IEA: Global grid needs to double to meet climate goals

GRID: The world’s electric grid needs to double in size by 2040 to handle the surge of new clean electricity projects needed to meet climate goals, the International Energy Agency says. (Guardian)

OIL & GAS: Environmentalists gear up for a fight with the Biden administration over the massive expansion of U.S. natural gas exports, especially since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (Washington Post)

HYDROGEN: Critics raise concerns about the potential emissions implications of fossil fuel-based hydrogen production as the Biden administration supports a major buildout at hubs across the U.S. (States Newsroom)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• Ford is laying off about 700 workers building the electric F-150 truck, citing multiple supply chain constraints. (CNN)
• Using federal funds, National Grid and partners will conduct a two-year study of electric trucking in the Northeast to map out 100 potential charging sites. (Utility Dive)
• The U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear Minnesota auto dealers’ challenge to the state’s clean-car rules, which are now set to take effect next year. (Star Tribune)
• New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham orders state agencies to switch to all-electric vehicle fleets within 12 years and proposes new tax credits for zero-emissions cars. (Associated Press)
• Federal labor regulators propose $270,000 in fines after finding 19 health and safety violations at a General Motors joint venture electric vehicle battery plant in Ohio. (Associated Press)

SOLAR: New England observers discuss the default option of landfilling most solar panels, the benefits of reusing them and current projects using repurposed panels. (Boston Globe)

EMISSIONS: West Virginia, Indiana and Ohio ask the U.S. Supreme Court to block the Biden administration’s ​“Good Neighbor Plan” to prevent emissions within states’ borders from significantly affecting other states’ air quality. (Bluefield Daily-Telegraph)

COAL: Developers envision turning a retired coal plant in northeast Ohio into a campus of parkland, public lake access and up to 1,200 homes, potentially becoming an example of how decaying power plants can become community assets once again. (New York Times)

EFFICIENCY:

• After Republican state lawmakers blocked any changes to the state building code until 2031, North Carolina clean energy advocates look for incentives and other ways to build energy efficiency into new housing stock. (Energy News Network)
• Home improvement businesses and local governments are encouraging residents to swap their gas lawn appliances for electric models, as the latter promise no fumes, less noise and better performance. (Canary Media)

MINING: The Biden administration finds an Alaska road that would boost access to a remote mining area would impact 66 tribal communities, though the Trump administration identified just 27 when approving the road. (The Hill)