Supercharging heat pump adoption in New England

This roundup of energy news headlines comes from our Northeast Energy News newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning.

HEAT PUMPS

• Five New England states launch a $450 million initiative to accelerate the adoption of home heat pumps in the region. (Canary Media)

• The University of Rhode Island will heat and cool a new research building with geothermal heat pumps after a test bore reveals excellent conditions for the system. (Facilities Dive)

• In Newport, Rhode Island, preservationists are installing geothermal systems in some of the city’s famous Gilded Age mansions, saving hundreds of gallons of heating oil each winter and creating a superior environment for preserving the historical materials within. (Boston Globe)

OFFSHORE WIND

• Offshore wind can play a key role in ensuring grid stability in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, especially in the winter when winds are strongest and natural gas can be less reliable, according to a new study. (Canary Media)

AFFORDABILITY

• In an unexpectedly warm White House meeting, New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump agree that utility Con Edison needs to lower its rates. (Reuters)

• Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey says a new transmission line carrying hydro power from Canada into New England will lower consumers’ electric bills by $18 to $20 a year. (CBS News)

NATURAL GAS

• Environmental regulators in Pennsylvania issue an air permit for a redevelopment project that plans to build the country’s largest natural gas power plant on the site of a former coal plant. (WJAC)

CLIMATE

• Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the sole representative of the United States government to attend the COP30 climate summit, warns that the rest of the world is prepared to charge ahead without the U.S. (E&E News)

• Rhode Island’s carbon emissions edged up 1.4% in 2023 compared to the previous year, meaning the state is not currently on track to meet its 2030 climate goals. (Rhode Island Current)

STORAGE

• A proposed 180-megawatt battery storage facility sparks widespread opposition in a small Massachusetts town, one of several communities in the state rallying against proposed battery installations. (WBUR)

SOLAR

• A 28-megawatt solar installation comes online in Maine, providing enough power to offset the electricity use of 6,000 homes. (News Center Maine)

BIOMASS

• Burlington, Vermont’s electric department is looking at ways to improve the efficiency of a municipal power plant that burns wood chips and investigating technologies that could reduce the facility’s emissions. (NBC5)

NEW FROM CANARY

• Chicago-area mayors push ahead on EVs despite federal pullback — Kari Lydersen

• Trump wants new nuclear power. So far, it’s all restarts. — Kathryn Krawczyk