Minnesota study finds benefits of siting transmission along highways

TRANSMISSION:
• A Minnesota feasibility study finds multiple benefits of co-locating high-voltage transmission lines and broadband along highway rights of way, which could apply across the country and produce $1 billion in societal value through faster decarbonization. (E&E News)
• The Wisconsin Public Service Commission has spent more than $800,000 to defend a former regulator from allegations of bias while trading encrypted text messages with utility executives over a controversial power line. (Wisconsin State Journal)

WIND:
• A labor union representing utility workers says DTE Energy is blocking progress on negotiating a first contract for 27 members who are wind and engineering technicians. (Detroit News)
• While some residents oppose what would be the largest wind project in Kansas, others see economic opportunity and a chance to transition to clean energy. (KFXL)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Missouri lawmakers are advancing a bill that would require counties to pay the cost of new electric vehicle charging stations when they are required on new projects. (FOX 2)

SOLAR:
• A public meeting details plans for a 144 MW solar project in central Ohio that could start construction in the summer of 2023. (Morrow County Sentinel)
• An Indiana county will have a six-month moratorium on utility-scale solar development as local officials craft siting regulations. (Kokomo Tribune)
• A photovoltaic racking manufacturer plans to invest $5 million to expand facilities in Indiana and Arizona. (Solar Power World)

PIPELINES: Iowa carbon capture pipeline developers and pipeline opponents agree on a public hearing location roughly halfway along the proposed 680-mile route through Iowa. (Iowa Capital Dispatch)

OIL & GAS: Industry experts forecast an increase in oil and gas production in an eastern Ohio county this year due to rising demand and overseas conflict. (Daily Jeffersonian)

BIOFUELS: President Biden details plans on Tuesday in Iowa to increase U.S. fuel supplies by allowing year-round sales of gasoline with higher blends of ethanol. (Radio Iowa)

POWER PLANTS: Duke Energy this week will announce the start of a 16 MW natural gas-powered combined heat and power plant at Purdue University in Indiana. (Journal & Courier)

CLIMATE: Purdue University engineering students craft a campuswide climate action plan to make the school carbon neutral over the next decade. (Purdue Exponent)