Illinois electric school buses get a summer job

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

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• ComEd will pilot a vehicle-to-grid project at three northern Illinois school districts to determine how well electric school buses could serve as batteries during the summer by charging at night and dispatching power during high-demand periods. (Canary Media)

NUCLEAR

• The owner of a shuttered Michigan nuclear plant it plans to bring back online this year unveils plans to build two of its own small modular reactors at the site, though they still need approval from federal regulators. (Canary Media)

GRID

• Clean energy advocates see opportunities for tech companies to prioritize clean energy technology to power data center demand instead of relying on fossil fuels. (Canary Media)

UTILITIES

• Major Ohio utilities push back on legislation to repeal subsidies for two unprofitable coal plants, claiming they are baked into the utilities’ balance sheet and are essential for grid reliability. (Ohio Capital Journal)

PIPELINES

• President Trump says he wants plans for the Keystone XL pipeline to resume and pledges quick regulatory approval, even though the original developer says it has moved on from the project. (Reuters)

• Jury selection begins in Energy Transfer’s $300 million defamation lawsuit against Greenpeace and the group’s alleged role in Dakota Access pipeline protests in 2016. (South Dakota Searchlight)

• The Trump administration withdraws draft carbon pipeline safety regulations that were introduced in the final week of the Biden administration in response to a pipeline rupture disaster five years ago. (The Lever)

STORAGE

• Illinois lawmakers introduce bills targeting the construction of 15 GW of battery storage for wind and solar projects and create a virtual power plant program that backers say could save ratepayers $2.4 billion over 20 years. (WTVO)

CLIMATE

• Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s pro-fossil fuel and anti-climate change platform is already shaping Ohio’s gubernatorial race and could slash clean energy investments that had federal funding support. (E&E News)

• Congress is set to vote on two bills this week that would roll back Biden administration climate regulations to limit methane emissions from the oil and gas sector and set efficiency standards for water heaters. (Inside Climate News)

COMMENTARY

• Illinois regulators made the right call to scale back Peoples Gas’ ​“boondoggle” Chicago gas pipeline replacement program after years of cost overruns that caused rising bills for low-income customers, an editorial board writes. (Chicago Tribune)