Hydrogen eyed for cleaner ammonia

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Midwest Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each morning.

HYDROGEN

• A startup pilots facilities in Iowa that produce ammonia for agriculture fertilizer from green hydrogen, a potentially cleaner and more cost-effective alternative to products made from fossil gas. (Canary Media)

GRID

• Potential spikes in electricity demand serve as the backdrop of Illinois’ lawmakers attempts at crafting updated clean energy legislation that avoids price spikes while reaching carbon-free energy targets. (Chicago Tribune)

• The bill package includes a Solar Bill of Rights and a program to stimulate energy storage projects, among other provisions. (PV Magazine)

• Minnesota lawmakers consider extending sales tax breaks for large data centers, perhaps as an olive branch since they plan to revoke sales tax exemptions on the electricity that facilities consume. (Minnesota Reformer)

PIPELINES

• The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe will appeal a federal judge’s ruling that the tribe’s attempt to shut down the Dakota Access pipeline for operating without a valid easement was premature. (E&E News)

COAL

• Michigan’s top energy regulator says an Energy Department order to keep open a large coal plant for reliability purposes is unnecessary and will increase the cost of power to homes and businesses. (WOOD-TV8)

OVERSIGHT

• The chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission will retire in January, creating a vacancy on the oversight panel that advocates say comes at a crucial time for the state’s energy transition. (Indiana Public Media)

SOLAR

• Minnesota regulators hold a public meeting on a developer’s plan for a 200 MW solar project with 200 MW of battery storage. (The Globe)

CLIMATE

• Cleveland’s work around reducing buildings’ emissions and installing EV chargers in underserved neighborhoods shows how U.S. mayors are taking climate action, with or without the help of the federal government. (Grist)

• A Chicago-area company that recycles carbon emissions plans to shrink its footprint and lay off 44 people as operating expenses increase and it fails to reach profitability. (Chicago Tribune)

BIOGAS

• Critics say proposed bills in Michigan meant to increase biogas production would make it easier to dispose of industrial waste and harm small farms. (Heartland Signal)

NEW FROM CANARY

• The collapse and bankruptcy of EV battery recycling startup Li-Cycle underscores the battery recycling industry’s challenges, especially as federal support dwindles, Julian Spector reports.