Congress members hold on to energy, utility investments

POLITICS: An investigation identifies at least 97 members of Congress whose family investments overlap with their committee assignments, including dozens who have a stake in utilities, electric vehicles, and energy companies. (New York Times)

FINANCE:
• Climate activists hope the Inflation Reduction Act’s creation of a national green bank will help communities finance their transitions away from fossil fuels. (Guardian)
• Major private equity firms still hold billions of dollars in fossil fuel projects, putting investors at risk as governments shift to cleaner energy. (Guardian)
• Clean energy tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act stand to both benefit renewable developers and help fossil fuel companies shift to solar and storage, analysts predict. (Utility Dive)

CLIMATE:
• Scientists call a 2012 IPCC report on climate-driven extreme weather ​“clairvoyant” in its predictions of devastating floods, increasingly intense hurricanes, and expanding dry spells. (Associated Press)
• The Biden administration prepares to announce a more than $3 billion program to fund projects that reduce or sequester greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture and forestry. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)
• Eastern Kentucky families face the prospect of a winter without stable housing after their homes were destroyed in July flooding. (Ohio Valley ReSource, BBC)

GRID:
• Power outages are increasing as demand grows, infrastructure ages and the warming climate intensifies storms, a climate group’s analysis finds. (CNN)
• California regulators propose real-time pricing to provide demand flexibility, lower costs and reduce grid stress as distributed generation expands, but critics say the plan is too complicated to work. (Utility Dive)
• PacifiCorp expands Utah’s 3,000-household solar-plus-battery virtual power plant program to Idaho and plans to take it to California, Oregon and Washington. (Canary Media)

PIPELINES: Sen. Joe Manchin’s permitting reform side deal doesn’t guarantee the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s completion, as regulatory experts say it could still face further legal challenges. (E&E News)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Rivian’s Normal, Illinois manufacturing plant shows the potential for the electric vehicle industry to bring activity to former automotive-reliant communities in the Midwest. (Washington Post)
• A Michigan startup unveils a new anode-free battery pack designed to cut costs by up to 50% while delivering up to 600 miles of driving range. (Reuters)

EFFICIENCY: A New York City startup aims to help buildings replace aging fossil fuel heating infrastructure with electrified equipment and reduce their emissions. (New York Times)

COAL: The coal industry’s dependence on railroads threatens to derail power supplies in parts of the country as railroad workers prepare to strike this week. (Grist)

HYDROGEN:
• Tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act are set to boost nuclear plant owners, and they could bring in additional funding by providing electricity to hydrogen producers, analysts say. (S&P Global)
• Oregon and Washington state partner to pursue billions of dollars of federal funding to establish a regional green hydrogen production hub. (Oregon Capital Chronicle)