Illinois’ solar future

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.

SOLAR

• In Illinois, state-funded hubs are training solar installers and other clean energy workers to further the clean energy transition even as federal support fades. (Canary Media)

• Solar grazing with sheep could be a promising agrivoltaics approach in Illinois, though one obstacle for farmers is a lack of demand for sheep meat in the U.S. (Canary Media)

• States like Illinois that rely on projected returns from federal tax incentives will have to reassess how clawbacks in the One Big Beautiful Bill will affect clean energy targets, an attorney argues. (PV Magazine)

• A 585-acre South Dakota solar project receives up to $2.8 million in tax incentives that refund a portion of state sales and use taxes to offset development costs. (South Dakota Searchlight)

RENEWABLES

• Iowa utilities will need to move aggressively to secure outgoing federal clean energy tax incentives and meet 2035 net-zero emissions targets as power demand is expected to rise, according to a new report from clean energy advocates. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

DATA CENTERS

• Staff at Missouri’s utility regulator say Ameren’s recent proposal for new large data center rates would increase ratepayer bills by $22 million and shift grid costs onto captive ratepayers to support development. (St. Louis Public Radio)

• Kansas regulators will soon consider a proposed settlement agreement between consumer, nonprofit, and private entities that reached consensus over electric rates for data centers and other large users. (Kansas Reflector)

• Ohio regulators deny an appeal from data centers and manufacturers that allow special electric rates for large users to move forward, though one advocacy group vows to appeal to the state Supreme Court. (Ohio Capital Journal)

CLIMATE

• Officials are nearing the completion of a comprehensive net-zero emissions climate action plan for a 13-county region around Chicago that includes transitioning transportation from fossil fuels. (Chicago Tribune)

PIPELINES

• A North Dakota judge denies Energy Transfer’s request to halt a free speech lawsuit that Greenpeace filed in the Netherlands in response to the pipeline developer’s suit against the nonprofit over Dakota Access pipeline protests. (North Dakota Monitor)

GRID

• A complaint challenging MISO’s $22 billion transmission buildout could jeopardize more than $4 billion of projects in Wisconsin, advocates say. (Wisconsin Public Radio)

• Michigan’s top utility regulator responds to a recent report finding the state’s two large utilities have some of the worst reliability in the nation, saying that DTE Energy and Consumers Energy have made progress when excluding major weather events. (Planet Detroit)

UTILITIES

• Indiana’s consumer advocate says regulators should reject AES’s request for a $193 million rate increase, and approve a $21 million reduction in current rates, by calling for a lower return on equity and reducing customer service charges. (Indiana Capital Chronicle)

• Michigan regulators increase outage credits from $40 to $42 per day for ratepayers who experience outages for longer than 16 hours. (Detroit Free Press)

NEW FROM CANARY 

• Chart: Trump is slowing climate progress. Here’s how much. — Dan McCarthy

• California could save big if virtual power plants target​‘sweet spots’ — Jeff St. John