Trump attacks another offshore wind project

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.

WIND

• The U.S. Justice Department asks courts to let it reconsider a key construction permit for an offshore wind project off Massachusetts, the third such request it has made in the past week. (Canary Media)
• The Trump administration advances onshore wind projects in Maine and South Dakota after a court orders it to lift a freeze on approvals. (The Hill)
• Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who’s leading discussions on the Senate permitting bill, says the Trump administration’s renewed attacks on offshore wind could ​“blow up” the bipartisan legislation. (Politico)

GRID

• Five years after Massachusetts commissioned a study looking at the cost of grid upgrades needed to meet the state’s climate goals, the resulting report still hasn’t been publicly released. (CommonWealth Beacon)

DATA CENTERS

• Google strikes a deal with virtual power plant company Voltus to pay utility customers in the PJM grid region to ease up on their electricity use at certain times to create more grid capacity for data center operations. (Canary Media)
• The Pennsylvania state House votes nearly unanimously against a bill that would’ve given data centers the status of public utilities, granting them the right to invoke eminent domain. (WHTM)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

• Vermont-based electric airplane company Beta Technologies plans to expand its Burlington-area footprint to 100 acres and add about 1,000 employees, an expansion fueled by the $1 billion it raised by going public last year. (Seven Days)

SOLAR

• New York is set to invest $200 million to boost solar installations, including $20 million for low- and moderate-income incentives and $113 million for larger-scale business and community installations. (Syracuse.com)
• A Democratic New Jersey Congressman introduces the ​“Socket Full of Sunshine Act,” the first national bill aimed at legalizing solar panels that plug in to conventional exterior outlets. (Canary Media)

FOSSIL FUELS

• The Trump administration will release 315,000 gallons from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve as prices continue to hit new record highs. (Maine Public, WMTW)

EFFICIENCY

• Pending energy legislation in Massachusetts could hinder efforts to provide no-cost weatherization services to more renters and moderate-income homeowners. (Canary Media)