Nuclear plant sold by TVA to be completed at cost of $13 billion

NUCLEAR:
• The TVA sells the unfinished Bellefonte plant in Alabama to a former Chattanooga real estate developer who aims to complete it at a cost of $13 billion. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)
• Groups challenge Florida Power & Light’s plan to build more reactors near the Everglades. (National Parks Traveler)

RENEWABLES:
• A group of 18 major corporations including Microsoft and Walmart urge Virginia lawmakers and regulators to forge ​“an explicit legal framework” for expanding access to renewable energy from third parties as well as utilities. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• An investment firm cautions investors that the Investment Tax Credit ​“could very well be on the chopping block at some point” but some analysts say it’s too early to tell. (PV Magazine)

OFFSHORE DRILLING: The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management gathers comments along the Gulf Coast in northwest Florida about seismic testing. (NWF Daily News)

CLEAN POWER PLAN: President-elect Trump faces limits on carrying out his stated intention of withdrawing the plan. (Greenwire)

COAL: Cheap gas, especially for utilities in the Southeast, tests Trump’s promise to revive coal. (Wall Street Journal)

GRID: The market monitor of the PJM regional wholesale power grid finds it remains vulnerable to stress from extended bouts of extreme temperatures. (RTO Insider)

COAL ASH: North Carolina holds a public hearing tonight in Danbury on permit requests by Duke Energy for its Belews Creek power plant nearby. (Winston-Salem Journal)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Duke Energy awards grants for about 200 new charging stations throughout North Carolina. (Coastal Review Online)

COMMENTARY:
• Is it time for states in the Southeast and elsewhere to deregulate their electricity markets? (Wall Street Journal)
• The defeat of Florida’s Amendment 1 shows why solar won’t be stopped, Trump or no Trump. (Utility Dive)
• Are nuclear power plants vital to achieving reductions in carbon emissions? (Wall Street Journal)
• Does Duke University want to be a leader on climate solutions or is it willing to remain part of the problem? (Duke Chronicle)