Back
A new year is here, and so are some big new clean energy developments, including the arrival of federal incentives that could boost the hydrogen and electric vehicle industries.
Here’s what you may have missed over the last two weeks:
🚗 Making EV incentives easier: New federal incentives for electric vehicles just took effect, allowing buyers to instantly access up to $7,500 toward a new EV and $4,000 toward a used one instead of waiting for a tax refund. At least 7,400 car dealers have signed up to offer the incentives. (Grist, The Hill)
💵 Hydrogen rules are here: The Biden administration released draft guidance for its hydrogen tax credit, which prioritize low- and zero-emission hydrogen production. Industry leaders say the rules go too far and will slow growth. (E&E News, Utility Dive)
☣️ Acknowledging coal ash dangers: A draft risk assessment published by the U.S. EPA for the first time says using coal ash as structural fill in road and other building projects can cause an elevated cancer risk from radiation, validating the concerns of residents and activists around the country. (States Newsroom, Energy News Network archives)
🔥 A hot new normal: As 2023 becomes the hottest year on record, scientists predict its extreme temperatures will soon become normal and that 2024 will be even hotter than last year. (Axios, Washington Post)
🥇 States lead on climate: Clean electricity standards enacted in Minnesota and Michigan bookended a year of state-level climate progress that included gas hookup restrictions and new funding for clean energy manufacturing. (E&E News)
🕯️ How gas keeps its power: U.S. gas utilities serving more than 35 million customers offer builders and contractors incentives to keep fossil fuels in new buildings, part of a longstanding relationship that could impede electrification. (The Guardian)
🤝 Labor meets climate: Last year saw significant collaboration between the labor and climate movements as UPS drivers fought for extreme heat safety measures, and autoworkers demanded fair wages amid a transition to electric vehicles. (Grist)
CLEAN ENERGY: Advocates credit a small northern New Mexico electric cooperative with paving the way for other rural utilities to ditch fossil fuels. (High Country News)
SOLAR: The federal Bureau of Land Management seeks public input on the proposed 117 MW Sapphire solar-plus-storage project in southern California. (news release)
LITHIUM: The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony looks to build coalitions and garner public support — rather than file lawsuits — to fight the Thacker Pass lithium mine in Nevada. (Associated Press)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
UTILITIES:
CLIMATE:
CARBON CAPTURE: Alaska researchers launch an $11 million study of the viability of a proposed 400 MW coal plant equipped with carbon capture. (Northern Journal)
NUCLEAR: An advanced nuclear fuel startup seeks a property tax break from a Washington city to incentivize its $39 million manufacturing facility expansion. (Tri-City Herald)
GRID: Researchers find the Pacific Northwest is susceptible to sudden drops in solar and wind production, or but these energy droughts would be less severe than in other regions due to an abundance of hydropower. (OPB)
OIL & GAS:
HYDROGEN: The Biden administration releases guidance for its hydrogen tax credit, though industry leaders say the rules go too far in prioritizing low- and zero-emission hydrogen production and will slow growth. (E&E News, Utility Dive)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
SOLAR: Solar advocates in Georgia and elsewhere embrace federal funding for programs to reduce energy bills by making solar power affordable for lower-income households. (WABE/Grist)
CLEAN ENERGY:
CLIMATE:
EMISSIONS:
PIPELINES: A proposed carbon pipeline in the Midwest divides ethanol industry supporters and farmers who say they feel betrayed by the company’s potential use of eminent domain to build the project. (South Dakota Searchlight)
GRID:
LITHIUM: The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony looks to build coalitions and garner public support — rather than file lawsuits — to fight the Thacker Pass lithium mine in Nevada. (Associated Press)
RESILIENCY: Although Massachusetts wants more municipalities to undertake climate resiliency projects, they say securing state funds to do so isn’t easy. (Boston Globe)
BUILDINGS: Maine’s heat pump market is already thriving, but new federal subsidies targeting low-income homeowners could further spur its growth. (Portland Press Herald)
