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POLLUTION: Colorado lawmakers introduce legislation that would tighten new greenhouse gas emissions rules for large industrial sites and expand the state’s air quality regulatory board. (CPR)
ALSO: Utah lawmakers introduce legislation aimed at making it easier for the state to flout federal pollution regulations. (Salt Lake Tribune, subscription)
CLEAN ENERGY:
SOLAR:
UTILITIES: A Colorado electric cooperative predicts it will obtain 90% of its power from renewable sources by 2025. (Vail Daily)
OIL & GAS:
ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Oregon lawmakers advance a bill that would ban people under 16 years old from riding electric bicycles. (Oregon Capital Chronicle)
BATTERIES: The first phase of a $1 billion lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility under construction in Arizona is expected to employ about 1,250 people when it is completed later this year. (Arizona Republic)
CLIMATE: Montana advocates, residents and businesses urge regulators to consider the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change in gas and electric utility regulation. (Daily Montanan)
GEOTHERMAL: Energy startup Fervo secures $244 million in financing to support its 400 MW enhanced geothermal facility under construction in western Utah. (news release)
COMMENTARY:
A coalition of labor and environmental groups is putting its support behind perennial Minnesota legislation meant to lift a barrier to building power lines in the rights-of-way of federal highways in the state.
NextGen Highways is a national collaboration that promotes co-location of utility infrastructure in existing highway corridors as a way to accelerate expansion of the electric grid.
The concept has widespread public support, according to the group’s polling, but it also faces various legal, financial, and technical obstacles across the country.
“What we’re trying to do in Minnesota — and in states across the country — is to identify barriers and work with our coalition partners to develop strategies to overcome those barriers,” said Randy Satterfield, executive director of NextGen Highways.
One example in Minnesota is a state law requiring the Minnesota Department of Transportation to pay utilities if they are forced to move any assets, such as poles or towers, in federal highway rights-of-way. A pair of bills (House Bill 3900, Senate Bill 3949) would shift those costs to utilities instead, making it consistent with existing rules for state highway corridors.
Without that change, the state won’t allow transmission projects to be built in its portion of federal highway rights-of-way. State transportation officials have proposed such legislation multiple times since 2012, but the bills have never succeeded amid opposition from utilities.
Many transmission projects already follow highway corridors, Satterfield said. They include several announced last year by MISO, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. Three of those projects cover portions of Minnesota and follow highways for parts of their routes.
Not all transmission lines that share routes with highways are located within the public right-of-way. Some are built on adjacent private property instead, which still requires negotiations with hundreds of individual owners. When developers have the option of placing towers or burying lines within the public right-of-way, it can significantly streamline a project.
With clean energy’s escalating growth trajectory, more solar and wind developers will request permission to build projects and power lines in rural communities, Satterfield predicted.
“I think we owe it to (communities) to at least consider utilizing existing linear infrastructure, like highways and interstates, for the transmission infrastructure,” he said.
Still, transmission developers wanting to take these routes often run into obstacles. Many state departments of transportation still recall a federal restriction, since rescinded, that did not allow transmission in federal highway rights-of-way, he said. Other states have no culture of allowing highway rights-of-way to co-locate with transmission.
NextGen Highways formed to advocate for transmission in highway corridors and to encourage states to remove any barriers to that goal. Minnesota is the first state where it has launched a state coalition to advance the concept.
“Transmission congestion is the biggest hurdle that we have to overcome to reach our 100% energy goals and to get more renewables and other forms of energy on the grid,” said George Damian, government affairs director for Clean Energy Economy Minnesota, a nonprofit that is part of the coalition. “This is a kind of a low-hanging fruit. These rights-of-way owned by the state can be utilized for transmission.”
Utilities, lawmakers and stakeholders continue to discuss the legislation. Theo Keith, Xcel Energy’s spokesperson, said the utility has been “encouraged by the early conversations we’ve had with lawmakers and other stakeholders.” Xcel has proposed hundreds of miles of transmission lines in road corridors and often shares easements with the transportation department, he said.
Keith cited the CapX2020 project as an example of Xcel and other utilities building a major transmission corridor adjacent to the Interstate 94 right-of-way.
“Building new transmission lines is critical to meeting our clean energy goals and those of the states in which we operate, including Minnesota’s 2040 benchmark,” he said.
