Iron Range renaissance?

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.

GREEN STEEL

• Mesabi Metallics sees green steel as a path to revitalize Minnesota’s Iron Range, and is rolling out a $2.5 billion plan to mine and produce iron that’s key to lower-emissions steelmaking. (Canary Media)

• Gary, Indiana’s City Council unanimously calls for U.S. Steel to install a direct-reduction furnace and other green steel technology at its Gary Works plant, saying that a clean transition is essential to an ​“environmentally safe, competitive, and productive operation.” (Chicago Tribune)

SOLAR

• Some of Indiana’s rural residents are growing worried as the state sees more solar construction, highlighting the need for developers to better engage with communities where they’re building. (Canary Media)

• Iowa’s Cerro Gordo County is suing the state to block approval of what would be the state’s largest solar project. (Des Moines Register)

UTILITIES

• Indiana Gov. Mike Braun (R) names attorney Joby Jerrells as the next member of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, marking Braun’s fourth selection to the five-member committee. (Indiana Capital Chronicle)

• Democratic candidates for North Dakota’s Public Service Commission election call out the PSC attorney for arguing in court that the commission cannot consider public safety when regulating pipelines, as that is only handled at the federal level. (Inforum)

• The Republican governors of Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Missouri, Nebraska, and the Dakotas sign on to the Trump administration’s pledge to keep data center costs from falling on residential customers. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

GRID

• North Dakota’s Supreme Court rules that state utility regulators gave local governments and landowners proper notice before approving a transmission line project. (North Dakota Monitor)

COURTS

• Attorneys are now delivering arguments in a drawn-out case over whether Minnesota can sue fossil fuel companies for knowing about the climate-destroying impacts of their products for decades. (Courthouse News)

ELECTRIFICATION

• Minnesota farmers have until Aug. 11 to apply for a state grant that can help them pay for electric farm equipment. (West Central Tribune)

NUCLEAR

• At least nine Illinois communities say they’re interested in hosting a nuclear power plant after the state lifts its moratorium on construction. (Capital News Illinois)

MINING

• North Dakota’s Falkirk coal mine begins negotiations with the DOE as it seeks $50 million to fund a project to extract rare earth minerals from coal. (KXNet)

BIOFUELS

• Soybean farmers celebrate the revocation of Minnesota’s Clean Cars rule, saying it’s a victory for growing biofuel operations. (AgWeek)