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Electric vehicle maker Rivian negotiates with Amazon to end their exclusive delivery van deal after Amazon’s 2023 order comes in at the low end of their agreed-upon range. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Wall Street Journal, subscription)
• Maryland’s governor announces the state will aim to phase out new gas vehicles by 2035, even though Maryland is nowhere near reaching its 2025 electric vehicle adoption goal. (Herald-Mail)
OFFSHORE WIND: Ørsted and Eversource pitch an 884 MW offshore wind farm they say would bring over $2 billion in direct economic benefits to Rhode Island — the only bid Rhode Island received in its latest solicitation. (news release, E&E News)
NUCLEAR: The looming completion of Georgia Power’s expansion of nuclear Plant Vogtle renews the long-running debate over how fission should play into America’s energy future. (HuffPost)
UTILITIES: ComEd proposes to spend up to $120 million in shareholder dollars on clean energy and workforce training as part of a pending franchise agreement with the city of Chicago, but the politics have been complicated by a state legislative bribery scandal and an upcoming mayoral election. (Energy News Network)
COAL:
• U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin cites grid reliability concerns as he requests the U.S. EPA delay its proposed “Good Neighbor Rule” to require a reduction in nitrogen oxide emissions from coal-fired power plants. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)
• Duke Energy’s staggered schedule to retire its coal-fired power plants leave it unclear exactly how it’ll be affected by the EPA’s newly proposed discharge rules. (NC Policy Watch)
TRANSPORTATION: The nation’s first zero-emissions, hydrogen fuel cell-powered commercial ferry is set to undergo trial runs in San Francisco later this year. (Los Angeles Times)
COMMENTARY: The Biden administration made a “colossal mistake” in approving the “carbon bomb” Willow drilling project, a columnist writes. (Guardian)
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