Minnesota can look to its neighbor in Wisconsin for an example of how highway corridors could be used for transmission. That state passed a law 20 years ago to make federal and state highway rights-of-way a priority for siting transmission. Satterfield, who once worked for a transmission company in Wisconsin, said the state’s utilities built more than 200 miles of transmission projects on federal highways.
Wisconsin did not ask utilities to move poles or other assets on any of the projects, he said. Wisconsin’s Department of Transportation coordinates and plans projects with utilities to avoid potential problems, such as highway lane expansion that could encroach on transmission lines.
In addition to changing the Minnesota statute on utility colocation on federal roads, the NexGen Highway Coalition wants the Legislature to consider a siting priorities law. The law requires utilities to consider existing transportation corridors, such as highways and railways, before opting for greenfield development.
Minnesota Department of Transportation Strategic Partnerships Director Jessica Oh said the agency had put forth five to six legislative proposals since 2012 to repeal the language in the statute regarding utility infrastructure near federal highways and will support continued efforts. Utilities opposed the measure because of the additional expense they might incur in projects, she said.
A change to the state law was also suggested in a report to the legislature based on permitting reform discussions held by the Public Utilities Commission, she said.
In studying Wisconsin’s experience, the department learned the importance of early coordination with clean energy developers and utilities “is key to the success of the whole process.” Minnesota transportation staff have conducted early planning sessions involving aerial encroachments on state highways with utility partners.
Oh said the department’s “highest concern” around utility infrastructure has always been safety. Should the legislation pass, the transportation department will continue to work closely with utilities, especially since power lines will become instrumental in moving electric vehicles on highways.
Oh added Minnesota is among 11 states selected by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and the Transportation Research Board’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program for a “moonshots” program for state departments of transportation. Oh leads the initiative in Minnesota to co-locate more transmission and broadband in highway corridors.
“We have a stake in this because of the electrification of transportation,” Oh said. “I tend to think our fates are intertwined in energy and transportation.”
Great Plains Institute convenes NextGen Highways, which partners with the Center for Rural Affairs, Clean Energy Economy Minnesota, Conservative Energy Forum, Fresh Energy, Laborers’ International Union of North America-Minnesota and North Dakota, Mechanical Contractors Association, Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy and the National Audubon Society.
Fresh Energy publishes Energy News Network.
BUILDINGS: Maine receives a $10 million federal grant to install specially designed heat pumps in mobile homes, with a specific focus on small towns. (Maine Public)
GRID:
OVERSIGHT: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul appoints a former state commissioner and an environmental advocate to fill two open seats on the state’s Public Service Commission. (E&E News, subscription)
UTILITIES: Maine lawmakers discuss a bill that would allow state regulators to use utilities’ performance as a basis for ratemaking. (Portland Press Herald)
SOLAR:
TRANSPORTATION: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy proposes a tax on large corporations to fund mass transit. (Daily Record)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
HYDROGEN:
CARBON CAPTURE: New York lawmakers advance a bill that would ban the use of carbon dioxide injection to extract natural gas, in response to a developer’s plan for the state’s Southern Tier. (Waterfront Online)
GEOTHERMAL: Bard College in upstate New York plans a new geothermal system to provide heating and cooling to the campus library. (ThinkGeoEnergy)
CLEAN ENERGY: The Biden administration allocates $366 million for clean energy development on tribal land and rural areas, including solar and hydropower projects in Washington, Alaska and Arizona. (Associated Press, Anchorage Daily News, Arizona Republic)
ALSO: The U.S. Energy Department seeks clean energy development proposals at its WIPP nuclear waste disposal facility in southern New Mexico. (news release)
SOLAR:
UTILITIES:
OIL & GAS: Data show states hold 1.6 million acres of land within tribal nations, some of which is leased for oil and gas drilling. (High Country News)
DIVESTMENT: Oregon lawmakers near a final vote on a bill that would divest the state’s public employee retirement system from coal-related stocks. (Oregon Capital Chronicle)
ELECTRIFICATION: A California city replaces its natural gas hookup ban with efficiency standards encouraging the use of electric heat pumps and water heaters. (Palo Alto Online)
GRID: NV Energy tells regulators its proposed Greenlink transmission project in Nevada is $433 million over budget, a cost likely to be borne by ratepayers. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
CLIMATE:
POLITICS: Far-right Wyoming lawmakers look to defund an energy grant program that has supported carbon capture and sequestration and hydrogen production research in the past. (WyoFile)
COMMENTARY: A California columnist argues a slowdown in electric vehicle sales is less concerning than America’s apparent inability to transition away from its car-centric culture. (Los Angeles Times)
⛷️ Good morning! Kathryn is just back from a much-deserved vacation and will return to the Weekly next week.
