National Grid’s $4 billion transmission upgrade plan

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GRID: National Grid announces a $4 billion plan to upgrade its upstate New York power grid, with new substations and rebuilt power lines among its 6-year plan. (Utility Dive)

ALSO: Several hundred thousand New England residents lost power during severe storms over the weekend, and more than 100,000 remained in the dark Monday morning. (NBC Boston, WMTW)

OFFSHORE WIND:

• After Salem, Massachusetts, closed a decades-old coal plant, residents fought for — and won — climate resiliency funds and job assurances from the offshore wind assembly terminal slated to replace it. (Boston Globe)
• Linking Atlantic wind farms via offshore transmission lines could cost billions of dollars, but provide net cost benefits and boost grid reliability, a U.S. Energy Department study finds. (Utility Dive)
• Some New Jersey residents speak out against the state’s latest offshore wind solicitation at a state utility board hearing. (Asbury Park Press)

UTILITIES:

• Massachusetts utility regulators are grappling with structural problems driving up power rates, as a state agency warns that costly power is a barrier to clean energy adoption. (CommonWealth Beacon)
• A Maryland advocacy group finds the state’s utilities spent $2 million on lobbying in 2023 and calls for further disclosures of utilities’ political activities. (Baltimore Sun)

POLICY:

• A Maine legislative committee advances a bill that would put state lawmakers in charge of electric vehicle regulations after a citizen-appointed environmental board rejected proposed Clean Cars rules. (Kennebec Journal)
• New York lawmakers move quickly to include measures to phase out new natural gas hookups in the state’s budget. (New York Times)
• Vermont’s House advances a bill requiring utilities to purchase 100% clean electricity by 2035; the Senate will vote on the bill this week. (Seven Days, Vermont Public)

SOLAR: Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania’s housing authority seeks county funding to help build a solar farm that could power a low-income senior apartment complex and other county facilities. (TribLive)

CLEAN ENERGY: The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center awards $2.5 million for projects across the state, including a solar panel recycling project and a biogas production system. (Worcester Business Journal)

HYDROGEN:

• A Connecticut hydrogen fuel cell factory announces layoffs. (New Haven Register)
• Delaware institutions secure a piece of newly awarded federal clean hydrogen funding, stirring opposition and concern from some community members and environmental advocates. (Delaware Business Times; Delaware News Journal, subscription)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Rhode Island considers replacing its gas tax with a mileage-based user fee to combat an expected drop in revenue as electric vehicles replace combustion cars. (EcoRI)

CLIMATE: Maryland’s chief resilience officer says climate issues pose the biggest challenge to the state’s stability, with rising floods, worsening storms and growing heat among his biggest concerns. (Inside Climate News)

COMMENTARY:

• An editorial board calls New Jersey’s decision to phase out electric vehicle subsidies and establish an EV registration ​“baffling” considering the state’s EV mandate, and suggest the state promote plug-in hybrid vehicles. (Star-Ledger)
• Maryland needs to implement better protections for utility ratepayers and require wider economic benefit disclosures from utilities, the state’s former consumer advocate writes. (Maryland Matters)