Midwest Energy News — a daily newsletter
Report: FirstEnergy spent millions courting Trump for bailout
OHIO: In 2017, FirstEnergy gave millions to dark money groups aligned with then-President Donald Trump, and CEO Chuck Jones spent lavishly at Trump-owned properties, as the company lobbied for a federal bailout that FERC ultimately rejected, according to a new report. (Ohio Capital Journal)
ALSO: An investigative journalist says a recent Public Utilities Commission of Ohio ruling to uphold subsidies related to the state’s coal bailout shows regulatory staff coordinating with utilities to work in the companies’ favor. (Checks and Balances Project)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
- The Detroit Regional Chamber says the politicization of electric vehicles poses a significant threat to Michigan’s auto industry, after a new poll finds support for state investment in EV manufacturing divided along party lines. (Bridge)
- The Illinois EPA is soliciting proposals for $27 million in funds to electrify transit buses around the state. (Mass Transit)
COAL: Ohio’s largest coal plant is likely to be retired or converted to a different fuel by 2031 after being sold to a private equity firm, according to sources familiar with the deal. (Inside Climate News)
MATERIALS: A Minnesota company opens a pilot facility to develop what it says are first-of-their-kind permanent magnets – useful in electric vehicles, wind turbines, and other products – that do not rely on rare earth elements. (MPR News)
GRID:
- Tech companies including Microsoft and Amazon are pushing back on an Ohio utility’s policies requiring financial assurances for heavy energy use, offering an alternative set of rules. (Reuters)
- An Ohio utility completes a $175 million substation to help support a Honda battery plant near Dayton. (Dayton Daily News)
- As Xcel Energy prepares to install utility-scale energy storage at the site of a former coal plant, a state lawmaker insists “the technology doesn’t exist.” (KSTP)
WASTE-TO-ENERGY: A majority of Minneapolis city council members back a resolution to close a waste-to-energy incinerator that is a significant source of pollution in a densely populated area of the city. (Sahan Journal)
HYDROPOWER: A Minnesota county recently doubled the capacity of a dam it owns and operates to 4.4 MW with help from a $26 million federal grant. (Dakota Tribune)
AGRICULTURE:
- Purdue University researchers say their pilot project in Indiana shows the possibility of widespread solar adoption by corn farmers. (E&E News, subscription)
- A Michigan researcher is awarded a federal grant to develop solar-powered irrigation technology that could lower emissions and energy costs for farmers. (news release)