Meanwhile, gather ’round! We need to talk about hydrogen.
In theory, hydrogen sounds like a miracle fuel. Split water molecules with clean power, use the hydrogen to fuel everything from trucks to steelmaking, boom: endless clean energy. Doesn’t that sound nice?
Reality, of course, is never that simple, and with all the news about hydrogen hubs and the rainbow of green vs. blue vs. pink and so on, it’s easy to get lost.
But if you only have the bandwidth for one hydrogen story right now, it should be the debate over a tax credit called 45V, that could have major implications for future emissions.
As reporter Kari Lydersen explained in a story earlier this month, draft rules for the 45V tax credit require “green” hydrogen to be produced by new, adjacent renewable energy to qualify, much like the illustration above.
But promoters of hydrogen hubs, which energy writer David Roberts has dismissively dubbed “subsidy-farming machines,” sent a letter Monday urging the Treasury Department to allow green hydrogen produced from existing renewable energy to qualify, arguing the proposed rules are so strict they’ll be unable to bring productions costs down quickly enough to meet federal goals.
Earthjustice attorney Lauren Piette calls that a “loophole” that will simply divert existing clean energy capacity that would then be backfilled by coal and gas generation, potentially causing a net increase in emissions and spiking utility bills.
Beyond grid implications, advocates are also warning of other unintended climate consequences if hydrogen is not used or handled carefully — potentially creating more heat-trapping emissions than burning natural gas.
🚘 Something we can agree on: While policies to phase out gasoline cars have become politically polarized, a study finds electric vehicles are popular with Democrats and Republicans alike. (CNN)
🌊 A milestone for offshore wind: Vineyard Wind last week became the first large-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S. to begin delivering power, a step Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey calls “a turning point in the clean energy transition.” (Associated Press)
🏡 Building tension: Policies to improve energy efficiency in housing have faced strong opposition from builders associations, who frequently deploy inflated cost estimates to fight code upgrades. (Washington Post)
✅ Just in case: Federal regulators are scrambling to implement policies to cut heat-trapping emissions and meet U.S. climate obligations in case the White House changes hands after the 2024 election. (Bloomberg)
💡 Looking to the future: State and local governments are preparing applications for a $5 billion federal grant program to implement big ideas in climate action plans. (Energy News Network)
🏢 Greener cities: A Chicago environmental justice organization is helping to build out a geothermal heating and cooling network on the city’s South Side. (Grist)
👷 Learning from history: A new weatherization jobs resource hub in Wisconsin is part of advocates’ effort to avoid the boom-and-bust cycle that followed previous increases in federal energy efficiency funding. (Energy News Network)
GRID: Some observers question if New York will have enough power on its grid to support the expansion of a semiconductor manufacturer’s capacity, a development that just received significant federal funding. (Times Union)
ALSO: An advanced energy trade group issues a report card giving low marks to PJM Interconnection and ISO New England for their overall interconnection processes, including regional transmission planning. (Utility Dive)
OFFSHORE WIND:
BUILDINGS:
GAS: Although the investigation is still ongoing, federal investigators have released dozens of documents and photos related to a gas explosion at a West Reading, Pennsylvania chocolate factory last March. (Daily Times)
PIPELINES: Some residents of Burrillville, Rhode Island, want state officials to extend a public comment period and hold a hearing as they work to get the operating air permit renewal rejected for Enbridge’s Algonquin pipeline. (ecoRI)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
FLOODS: The financial toll of the floods that swept through some central Massachusetts towns last September is still hitting residents and municipal officials, with federal officials rejecting a request for disaster relief. (Boston Globe)
SOLAR: A central Pennsylvania church installs a $75,000 solar array that completely offsets its energy needs, a project the pastor says is necessary to address “the biggest problem of our age.” (WFMZ)
SOLAR: A solar moratorium and fierce opposition by residents lead a Tennessee county board to deny a 150 MW solar farm with plans to send power to a data center and the Tennessee Valley Authority; developers say they may sue to reverse the decision. (Memphis Commercial Appeal)
ALSO:
