Texas moves to boost gas, penalize renewables

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POLITICS

• Texas lawmakers advance a bill that sets a target for 50% of new power plant capacity to come from ​“dispatchable generation other than battery energy storage,” effectively penalizing renewables and encouraging more gas-fired power. (Canary Media)

• A West Virginia lawmaker asks to be recused from voting on a bill he co-sponsored because he’s an engineer at Mon Power, which opposes the legislation. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)

• West Virginia lawmakers debate a bill to encourage the development of microgrids to attract more economic development, though some worry about its potential costs. (WV Metro News)

• Appalachian Power and Mon Power officials warn legislation to require coal plants to run at 69% capacity and add barriers to prevent utilities from moving from coal to gas would drive up energy costs. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)

SOLAR

• A Texas energy developer announces plans to build an $850 million, 5 GW solar manufacturing facility in Texas with 1,800 jobs. (Houston Chronicle)

• A Virginia county board member urges it to set aside money for a legal fight with the state if Democrats maintain control of the state legislature in November and move to withdraw oversight of solar development from local governments. (Lynchburg News & Advance)

• A Virginia county planning commission recommends approval of a 5 MW solar farm and denial of a second solar farm, while residents criticize the board for voting even though the county’s comprehensive plan doesn’t mention solar at all. (Farmville Herald)

• The investment wing of an IKEA retailer announces construction of a nearly 75 MW solar farm in South Carolina. (news release)

• A healthcare company announces completion of a 3 MW solar facility at its corporate headquarters in Florida. (news release)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Nissan secures a $661 million agreement with battery maker SK On for roughly roughly 100 GWh of high-nickel batteries for electric vehicles made at a Mississippi factory. (Utility Dive)

FOSSIL FUELS

• President Trump promises the return of ​“beautiful, clean coal,” but rising energy costs in coal-heavy West Virginia show how expensive it will be to bring back the fossil fuel over natural gas and renewables. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)

• An investigation shows how oil and gas companies gave at least $44 million to Louisiana State University between 2010 and 2020, giving them influence over research and even curriculum. (Floodlight/​WWNO/​Louisiana Illuminator)

• Texas officials contemplate whether they can treat oilfield wastewater to help solve the state’s growing water shortage, but cleaning up all of the effluent in west Texas would require up to 26 GW of power. (Inside Climate News)

• West Virginia lawmakers advance a bill to exempt storage tanks near public water intakes from state oversight, even though state data shows they had 41 releases of oil, petroleum, wastewater and other substances between 2022 and 2025. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)

• A West Virginia gas company pursues 23 condemnation suits to build a 30-mile pipeline expansion project. (Dominion Post)

COMMENTARY

• Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin should sign legislation to establish a pilot program to create a statewide virtual power plant, writes a clean energy advocate. (Cardinal News)

NEW FROM CANARY MEDIA

• A Massachusetts vehicle-to-everything pilot program will pay EV owners to let utilities tap the power stored in their vehicle batteries and provide the expensive bidirectional chargers that let electricity flow back to the grid, Jeff St. John reports.