Dig rig gets first big gig

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Northeast Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning.

GEOTHERMAL

• New Hampshire-based Dig Energy completes its first paid job with its novel geothermal drilling rig, which it says saves time, money, and water. (Canary Media)

LITIGATION

• Three Massachusetts utilities and Canadian energy company Hydro-Québec sue each other for payments related to a 12-lapse in exports of hydropower to New England. (Canary Media)

DATA CENTERS

• Towns across Vermont consider banning data centers following Gov. Phil Scott’s veto this spring of a bill that would have put strict regulations on the facilities. (Seven Days)

• The city council of Newark, New Jersey, calls for a moratorium on data center projects, raising concerns about how such developments could affect energy prices and grid reliability. (New Jersey Globe)

NATURAL GAS

• Pennsylvania’s six biggest natural gas utilities spent $11 billion on pipeline replacement programs from 2013 to 2025, a major driver of soaring gas prices in the state, according to a new report. (news release)

• Natural gas production in Pennsylvania drops for the second straight quarter, even as production rises in neighboring states. (WPXI)

• Shell sells its interest in a gas-fired power plant in Rhode Island and buys a plant in Pennsylvania, expanding its footprint in the PJM grid where data centers are driving soaring demand. (Reuters)

SOLAR

• A Maryland county considers a bill that would require new industrial buildings to install solar panels. (Baltimore Sun)

UTILITIES

• As Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey runs for reelection, she must walk a thin line with utilities between demanding reforms and supporting their efforts to provide reliable service. (Commonwealth Beacon)

• Massachusetts utilities are deploying smart meters they say will make billing more accurate and allow customers to better manage their power use. (WBUR)

AFFORDABILITY

• Maine asks federal regulators to stop transmission owners from charging customers for the companies’ participation in ISO New England. (RTO Insider)

BIOMASS

• An 800-pound butter sculpture created for the New York State Fair is deconstructed and recycled in an anaerobic digester to generate energy for an upstate farm. (News 10)

NEW FROM CANARY

• The battery era is here — and China is supplying it — Dan McCarthy

• Trump emergency order casts uncertainty over grid battery growth — Jeff St. John

• Coal-to-solar project lands a rare clean-energy win in Ohio — Kathiann M. Kowalski