Chinese components still linger in U.S. solar supply chain buildout

SOLAR: Hanwha’s Qcells plant in Georgia has collected $230 million in federal tax credits as it aims to build the first end-to-end domestic solar supply chain, but records show that for now it’s still relying on Chinese components that are otherwise barred from entering the U.S. (Bloomberg)

ALSO:

• A titanium plant under construction in West Virginia will be powered by solar panels and battery storage that form a microgrid. (Canary Media)
• Kentucky residents raise concerns about the proposed construction of two new solar farms. (WKYT)

WIND:

• Dominion Energy announces it’s purchased from Avangrid a 40,000-acre lease area off the coast of North Carolina that could be the site of its second offshore wind farm in the Mid-Atlantic. (Virginia Mercury, news release)
• An energy company begins construction to replace blades and repower a Texas wind farm that will increase its power from 150 MW to 160 MW. (WindTech International)

GRID:

• More than two million Texans lost power as Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Houston, with restoration anticipated to take several days. (Houston Chronicle, KTRK)
• A company that builds power poles designed to withstand severe weather opens a factory in Houston, Texas. (Houston Chronicle)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Georgia regulators release draft permits for four wells to supply Hyundai’s $7.6 billion electric vehicle factory, as nearby residents voice fears about their water supply. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, subscription)
• Kentucky lags most of its neighbors in electric vehicle adoption, though advocates hope to remedy its relatively low EV ownership rate by building more chargers. (Lexington Herald-Leader)

OIL & GAS:

• A construction firm tells Texas regulators it’s preparing to formally exit a liquified natural gas terminal it was building for Exxon Mobil and Qatar Energy after blaming the project for thousands of layoffs and a recent bankruptcy. (Houston Chronicle)
• Texas’ governor and lieutenant governor want to double a $5 billion state fund to incentivize gas-fired power plant construction. (Houston Chronicle)

NUCLEAR: Florida regulators begin to study expanding ​“advanced” nuclear power at military bases and elsewhere as directed by a recently passed law. (WUSF)

COAL ASH: A judge rejects utilities’ arguments that the U.S. EPA’s coal ash storage restrictions apply only to rain and not groundwater, effectively opening the door for stricter enforcement. (Grist)

COAL: Government officials estimate how much mineable coal remains in West Virginia. (WBOY)

CLIMATE: A U.S. EPA study finds flooding on the Texas Gulf Coast well outpaces the national average for coastal areas, likely due to a combination of rising seas and sinking land. (Houston Chronicle)

UTILITIES: South Carolina regulators approve a rate hike for Duke Energy and consider raising rates for Dominion Energy despite residents’ protests. (Queen City News, WACH)

POLITICS: ​“I was wondering how much money it would take to buy you back from Big Oil” — a young climate activist confronts Alabama U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, who dismisses the question as ​“dishonest.” (AL.com)

COMMENTARY:

• Georgia’s success in attracting electric vehicle and battery factories could see the state displace Michigan as the undisputed national leader in auto manufacturing, writes an electrification advocate. (Georgia Recorder)
• Virginia readers chime in on the debate over climate change and whether the state should get involved in the transition to electric vehicles. (Cardinal News)