CLEAN ENERGY: A $10 million federal grant will support economic development efforts in Ohio and neighboring states to help lure small- and medium-sized manufacturers specializing in the clean energy supply chain. (Energy News Network)
CO2 PIPELINES:
OHIO: The former FirstEnergy subsidiary that was to receive the bulk of a ratepayer-funded bailout for two of its nuclear plants says it acted in a “legal way” to help get House Bill 6 passed. (Ohio Capital Journal)
SOLAR:
PIPELINES: Environmental groups and four tribes will appeal Michigan regulators’ decision to allow plans for an underground tunnel for Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac. (MLive)
OIL & GAS:
BIOGAS: Plans for a central Wisconsin anaerobic digester on a dairy farm divide local residents as critics raise groundwater pollution concerns. (Wisconsin Examiner)
COAL: Decommissioning units of a Wisconsin coal plant in the coming months will require complex steps to keep wastewater treatment, water intake and a conveyor system operational for remaining units. (Journal Sentinel)
UTILITIES: A new Illinois law that took effect on Jan. 1 prohibits utilities from shutting off power to customers when temperatures reach certain heat thresholds. (Southern Illinoisan)
GRID: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum declared a statewide emergency on Friday as thousands of residents experienced power outages when an ice storm dismantled power lines. (Associated Press)
CLIMATE: A new documentary explores researchers’ and advocates’ efforts to find climate solutions in northern Michigan. (Michigan Advance)
CLEAN ENERGY: A coalition of regional groups uses a $10 million federal grant to recruit more than 1,000 small and medium manufacturers for the growing clean energy economy in West Virginia and four other Appalachian states. (Energy News Network)
ALSO:
CARBON CAPTURE: The U.S. EPA grants Louisiana the authority to approve and regulate the drilling of wells for carbon capture projects. (Louisiana Illuminator)
SOLAR: Solar advocates in Georgia and elsewhere embrace federal funding for programs to reduce energy bills by making solar power affordable for lower-income households. (WABE/Grist)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
WIND: A Virginia city receives more than $39.2 million to renovate a marine terminal into an offshore wind logistics facility. (WVEC)
HYDROGEN:
GRID:
POLITICS: Virginia environmental justice advocates worry Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin is hampering a 2020 law intended to boost transparency and engagement with communities affected by pipelines and other energy projects. (Inside Climate News)
OVERSIGHT:
COAL:
UTILITIES: West Virginia water and gas utilities spat over a line break and service outage last month. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
As federal incentives spur a wave of new domestic clean energy manufacturing, economic boosters in Ohio and neighboring states see an opportunity to “Make it in Appalachia.”
A virtual summit this month will serve as part of public kickoff efforts to identify and support small and medium manufacturers in the region so they can play a role in the growing clean energy economy.
The New Energy Economy project is being funded by a $10 million federal grant awarded this fall. Lead applicant Catalyst Connection and ten other partners have been working over the past two months to finalize subcontracts for the effort, which encompasses 156 counties in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and New York.
“By supporting small-to-medium manufacturers and providing training and resources, we can drive economic transformation, create in-demand jobs, and build a brighter future for Appalachian communities,” said Steve Herzenberg, co-director of ReImagine Appalachia, one of the grant partners.
ReImagine Appalachia is hosting its virtual strategy summit on January 16 and 17. The first day will focus on how to turn the Ohio River Valley into a sustainable manufacturing hub, with discussions the next day focused on community rebuilding and workforce development under federal climate infrastructure programs.
The Appalachian Regional Commission is providing funding for the grant under the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as part of its Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies. ARISE supports multi-state projects to drive large-scale regional economic change.
The New Energy Economy project will provide training, technical assistance, supply chain mapping and guidance for factory and product upgrades to more than 1,000 small to medium-sized manufacturers over four years in sectors that include renewable energy, hydrogen, smart grid, green buildings, and electric vehicles.
