In the news today…
Coal:
- The Detroit News (Mich.) carries an op-ed by Mark Perry, professor emeritus at the University of Michigan in Flint and a senior fellow at The American Enterprise Institute, in which he states coal provides an essential insurance policy to the energy grid.
- Politico Pro, Argus and E&E Greenwire report the Biden administration will award $300 million to coal-dependent communities on Thursday as part of an effort to help diversify the economies in the regions that are struggling amid the shift away from the fossil fuel.
- Trib Live reports the closure of Cheswick Generating Station — Allegheny County’s only coal-fired power plant — has been postponed until spring.
Energy:
- Bloomberg Green reports transmission lines for new energy projects are scarce, but retired coal plants could provide a partial solution for new renewable and nuclear power.
- Politico Pro reports the head of the Department of Energy’s loan office defended its track record for backing clean energy projects yesterday and suggested that geothermal developers could be among the new beneficiaries of loan guarantees.
- Politico Pro reports EPA’s plan for regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants remains unclear more than halfway into President Biden’s first year in office.
Minerals:
- Politico Pro reports the U.S. defense industrial base should find a way to ween itself off of rare earth minerals from China, according to new recommendations from a bipartisan congressional task force.
- The Wall Street Journal reports tin prices are surging to all-time highs, lifted by wagers that coronavirus disruptions in Southeast Asia will fuel shortages of the industrial metal.