In the news today…
Grid:
- Bloomberg reports that Bitcoin miners in Texas curbed operations, crimping power usage, as a heat wave drove electricity prices sky-high Tuesday and threatened to cripple the grid in the second-largest US state.
- Argus Direct reports US utility Xcel Energy used zero-emission resources for more than half of its electricity generation mix last year.
- Washington Examiner reports Texas grid operators asked residents yesterday to turn up their thermostats by several degrees and refrain from using large appliances through this evening, as they braced for potential grid strain and record-shattering demand that comes as a searing heat wave hits the state.
- E&E Energywire reports the electricity sector and legacy steel companies are squaring off with a South Carolina company over DOE’s transformer proposal.
- Solar Power World reports Illinois and Michigan among the top Midwest states for grid interconnection rules, according to a recent analysis by clean energy groups.
Mining:
- MINING.com reports Canada’s Talon Metals Corp said on Wednesday that it has submitted an application with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for the environmental review of its proposed nickel mine located in the state.
- E&E Greenwire reports environmental groups are suing the Forest Service to halt mineral exploration in Arizona’s remote and biologically diverse Patagonia Mountains.
Minerals:
- E&E Daily reports Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey, who chairs a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee, is preparing legislation to block the import of cobalt or lithium mined using child or forced labor, taking direct aim at a stream of minerals used in electric vehicle batteries.
- Axios reports Minnesota regulators are beginning to review a key nickel mining proposal that promises to help the U.S. develop domestic supplies of raw materials for climate tech.
EPA:
- E&E Greenwire reports Republican members of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee launched an investigation Wednesday into how the Biden administration considered grid reliability when crafting its new EPA carbon rule for the power sector.
Coal:
- Argus Direct reports Coal exports out of Hampton Roads, Virginia, rose from year-earlier levels for the sixth consecutive month in May as volumes from one of the region’s three coal terminals hit an 11-month high.