“We want to identify and support companies that want to participate in a new clean energy supply chain or improve their factory in energy efficiency,” said Petra Mitchell, president and CEO at Catalyst Connection, based in Pittsburgh. Although much of Appalachia is rural, the region includes many towns and cities.
Mitchell said a wide range of businesses could benefit in different sectors. Planned hydrogen hubs, for example, will need lots of metal products and meters, she said. So companies making those types of things may want to think about how they could adapt existing products or develop new ones to serve that sector.
Similarly, lots of pieces and parts go into wind turbines, said Amanda Woodrum, another co-director of ReImagine Appalachia. “They’re made of things that we make already, like gearboxes and bearings.” The grant project can help identify companies that might be a good fit for making those things and provide technical know-how so they can gear up to expand.
Yet there are barriers to getting into new markets.
“Across the region, many small and medium-sized manufacturers lack the capabilities to participate in the supply chains for green energy production or green products manufacturing,” said Janiene Bohannon, communications director for the Appalachian Regional Commission. “Appalachian manufacturers and energy providers seeking to pivot to greener models face difficulties in post-COVID supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, increasingly dated facilities and technology, and lack of availability of training in said technology.”
Large manufacturers often have staff or can afford consultants to grow their businesses and navigate entry into new market sectors.
“Small companies rarely do this,” said Ethan Karp, president and CEO of MAGNET in Cleveland.
The nonprofit will be responsible for providing roughly $1 million in services to companies in Ohio counties covered by the grant. Other manufacturing extension partners will work with companies in the four other states covered by the grant.
More than half of the 32 Ohio counties rank among the 25% most economically depressed counties nationwide. Only two are “competitive” under the commission’s designation system.
“We can really make a difference there,” Karp said. “We’re going to retain a ton of jobs, and we’re going to strengthen the output and grow our communities.”
Work in the manufacturing sector generally pays better than low-wage jobs that have employed many people in Appalachia after other manufacturing jobs left the area and the coal industry declined over the past several decades. A significant number of people in Appalachia have also become disconnected from the workforce, Woodrum said.
Now, across the five states included in the grant, the project is expected to serve 1,100 businesses, create 5,500 jobs, retain 15,190 jobs and provide $44 million worth of cost cuts, Bohanon said.
“We already have a presence in these counties,” Karp said, adding that MAGNET has already done some work helping manufacturers find opportunities for energy efficiency. MAGNET provides its educational and consulting services free of charge. Companies then invest in projects that can save money or otherwise boost their profit margins.
Lots more outreach about the grant program will follow after the upcoming strategy session for ReImagine Appalachia. Among other things, that outreach will help companies in the region think about whether they can play a role in the clean energy supply chain, even if that role isn’t initially obvious.
“It doesn’t have to necessarily be high-tech stuff,” Karp said, adding that a lot of the shift will be market driven. So, as more electric vehicles come on the market, companies will want to think about how they can be part of that growth. Or, as there’s more electrification, manufacturers may want to think about products they could supply. And then companies will need more training and technical help to expand their businesses through capital investments, any workforce issues and more.
“With the right sustainable strategy and the right investments, we can actually turn the region into leaders in the new energy economy,” Woodrum said. “The kind of manufacturing and the jobs that it creates are a big important piece of that puzzle.”
Historically, “Appalachia’s been one of the most likely places for innovation,” said Rick Stockburger, president and CEO of BRITE Energy Innovators, based in Warren, Ohio, which is not part of the Catalyst Connection grant project. “There’s no structural reason why it can’t be again, especially as we’re thinking about this new economy and how we make sure everybody can participate in it.”
