Governors square off over $22 billion transmission plan

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.

GRID

• Midwest Republican and Democratic governors push back on five GOP-led states’ claims that MISO’s $22 billion transmission plan effectively subsidizes clean energy goals, and say it would provide major benefits to ratepayers. (Minnesota Reformer)

• Ameren Illinois goes before a state court and federal regulators to claim first rights to build nearly $2 billion in transmission lines in cases that face opposition from consumer groups. (E&E News)

PIPELINES

• A company is set to begin operations on a $1.5 billion carbon pipeline from Iowa and Nebraska to a storage site in Wyoming that includes a program to share proceeds with communities along the route. (Nebraska Examiner)

STORAGE

• South Dakota regulators vote to require the developer of a 120 MW battery storage project to obtain a permit for what would be one of the state’s first large-scale storage projects. (South Dakota Searchlight)

NUCLEAR

• Kansas, Bill Gates-backed advanced nuclear startup TerraPower, and utility Evergy will explore sites for a nuclear project and energy storage plant as power demand grows. (Reuters)

• WEC Energy Group’s plan for exploring nuclear power at a shuttered Wisconsin nuclear plant could take two years to submit a proposal with an operational date as early as 2038. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

CLEAN ENERGY

• Milwaukee-area car dealers and solar installers see a jump in EV and residential solar sales as federal clean energy tax credits are set to expire. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

DATA CENTERS

• OpenAI plans to build six large data center complexes, including one in Ohio and another undisclosed Midwest location, as part of a joint venture with Oracle and Softbank in the White House-backed Stargate project. (Associated Press)

SOLAR

• Grand Rapids, Michigan, advances plans for a solar project on a capped landfill to meet upcoming deadlines for expiring federal clean energy tax credits. (Crain’s Grand Rapids)

• NextEra Energy is in talks with county officials for a 500 MW solar project in northeastern Kansas that’s drawing opposition from some residents. (KSNT)

• The University of Michigan installs the first solar panels as part of a $71 million sustainability plan that calls for 25 MW of solar across three campuses. (MLive)

OVERSIGHT

• Indiana seeks applicants to fill three soon-to-be open seats on the Utility Regulatory Commission as Gov. Mike Braun highlights rising energy costs as a growing challenge for residents. (Axios Indianapolis)

BIOFUELS

• Wisconsin’s forestry industry backs state legislation to incentivize the construction of a sustainable aviation fuel plant that backers say could help lift a forestry industry facing multiple headwinds. (WXPR)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Minnesota Power plans to install a network of 16 electric vehicle fast chargers around Duluth and northern Minnesota by the end of the year. (FOX 21)

NEW FROM CANARY 

• Revolution Wind’s stop-work order has been lifted. What happens next? — Clare Fieseler

• Glassmaking needs lots of heat. Can electric furnaces provide it? — Maria Gallucci

• States get a blueprint to speed up heat-pump adoption — Alison F. Takemura

• Plug-in solar bills are in the works in New Hampshire and Vermont — Sarah Shemkus

• New California law could expand energy trading across the West — Jeff St. John