Ohio bribery conviction upheld

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POLITICS

• A panel of appeals court judges upholds the conviction of Ohio’s former House speaker who was found guilty for accepting millions of dollars in bribes from FirstEnergy to pass power plant bailouts under House Bill 6. (Columbus Dispatch)

UTILITIES

• A bipartisan pair of Ohio lawmakers want to start regulating submetering companies as utilities and give customers access to consumer protections following years of price-gouging allegations. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

• Illinois consumer advocates ask state regulators to cut suburban gas provider Nicor’s $309 million rate increase request in half, arguing it would boost shareholder profits and executive bonuses. (Chicago Sun-Times)

• Above-average returns on equity approved for Michigan’s two large electric utilities can add hundreds of dollars annually to customer bills as energy becomes less affordable for ratepayers, according to regulatory experts. (Planet Detroit)

POWER PLANTS

• Indiana lawmakers passed a series of bills this session aimed at bolstering power supplies as demand rises, such as requiring utilities to backfill power from closed coal plants and incentivizing small nuclear reactor development. (WFYI)

SOLAR

• Wisconsin regulators approve Madison Gas & Electric’s planned 20 MW solar project with a battery storage system, marking the utility’s first solar-plus-storage project. (Renewables Now)

• Two northern Michigan nonprofits launch a group-buying program to give businesses and residents discounts on solar installations. (Interlochen Public Radio)

WIND ENERGY

• Michigan’s attorney general, who joined a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s effort to halt wind energy development, says the move could disrupt billions of dollars in investment in the state. (MLive)

BIOFUELS

• Minnesota lawmakers consider expanding tax credits for sustainable aviation fuel producers as part of the state’s broader push to lure manufacturers in the emerging industry. (Minnesota Reformer)

GRID

• PJM, clean energy groups, and independent producers ask federal regulators to dismiss a complaint from consumer advocates over last year’s capacity auction, where they allege illegally manipulated prices spiked capacity costs. (Utility Dive)

COMMENTARY

• Repealing or weakening ​“game changer” federal clean vehicle manufacturing incentives will make it harder for the U.S. to compete in the global electric vehicle market, says the CEO of metro Detroit EV company Bollinger Motors. (Detroit News)

NEW FROM CANARY

• Startup Inlyte Energy will partner with utility Southern Co. to test whether 1980s-designed iron-salt battery technology can work on a large scale. Julian Spector reports.

• New Jersey’s attorney general tells Clare Fieseler that he is participating in the 17-state lawsuit against President Trump’s offshore wind actions because the executive order is unlawful, unconstitutional, and ​“just makes no sense.”

• Prisma Photonics’ technology utilizes existing fiber-optic cables to detect disruptions along high-voltage transmission lines, helping utilities avoid the timely, expensive task of building sensors from scratch, Jeff St. John reports.