The race to secure Biden’s climate legacy

POLITICS: The Biden administration is racing to spend out Inflation Reduction Act funding and enact environmental rules as a potential Trump presidency looms, experts say, though some proposed regulations will remain unfinished. (Axios, The Hill)

UTILITIES:

• The federal funding announced last week for rural electric co-ops to decarbonize marks the result of a yearslong effort between co-op leaders and environmentalists to collaborate on a clean energy transition. (E&E News)
• Environmentalists and energy experts criticize the Tennessee Valley Authority for its plans to build eight natural gas-fired power plants, doubling down on fossil fuels despite running nuclear and hydroelectric plants through most of its history. (Washington Post)
• Ratepayer and clean energy advocates across the country rally to highlight the link between climate change and rising electric bills. (Inside Climate News)

SOLAR:

• The U.S. solar industry installed 9.4 GW of capacity during what analysts called a ​“great second quarter” this year on the strength of utility-scale projects and federal policy support. (Solar Power World)
• The anticipated launch of Hanwha Qcells’ end-to-end solar factory in Georgia is expected to supercharge the U.S. solar supply chain, which has already quadrupled in the two years since the passage of a federal climate package. (Canary Media)
• Clean energy advocates wait to see if New Hampshire will continue its net energy metering program, though state regulators seem unswayed by the policy’s widespread support. (Energy News Network)

GRID:

• The U.S. energy storage sector deployed 11 GW of new utility-scale capacity in the second quarter, up 91% from a year earlier. (Utility Dive)
• A regional coalition plans to develop a transmission study aimed at guiding interregional grid development across the West with an emphasis on reliability, efficiency and state policy goals. (Utility Dive)
• High prices in grid operator PJM’s most recent capacity auction are a signal to build new generation but also may spur new demand response and batteries that help reduce demand, experts say. (Utility Dive)

OIL & GAS: Gulf Coast residents and environmental groups turn to federal courts to try to block a wave of liquified natural gas export facilities they say haven’t been adequately vetted for their potential impacts on environmental justice, greenhouse gas emissions, fisheries and more. (Floodlight)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Several automakers are scaling back their electric vehicle plans even though EV sales continue to climb. (Canary Media)

WIND: Federal ocean energy officials publish their final environmental assessment of a Gulf of Maine wind area, finding commercial wind energy projects would not have significant environmental impacts. (North American Wind Power)