CLEAN ENERGY: State-level clean energy policies had a strong year in 2023 as Democrats in states like Minnesota and Michigan treated climate action like a political asset. (E&E News)
ALSO: A Minnesota agency overseeing the state’s clean energy transition adds 64 positions to its staff of roughly 90 to help manage new state energy-related programs and capitalize on federal funding opportunities. (Energy News Network)
OIL & GAS: U.S. gas utilities serving more than 35 million customers offer builders and contractors incentives to keep fossil fuels in new buildings, part of a longstanding relationship that could impede electrification. (The Guardian)
CLIMATE: Challenging previous claims of the Midwest as a climate haven, a new report says the region can expect an increase in climate abandonment, particularly from high-flooding areas, over the next 30 years. (Planet Detroit)
WIND: A Cleveland-area company aims to grow the market for its benches, picnic tables and other outdoor furniture crafted from recycled wind turbine blades. (Energy News Network)
BIOGAS: Biogas digesters are receiving a growing share of federal rural clean energy program funding coming into Wisconsin, as critics question the climate benefits of the technology. (Tone Madison)
NUCLEAR: The owner of a southwestern Michigan nuclear plant is contesting its property tax assessment which, if lowered, could cost the state and local governments millions of dollars in tax revenue. (WSJM)
WORKFORCE:
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
SOLAR:
CLIMATE: The outgoing mayor of Des Moines, Iowa, is appointed to serve as the city’s climate ambassador after leaving office. (KCCI)
COMMENTARY: A Michigan Democratic state representative says the state’s new clean energy laws will boost grid reliability while lowering bills. (Bridge)
CLIMATE: Clean electricity standards enacted in Minnesota and Michigan bookended a year of state-level climate progress that included gas hookup restrictions and new funding for clean energy manufacturing. (E&E News)
OIL & GAS:
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
EMISSIONS: The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a challenge to the U.S. EPA’s anti-air-pollution “good neighbor” rule that limits power plant emissions that drift into other states. (Associated Press)
WIND:
SOLAR: A California appeals court rejects a petition to overturn a new state policy cutting compensation for rooftop solar; petitioners say they may take the case to the state Supreme Court. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
UTILITIES: North Carolina regulators consider Duke Energy’s green tariff proposal, which would allow the utility to count customers’ renewable energy purchases toward compliance with its state carbon emission goals. (Energy News Network)
CLEAN ENERGY: A Minnesota agency overseeing the state’s clean energy transition adds 64 positions to its staff of roughly 90 to help manage new state programs and capitalize on federal funding opportunities. (Energy News Network)
FINANCE: Industry analysts say cleantech investing is poised for a strong 2024 after a slow start to 2023 rebounded in the second half of the year. (Canary Media)
SOLAR: A California appeals court rejects a petition to overturn a new state policy cutting compensation for rooftop solar; petitioners say they may take the case to the state Supreme Court. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
ALSO: A survey finds California’s solar industry has lost about 17,000 jobs since regulators slashed net metering rates for residential installations. (news release)
CLEAN ENERGY:
ELECTRIFICATION: A small Colorado town’s proposal to decarbonize buildings by banning natural gas hookups in new construction runs up against the nation’s largest natural gas-only utility’s opposition and political power. (NPR)
UTILITIES: Wyoming regulators approve a 5.5% Rocky Mountain Power rate hike after the utility admits its proposed 29.2% increase was partly based on a major accounting error. (WyoFile)
STORAGE: An Arizona utility brings a 100 MW battery energy storage system online in the southern part of the state. (Renewable Energy World)
TRANSITION: Northwestern New Mexico economic development officials seek $100 million in state funds to expand the fossil fuel-reliant region’s energy economy by creating a hydrogen production hub. (Farmington Daily Times)
CLIMATE:
COAL: A Utah coal mine that has been on fire since last year is “idled indefinitely” and plans to lay off its remaining 150 employees in January. (Salt Lake Tribune, subscription; Argus Media)
CARBON CAPTURE: The U.S. EPA publishes draft injection well permits for sequestering carbon dioxide from a hydrogen production facility in southern California, the agency’s first for the state. (E&E News, subscription)
HYDROPOWER: A Colorado organization acquires Colorado River water rights from an Xcel Energy hydropower plant in an innovative $100 million deal. (Aspen Journalism)
NUCLEAR: The Columbia nuclear power plant in Washington state completes its initial 40-year operating phase with plans to continue to keep operating at least until 2043. (Tri-City Herald)
OIL & GAS: Federal analysts predict natural gas prices will remain low through the winter, digging into tax revenues in gas-producing states like Wyoming. (Oil City News)
BIOFUELS: California awards $4 million to planned bioenergy facilities that will burn forest restoration waste to generate power. (Biofuels Digest)
One of the primary state agencies that oversees Minnesota’s climate and clean energy programs is expanding its staff by nearly two-thirds, fueled by new state and federal funding opportunities.
