Rooftop solar woes

This roundup of U.S. energy news headlines is part of our Canary Media Daily newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each morning.

EMISSIONS

• The U.S. EPA will reportedly move today to roll back two Biden-era rules that would require power plants to curb toxic pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions or shut down. (E&E News, New York Times)

• President Donald Trump plans to sign three resolutions revoking California’s vehicle emissions standards tomorrow. (Politico)

POLITICS

• U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright says during a congressional hearing that Congress should preserve tax credits for nuclear, geothermal, and fusion research and development, but says solar and wind power don’t need federal support. (E&E News)

• House Republicans look to remove provisions opening up mining in northern Minnesota from the bill they already passed. (E&E News)

• Minnesota clean energy advocates worry that quickly repealing federal tax credits would decimate the state’s burgeoning wind and solar industries at a time when electricity demand is growing. (MPR News)

SOLAR

• Experts say cuts in Congress’ budget bill would lead to an immediate drop in rooftop solar installations, with one firm estimating installations would drop by half next year and another projecting an 85% decrease through 2030. (New York Times)

• Virginia Tech researchers find solar farm development has a relatively minor impact on most residential property values, though its effect depends largely on local attitudes toward solar. (news release)

OFFSHORE WIND

• U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright defends the Trump administration’s decision to allow the Empire Wind project to move forward, saying offshore wind in general has been a ​“train wreck,” but billions of dollars had already been spent on the development. (E&E News)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Three workers have died and another 15 have been seriously injured during construction of Hyundai’s 3,000-acre EV and battery factory in Georgia, raising concerns about safety oversight and the pace of construction. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

• General Motors’ $4 billion plan to move vehicle production from Mexico to the U.S. includes making gasoline-powered vehicles at a Michigan plant that was previously retooled to produce electric vehicles. (Detroit News)

GRID

• Governors in PJM’s territory are criticizing and even suing the grid operator, saying it’s driving up power prices by paying generators too much and lagging on adding new solar, wind, and battery projects. (New York Times)

• Utilities around the country wait to hear the fate of $23 billion in federal loan guarantees intended to bolster transmission projects and prepare the grid to carry a growing power load. (E&E News)

PUBLIC LANDS

• The U.S. Justice Department finds the 1906 Antiquities Act authorizes the president to alter or eliminate national monuments designated under the law, opening the door for the Trump administration to reverse bans on drilling, mining, and other energy development on millions of acres of Western lands. (Landmark, Bloomberg Law)

GEOTHERMAL

• Fervo Energy says its new 15,765- foot well at its Cape Station facility in Utah ​“demonstrates the rapid advancement and scalability of enhanced geothermal systems.” (news release)

FOSSIL FUELS

• A study finds developers have proposed more than 100 gas-fired power plants totaling 58 GW in Texas, which have the potential to emit an estimated 115 million metric tons of greenhouse gases every year. (Inside Climate News)

CLIMATE

• The Trump administration fires nearly all the staff running climate.gov, and it will no longer publish politically neutral, science-backed information on climate change. (The Guardian)

NEW FROM CANARY MEDIA

• Prominent solar companies, including residential provider Sunnova and lender Solar Mosaic, have filed for bankruptcy amid mounting challenges for the industry, Jeff St. John reports.

• Southern California regulators reject rules that would’ve encouraged adoption of electric heat pumps and water heaters, and which would’ve helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the smog-plagued area, Alison F. Takemura reports.

• A new survey finds support for renewable energy has fallen among both Republicans and Democrats over the last five years, while backing for expanding fossil fuels and nuclear production has grown, Pam Radtke reports.