Southeast’s proposed gas buildout could threaten climate goals

GRID: Utilities in Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee want to build gigawatts of new natural gas-fired power plants to meet escalating power demand from data centers and factories, potentially jeopardizing state and federal climate goals. (Canary Media)

ALSO:

• Oklahoma sues two natural gas producers, alleging they fraudulently reduced supplies to spike prices during 2021’s Winter Storm Uri. (Associated Press)
• Severe storms and a tornado knock out power to about 140,000 Louisiana residents, while high winds cause outages for tens of thousands of people in Georgia and hundreds in North Carolina. (NOLA.com, WSB, WLOS)

TRANSITION:

• West Virginia regulators approve a 100 MW solar farm and battery facility on the site of a former coal mine. (WTRF)
• A Kentucky Congress member’s efforts to attract a federal prison on the site of a former coal mine is opposed by locals and a growing national coalition. (Louisville Public Media)

SOLAR:

• Virginia customers of Appalachia Power will soon be able to access a community solar program approved by state lawmakers and the governor, although it’s unclear whether the program will make financial sense for many customers. (Roanoke Times)
• A Virginia county board amends its solar ordinance to require all projects be located within a 1-mile radius of two electrical substations. (Virginia Business)
• A Virginia school installs a 74.2 kW rooftop solar array. (news release)

WIND: Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities begin using a single wind turbine to study its capabilities, along with a lithium-ion battery and 44,500 solar panels. (Spectrum News)

POLITICS:

• South Carolina lawmakers advance sweeping legislation to overhaul energy and utility regulation with the end goal of accelerating permitting for a planned natural gas-fired power plant, but critics warn the process is moving too fast and risks taxpayer money. (Charleston City Paper)
• West Virginia’s treasurer adds four financial institutions to a list of firms blocked from doing business with the state for failing to show they’re ​“not engaged in a boycott of fossil fuels.” (WV Metro News)

OIL & GAS:

• The Tennessee Valley Authority announces completion of a three-unit, 750 MW expansion of a natural gas-fired power plant in Kentucky. (WBKO)
• Residents of a Texas port city testify to Congress about pollution and jobs amid the Biden administration’s pause on permitting new liquified natural gas export terminals. (Houston Chronicle)
• Kentucky researchers investigate the possibility of using coal ash to rejuvenate idled and abandoned oil and gas wells. (news release)

HYDROGEN: A hydrogen company buys the last available water rights to Texas’ Nueces River, sparking concern about drinking water availability in the nearby city of Corpus Christi. (Inside Climate News)

CRYPTOCURRENCY:

• Arkansas lawmakers file a number of bills to limit noise, restrict ownership and curb energy use by crypto-mining operations. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
• Federal officials try to get a better idea of just how much energy the fast-growing cryptocurrency mining sector uses, with Texas emerging as a focal point. (E&E News)

WORKFORCE: Students at a Virginia technical high school follow line workers from a local electric cooperative to learn more about trade jobs. (WHSV)

UTILITIES: West Virginia regulators launch an investigation of how utilities notify customers when there’s an outage or other service interruption. (WV Metro News)