How the nation’s biggest solar factory is transforming a Georgia town

CLEAN ENERGY: Georgia has received $23 billion in clean energy factory investment since the passage of a landmark federal climate package, supercharging communities like the one that hosts Qcells’ solar panel factory. (Canary Media)

ALSO: A Virginia commission formed to distribute funding from a 1998 tobacco settlement considers energy-related grant requests for a $12 million fund set aside as part of a legislative mandate. (Virginia Mercury)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• A group of Georgia residents and farmers launch a petition drive to block the drilling of four wells for Hyundai’s electric vehicle and battery plant five miles away. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Donald Trump softens his criticism of electric vehicles due in part to his friendly relationship with Tesla boss Elon Musk, but officials say they expect he’ll still try to gut federal support for the industry. (Politico, Houston Chronicle)
• Tennessee residents push to reopen a community center near Ford’s ​“BlueOval” electric truck and battery complex that a local official closed in December. (Tennessee Lookout)

SOLAR: A Virginia county board rejects a company’s proposal to build an 80 MW solar farm despite pleas from a town that would have received $500,000 as part of the project. (Mecklenburg Sun)

OIL & GAS:

• An oil company reports it plans to begin operations next summer at a $1.3 billion direct air capture project in Texas as it absorbs one of the Permian Basin’s largest independent oil producers. (E&E News, subscription)
• Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announces a $368,000 state grant to pay for design planning of a natural gas line to a technology park. (Bluefield Daily-Telegraph)

EFFICIENCY: Two North Carolina school districts will receive $300,000 each in federal funds to boost their energy efficiency, with one district qualifying for an additional $7.5 million for upgrades. (WUNC)

GRID:

• West Virginia residents sound off on Appalachian Power’s proposal to build 20 miles of transmission lines they say would threaten a popular trail system. (WV Metro News)
• Austin, Texas’ mayor urges residents to conserve power ahead of tight conditions expected on the state power grid this month. (KTBC)
• Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launches an investigation of CenterPoint Energy over accusations of fraud, waste and improper use of taxpayer money that affected its response to Hurricane Beryl. (Austin American-Statesman)

CLIMATE:

• Dallas officials say a pilot program to test ​“cool pavement” shows the technology’s promise, reducing temperatures up to 10 degrees in urban heat islands. (Dallas Morning News)
• Experts say Texas officials are almost certainly undercounting heat-related deaths, due in part to the subjectivity and complexity in listing the cause of death in local records. (Texas Tribune/​Inside Climate News)

UTILITIES: West Virginia regulators hear testimony questioning Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power’s decision to purchase power from the PJM grid instead of generating their own from three coal-fired power plants in the state as they consider the utilities’ request for a $20.4 million rate increase. (Parkersburg News and Sentinel, Charleston Gazette-Mail)