A new milestone for offshore wind

WIND: Vineyard Wind becomes 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)

ALSO: Federal interior officials approve the construction and operations plan for the two-part Empire Wind project slated to provide roughly 2 GW of electricity off the New York coast. (WorkBoat)

GRID: FERC seeks $27 million in penalties from a Texas company called ​“Ketchup Caddy” after finding it bid hundreds of megawatts of non-existent capacity into MISO markets. (Utility Dive)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, whose state has seen billions of dollars in investments from EV manufacturers, says the ​“Biden mandates” have ​“pushed the market too quickly” and created a backlash to electric cars. (Politico)
• Ford’s CEO says the automaker will have to ​“think carefully” about the location of future factories after last year’s strike by the United Auto Workers temporarily shut down its truck factory in Louisville, Kentucky. (Associated Press)

SOLAR:

• Sunrun says its home battery sales have surged since California slashed net metering compensation for rooftop solar. (Bloomberg)
• Amid contentious debate over a large solar project, an Ohio county sees two conflicting studies on economic benefits, but only one is transparent about its data. (Energy News Network)

POLLUTION: The EPA’s science advisors warn a proposed power plant emissions rule will not be aggressive enough to meet Paris Agreement climate targets. (E&E News, subscription)

OIL & GAS: The Mountain Valley Pipeline’s developers say they’ll purchase $150 million in carbon offsets to ensure the natural gas transmission project is ​“carbon neutral” during its first decade. (WV News)

BIOFUELS: The U.S. EPA issues a final rule to allow year-round sales of higher blends of corn-based ethanol in eight Midwestern states despite concerns that it could worsen smog during warm weather. (Associated Press)

UTILITIES: Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine defends a top adviser after a criminal indictment alleges she knew about millions of dollars FirstEnergy paid to Sam Randazzo before DeWine appointed him as the state’s top utility regulator. (Ohio Capital Journal)

GEOTHERMAL: A Chicago environmental justice organization is helping to build out a geothermal heating and cooling network on the city’s South Side. (Grist)

HYDROGEN: The CEO of North America’s largest flat-rolled steel company is betting on hydrogen to decarbonize its operations while also driving profits: ​“We are doing this to get paid, not to brag about it.” (E&E News)

COMMENTARY: A Harvard legal scholar says interregional transmission lines, which will be critical for reaching climate targets, are being held back by utilities protecting their profits. (IEEE Spectrum)