EMISSIONS: Researchers say Louisiana’s $3 billion coastal restoration project to build 21 square miles of land with mud from the Mississippi River could earn about $530 million through carbon offsets sold to businesses. (NOLA)
OIL & GAS:
STORAGE: Battery company LG Chem secures a $19 billion contract with General Motors as it builds a $3.2 billion factory in Tennessee. (WKRN)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
GRID: A municipal Virginia utility completes construction of a new substation to power two industrial parks, with plans for more grid upgrades. (Danville Register & Bee)
POLLUTION: A class action lawsuit alleges Duke Energy used motor and transformer oil laden with PCBs as “mosquito control” at a South Carolina lake. (Chronicle-Independent)
NUCLEAR: Kentucky lawmakers advance a bill to prepare the state for an anticipated surge in nuclear power production. (Associated Press)
CRYPTOCURRENCY: A judge rules in favor of Texas cryptocurrency companies’ challenge to efforts by the U.S. Department of Energy to collect data on the sector’s energy consumption. (International Business Times)
BIOMASS: A wood pellet producer with numerous factories in the Southeast approaches a crucial deadline for a bond payment that could lead to a bankruptcy filing. (Wilmington StarNews)
CLIMATE:
POLITICS: Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves calls for the state to become “masters of all energy,” from oil and gas development to solar power. (Associated Press)
COMMENTARY: After suffering a significant legislative loss last year, Dominion Energy is scaling up its campaign contributions to Virginia lawmakers and has given more than $11 million so far in the 2023-2024 cycle, writes an energy columnist. (Virginia Mercury)
GRID: A new ranking of grid operators says California and Texas have the best interconnection processes, with PJM Interconnection and ISO New England ranking last. (Utility Dive)
ALSO: Environmental groups say a proposal from grid operator Southwest Power Pool unfairly values renewable energy and storage compared to gas, coal and nuclear power. (E&E News, subscription)
OIL & GAS:
CLIMATE:
UTILITIES: The federal government considers suing PacifiCorp in an effort to recover nearly $1 billion in costs related to 2020 wildfires in southern Oregon and northern California. (Associated Press)
WIND: U.S. lawmakers from California urge the Biden administration to extend a proposed marine sanctuary off the state’s central coast even though it could hamper offshore wind development. (Tribune)
EFFICIENCY: A new weatherization jobs resource hub in Wisconsin is part of advocates’ effort to avoid the boom-and-bust cycle that followed previous increases in federal energy efficiency funding. (Energy News Network)
CLEAN ENERGY:
POLITICS: A conservative group’s blueprint for a Republican presidency aims to severely weaken the EPA and put more authority in the hands of political appointees rather than scientists. (E&E News)
WIND: The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center purchases the 42-acre waterfront site of a former coal- and oil-fired power plant in Salem to build a second terminal for offshore wind development. (Boston Globe)
ALSO:
OIL & GAS:
NUCLEAR: Massachusetts’ attorney general files a civil lawsuit against the firm handling the Pilgrim nuclear plant decommissioning over air pollution concerns stemming from the site demolition. (CommonWealth Beacon)
HYDROPOWER: As Québec and the Northeast U.S. both look to take advantage of Canadian hydropower to hit renewable energy goals, Hydro-Québec looks to long-duration storage to fulfill its contracts. (RTO Insider, subscription)
SOLAR:
BUILDINGS: With last summer’s floods in mind, Vermont lawmakers consider a bill to require a state permit to build in river corridors, but the state’s governor says he’ll likely veto it, citing a shift in land use responsibility and a lack of resources to execute. (VT Digger)
UTILITIES:
OVERSIGHT: A new Virginia commission to provide state lawmakers more guidance on increasingly complicated utility and energy bills could give new life to stalled proposals to restrict utilities’ spending and introduce more competition for wind and solar. (Energy News Network)
TRANSITION:
STORAGE: Texas looks set to outpace California in construction of new battery storage facilities, just one year after it surpassed California in large-scale solar power capacity. (Canary Media)
SOLAR:
WIND: Dominion Energy says Virginia ratepayers won’t be affected by its sale of a 50% stake in its offshore wind farm to an investment firm. (Virginia Mercury)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
OIL & GAS:
COAL:
UTILITIES:
CLIMATE: Federal officials expand the heat scale that signals the severity of heat stress on corals after record-high ocean temperatures last year led to a severe mass bleaching event near Florida. (E&E News, subscription)
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