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Minnesota cities tap new clean energy funding source

By Andy Balaskovitz

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CLEAN ENERGY: A growing number of cities across Minnesota and the U.S. are funding climate and clean energy projects with franchise fees collected from utilities using public rights-of-way for infrastructure. (Energy News Network)

SOLAR: Wisconsin’s $6 billion in public and private clean energy spending since 2018 largely focused on solar, making it an outlier among neighboring states that spent more heavily on electric vehicles. (Journal Sentinel)

PIPELINES: The developer of a carbon pipeline through parts of eastern Iowa and Illinois has not filed new information with state regulators for nearly 10 months, raising questions about the future of the project. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)

NUCLEAR: Preliminary work has started on potentially siting small modular nuclear reactors on the property of a shuttered Michigan nuclear plant that is being eyed for reopening. (MLive)

COAL:

  • Minnesota regulators order Xcel Energy to refund customers for the costs of buying replacement power following a major mechanical failure at a large coal plant in 2011. (MPR News)
  • The University of Iowa’s president says the school is on pace to retire its coal fleet by 2025 but says it’s crucial to have diversity in fuel sources to maintain reliability. (Daily Iowan)

CLEAN TECH: A Minnesota tech company has developed iron-based magnets for a wide variety of electronics, including electric vehicle motors, that eliminate reliance on rare earth metals. (Star Tribune)

RENEWABLES:

  • Michigan regulators finalize rules for determining when they would have authority to issue final approvals for commercial renewable energy projects instead of local governments. (MLive, subscription)
  • The state law moving approval authority to the state is a dominant theme in a race this election that could determine which party controls the state House. (Planet Detroit)

BIOFUELS: The U.S. Department of Energy announces nearly $3 billion in loan guarantees for a pair of Great Plains projects aiming to increase production of sustainable aviation fuel. (Canary Media)

COMMENTARY: Michigan advanced energy advocates announce a roadmap for achieving electric vehicle and charging infrastructure targets over the next two decades. (Bridge)

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