FirstEnergy ​‘bailout’ in Ohio should be denied, PUCO staff says

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OHIO: Staff at the state Public Utilities Commission say FirstEnergy’s ​“bailout” request should be denied. (Columbus Business First)

COMPETITION:
• As long-term power purchase agreements come to an end, Nebraska utilities are looking outside the state for alternative suppliers to keep costs down. (Midwest Energy News)
• FirstEnergy’s fighting for a regulated market in Ohio is an ​“ironic turn of events” compared to its position in the early 2000s. (Public Radio International)

WIND: Climate change will lead to 2 percent more wind energy in the Midwest, according to the latest regional climate models. (Phys.org)

EFFICIENCY: A St. Paul-based business is selected by the White House to deploy its energy efficiency technology as a way to manage the impact of climate change. (Midwest Energy News)

PIPELINES:
• An Illinois judge rules landowners living in the path of a planned Enbridge pipeline can receive up to $30,000 each for easements. (Southern Illinoisan)
• Strengthened federal pipeline safety rules will be released by the end of the month following a recent surge in accidents. (Associated Press)

RAIL: A BNSF railway in South Dakota was out of service Sunday after an ethanol tanker derailed over the weekend. (Reuters)

OIL AND GAS:
• A company operating in the Bakken oil field seeks another year to flare gas from its 110 wells. (Bismarck Tribune)
• An Oklahoma man’s death shows a lack of understanding of the dangers of working at oil and gas sites. (EnergyWire)

COAL:
• Minnesota lawmakers will tour the state’s largest coal-fired power plant to get a better understanding of how it will be impacted by the Clean Power Plan. (Minnesota Public Radio)
• Wisconsin families believe their health is deteriorating due to living near We Energies coal plants. (WTMJ-TV)
• At a meeting of coal industry officials, good news about the future is hard to come by. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• NRG Energy will continue burning coal and install pollution controls at one of its Ohio plants instead of switching it to natural gas. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• A Southern Illinois town continues pushing for coal mining jobs. (Southern Illinoisan)
• Duke Energy is facing nearly $1 billion in charges against revenues at an underperforming Indiana coal gasification plant. (Charlotte Business Journal)

SOLAR: A Dubuque, Iowa, gas station owner installs solar panels at two of his stores to offset energy costs. (Telegraph Herald)

BIOFUELS: A group of business owners in Kansas have developed an alternative way of burning wood and other crop residuals that emits less pollution. (Topeka Capital-Journal)

WATER: A Wisconsin research consortium will study how to use less water to make energy and how to use less energy to do water management. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

VEHICLES:
• The U.S. EPA accuses Volkswagen of intentionally violating clean-air standards with software that overrides cars’ emission controls. (Associated Press)
• National Drive Electric Week comes to Madison, Wisconsin, where organizers say the city is ready for the transition. (WMTV)

RATES: A Nebraska utility is looking to shift the way it collects revenue with a higher monthly fixed charge and lower usage charges. (Lincoln Journal Star)

COMMENTARY:
• Staples is one of hundreds of U.S. businesses encouraging governors to support the Clean Power Plan. (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• Meanwhile, an Ohio free-market think tank says the state should reject President Obama’s ​“clean power grab.” (Toledo Blade)