In the news today…
Coal:
- Energy News Network reports Guzman Energy plans to buyout and close coal-fired power plants in Colorado to further develop renewable energy sources such as solar.
- Utility Dive and E&E Energywire reports Guzman Energy’s offer to buy and close three coal plants was rejected by Tri-State Generation and Transmission.
- World Oil and Bloomberg report last year West Virginia produced more natural gas than coal.
- Chicago Magazine reports southern Illinois still highly values coal because of the industry’s good paying jobs but worries that the industry has no future.
- The Washington Examiner reports utilities are concerned the ACE rule, set to become final in June, will impact their transition away from coal in favor of modernizing coal plants.
- Forbes reports that some utilities are essentially subsidizing coal by remaining vertically integrated with the coal power plants which power them, keeping coal plants running when the market does not favor them.
- E&E Energywire reports coal plants which are shut down leave stranded costs that consumers still have to pay.
- The Salt Lake Tribune reports a business venture to clean substandard coal and sell it as fuel proved a failure, leaving a facility contaminated with coal waste and unpaid debts.
- Utility Dive reports customers can now buy bonds to pay off stranded coal assets, but utilities are hesitant about the method.
Power Grid:
- PoliticoPro reports Andy Ott, president and CEO of PJM, will step down at the end of June.
- E&E Climatewire reports companies that pledge 100 percent renewable energy are not always consuming renewable energy due to renewable energy credits used for the grid.
Electric Vehicles:
- Mining.com reports a spike in EV sales, and IEA’s projections hold that 10 to 20 percent of the world’s vehicles could be electric by 2030.
EPA:
- Inside EPA reports Democratic attorneys general and two national organizations have urged EPA in comments not to scale back the scope of states’ review authority under section 401 of the CWA.
- PoliticoPro reports a federal judge late Tuesday ruled that the Waters of the U.S. rule violated the Administrative Procedure Act.
Supreme Court:
- E&E Greenwire reports efforts to settle County of Maui v. Hawai’I Wildlife Fund stalled last week; if no settlement is reached, the case will be taken up this fall in the Supreme Court.
World News: