Michigan AG sues Big Oil

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.

CLEAN ENERGY

• Michigan’s Democratic attorney general has filed an antitrust lawsuit against major oil companies, claiming they acted like a cartel to thwart competition from clean energy and EVs, which drove up energy prices for consumers. (Bridge)

• U.S. communities that have lost clean energy and climate funding canceled by the Trump administration respond in a variety of ways, from seeking money elsewhere to canceling projects. (Grist)

DATA CENTERS

• Wisconsin Republicans are moving fast to pass a bill that would require renewable energy projects developed to power data centers to be built on the data center site. (E&E News)

• Resistance to data centers grows in rural Wisconsin communities where residents say a lack of transparency is allowing big companies to quickly advance plans. (Daily Yonder)

• Data center development could lead to $113 billion to $130 billion in total electricity system costs in Wisconsin by 2050 and increase the state’s reliance on fossil fuels, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists. (Wisconsin Public Radio)

PIPELINES

• The Iowa House passes a bill banning the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines, as backers claim the practice should not be used for projects that don’t serve a public purpose. (Iowa Public Radio)

OIL & GAS

• A northern Michigan crude oil and brine spill last year was four times larger than first estimated, and company crews are still removing liquids from the area. (MLive)

• An Ohio environmental group files an ethics complaint against a state lawmaker who critics say has used his office to benefit oil and gas businesses tied to his family. (Cleveland.com)

FOSSIL FUELS

• Minnesota utility officials urge customers to conserve energy as the wholesale price of natural gas is expected to spike with frigid weather sweeping through the Midwest. (Star Tribune)

COAL

• Environmental and consumer groups challenging the Trump administration’s order to keep open two Indiana coal plants say the move does little to improve reliability and instead drives up costs for ratepayers. (E&E News)

SOLAR

• Cincinnati officials consider plans for a 10 MW, $12 million solar project on a former landfill that closed 40 years ago. (WLWT)

BIOFUELS

• Iowa ethanol leaders say corn growers face a difficult future without expanded markets for their products, such as year-round allowances for higher blends of ethanol and ultra-low carbon ethanol markets possible through carbon sequestration. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

• Farm groups, biofuels advocates, and Iowa lawmakers blast Congress members for failing to pass legislation to allow year-round sales of higher blends of ethanol. (Des Moines Register)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Kansas EV drivers now pay $100 to $165 more per year in registration fees under a new state law that backers say levels the playing field with drivers who pay gasoline taxes. (WIBW)