Faked public comments may doom solar project

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

SOLAR

• Ohio regulators are poised to block a $98 million solar project because of local pushback, even though dozens of public comments opposing the plan appear to be fabricated. (Canary Media)
• Iowa lawmakers advance bills to allow community solar projects despite utility opposition claiming that would raise costs for non-subscribing customers. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)
• An Illinois Democrat proposes legislation to restore local governments’ ability to restrict or ban rooftop solar installations. (WTVO)

CLIMATE

• Illinois’ Democratic House majority leader sponsors legislation to force major fossil fuel companies to pay for infrastructure, climate-resilient housing, and other climate-adaptation measures. (E&E News)

DATA CENTERS

• Consumers Energy is nearing a rate agreement with an unnamed, 1 GW data center and is in advanced talks with a second large developer as utility executives continue to court projects in Michigan. (MLive)
• Michigan’s Democratic attorney general asks state regulators to reopen a review of DTE Energy’s power supply contracts with a hyperscale data center, claiming the utility has yet to guarantee that other customers wouldn’t cover costs to serve the facility. (WDIV)
• At least 19 Michigan communities have enacted or proposed moratoriums on data centers as opposition grows to tax breaks state lawmakers passed at the end of 2024 to attract the industry. (Bridge)

UTILITIES

• Ohio’s manufacturing lobby says utilities are treating data centers as scapegoats for rising electricity costs, when speculative demand forecasts driving investments in new generation are the primary culprit. (Toledo Blade)
• North Dakota regulators approve a rate increase for Xcel Energy that excludes nearly two dozen wind and solar projects from cost recovery. (North Dakota Monitor)

PIPELINES

• The Trump administration calls on a federal judge to freeze his order requiring the Line 5 pipeline to shut down through a Wisconsin reservation on June 16 while the case is on appeal. (E&E News)
• An Iowa Senate committee advances a bill to create a severance tax on the carbon dioxide that’s transported through pipelines. (North Dakota Monitor)

POWER PLANTS

• Nebraska lawmakers take testimony on bills to prevent the closure of power plants unless certain conditions are met, following a dispute over an Omaha coal plant that was ordered to stay open after its planned closure date. (KETV)

BIOFUELS

• Iowa’s Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds says growth for the state’s biofuels industry will depend on new markets created through broader access to E15 ethanol, sustainable aviation fuel, and carbon-capture technology. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

NEW FROM CANARY

• What’s driving up Maine’s energy bills? Natural gas. — Sarah Shemkus
• Chart: Surprise — batteries got cheaper again last year — Dan McCarthy
• In U-turn, Trump approves low-income energy-assistance funds — Alison F. Takemura
• Massachusetts scrutinizes pipeline-safety program as gas bills spike — Sarah Shemkus
• Missouri Senate considers bills to halt solar development on farmland — Rudi Keller