Biden considers backing Alaska LNG ​“carbon bomb”

OIL & GAS: The Biden administration is reportedly considering backing a proposed liquefied natural gas export project in Alaska that conservationists are calling a ​“carbon bomb 10 times worse” than the Willow drilling project. (Politico)

ALSO:
• The Biden administration asks the U.S. Supreme Court to reject an oil and gas industry bid to overturn a lower court ruling banning hydraulic fracturing off California’s coast. (E&E News, subscription)
• The Biden administration extends federal endangered species protections to a thistle that grows in the Permian Basin, potentially affecting oil and gas development. (Carlsbad Current-Argus)
• Federal investigators find a fatal 2021 natural gas pipeline explosion in Arizona was caused by corrosion resulting from faulty protective tape wrapping. (Arizona Republic)
• A Colorado real estate developer agrees to permanently drop oil and gas drilling plans if regulators approve its proposed urban renewal plan. (Reporter-Herald)

CRYPTOCURRENCY: Washington state advocates help form a group calling on lawmakers and regulators to crack down on cryptocurrency mining’s electricity use. (E&E News)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: A Washington state startup and Alaska Airlines launch an effort to retrofit a 76-seat plane with a hydrogen-powered electric propulsion system that would be the largest zero-emissions aircraft so far. (GeekWire)

STORAGE: Portland General Electric plans to install 400 MW of battery storage in Oregon to provide power for up to 260,000 homes for four hours during peak demand. (Utility Dive)

SOLAR:
• A New Mexico solar installation and construction company rebounds after laying off most of its workforce amid post-pandemic supply chain constraints and utility-scale project cancellations. (Albuquerque Journal)
• A 30 MW solar-plus-storage installation in Hawaii goes online. (West Hawaii Today)

WIND: A California community power agency issues a request for information from developers planning to build offshore wind power projects along the state’s northern coast. (Times-Standard)

UTILITIES: California regulators approve Pacific Gas & Electric’s proposed hybrid battery storage and hydrogen fuel cell system for powering a substation in a wildfire and outage-prone area. (Utility Dive)

GRID: Pacific Gas & Electric says severe weather, wildfires and automated fire prevention systems have increased the number and duration of power outages affecting its customers over the last year. (Mercury News)

BIOFUELS: Washington state lawmakers pass legislation reinstating tax breaks for businesses using wood waste to produce electricity, heat or biofuel; it is awaiting the governor’s signature. (Spokesman-Review)

COAL: The Biden administration launches a formal review of an Obama-era federal coal-leasing ban rescinded by the Trump administration. (E&E News, subscription)