The Minnesota Department of Commerce’s Division of Energy Resources, which plays a central role in Minnesota’s clean energy transition, has added 64 positions to its roughly 90 employees at the start of the year. Of those positions, 42 have been filled and 22 are in the hiring process.
The department oversees programs related to energy conservation, solar for schools and colleges, weatherization, energy assistance and other associated areas.
The hiring spree is being paid for with new funding from state and federal legislation. The Legislature created seven new energy-related programs this spring, including rebate efforts, a $100 million state competitiveness fund and a green bank. The Division of Energy Resources will manage the new programs, which are expected to begin next year.
“We anticipate that as various programs are set up, we may need additional staffing to support those efforts,” said Michelle Gransee, a deputy commissioner who oversees the division.
Some of the new hires are already helping bring in additional federal dollars to the state. Since July, the division has secured over hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding for utilities and communities under the Inflation Reduction Act and other programs.
“Bringing in hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars, requires dedicated staffing,” Gransee said.
Employees will fill out new and existing roles after a department restructuring that added new sections to deal with responsibilities created by lawmakers in the 2023 session, the most productive for energy legislation in Minnesota history. Other hires will assist in funding that has come through the Inflation Reduction Act and other federal laws.
The surge in new employees is the largest Gransee has seen in her 14-year Commerce career. The only comparable period came in 2009 when the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funded money for clean energy, but that lasted just two years.
The division has been hiring program developers, economists, lawyers, engineers, building science specialists, and grants and contracts experts, to name a few.
“We’re bringing in a diversity of talent and experience, which we were thrilled to see,” Gransee said.
The division has been receiving applications from employees of other state agencies, as well as recent University of Minnesota graduates, and people with backgrounds in nonprofits, utilities, and think tanks. The state has used LinkedIn and other regional and national experts to cast a net beyond Minnesota. Many applicants, she said, have been attracted to working at Commerce because they can have a direct impact on mitigating climate change in the state.
Among the recent higher profile hires have been Pete Klein, former vice president of finance at the St. Paul Port Authority, who planned to retire before being offered the opportunity to lead the department’s Minnesota Climate Innovation Finance Authority. With a budget of $45 million, the climate innovation authority, also known as a green bank, will develop financing tools to leverage private investment.
The department also recently hired John Michael-Cross, formerly a project manager with the Washington, D.C.-based Environment and Energy Study Institute, to run the state’s community solar program. In 2023, the Legislature moved management of the program from Xcel Energy to the state division.
Gransee said not all new employees will be permanent. Several will work under contract and not become employees.
“The tradition of coming into the state and working for the next 40 years for it isn’t for everybody,” she said. “For some, it’s exciting to come into a position that’s two or three years long, have a great impact, and then see what’s next.”
The Division of Energy Resources has recently expanded with more than 30 new programs that will be managed by the following offices:
“Each of those offices has some growth in them,” she said. “Some are entire units; others will have just one additional person coming into a space for a specific project or program.”
Gregg Mast, executive director of the nonprofit Clean Energy Economy Minnesota, said the additional employees will be needed to have “rapid rollout of the new programs so we can have swift implementation.” The advocacy group hopes Commerce’s new staff members will expand private sector clean energy jobs in Minnesota.
Since the legislative session ended, Gransee said agency staff have been occupied with creating new and updating existing programs.
“We’re thrilled by the expansion,” she said. “We could have twice as many staff and still keep everybody busy.”
.svg)
