TVA’s gas plans don’t make it a clean energy leader, critics say

CLEAN ENERGY: The Tennessee Valley Authority touts its emissions reductions and renewable power generation as evidence of its status as a clean energy leader, but critics say its proposal to build 7,000 MW of new gas generation negates that claim. (Knoxville News Sentinel)

ALSO: An energy company commissions a project in Texas that pairs a 268 MW wind farm and a 250 MW solar project. (Windpower Monthly)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• A Tennessee state senator says sagging electric vehicle demand could delay the start of production at Ford’s new Tennessee EV factory by at least nine months, until 2026. (Tennessee Lookout)
• South Carolina lags the U.S. in adding electric vehicle charging stations despite attracting industry manufacturers, but advocates hope federal funding will help grow the number of fast-charging stations. (South Carolina Daily Gazette)
• A Tennessee utility unveils new electric vehicle chargers. (WZDX)

SOLAR:

• A Virginia county board approves a solar ordinance with 26 guidelines and requirements for any project seeking a permit, including a new proposal from a Texas developer to build a 250 MW solar facility. (Bristol Herald-Courier)
• A Virginia county board meets with its planning commission to discuss developing a solar ordinance. (Fluvanna Review)
• Dominion Energy brings in hundreds of sheep to graze on vegetation at two Virginia solar farms. (WVEC)
• Construction begins on a West Virginia titanium plant that will be powered by solar panels. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)

GRID: Officials with Texas’ grid manager tell state lawmakers it will need to nearly double its power generation capacity in the next six to ten years to account for growing demand from artificial intelligence, crypto miners and electrification of oil facilities in the Permian Basin. (KXAS)

PIPELINES:

• “I don’t want to be in town when it blows up” — Virginia residents react to federal regulators’ approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s request to begin transporting natural gas. (WVTF, WDBJ)
• Developers begin collecting feedback on a proposed 690-mile pipeline to move natural gas from the Permian Basin to a terminal in Louisiana. (KWTX)

MANUFACTURING: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp travels to South Korea to meet with companies investing in new state factories building electric vehicles, solar panels and other products. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

UTILITIES: A Florida municipal utility board fires its general manager, with the board chair — who had previously been manager before he was also fired in 2022 — subsequently resigning to be named new interim manager. (Gainesville Sun)

EFFICIENCY:

• Entergy partners with Habitat for Humanity to weatherize more than 200 homes in a Texas community. (Port Arthur News)
• An Alabama community college receives a $500,000 federal grant to develop a weatherization training program. (Daily Mountain Eagle, subscription)
• Florida accepts $346 million in federal funding for energy efficiency programs after Gov. Ron DeSantis previously spurned the money. (WUSF)

OVERSIGHT: An energy journalist, a pipeline welder and an oil and gas property manager compete for a seat on an Oklahoma regulatory board that oversees utilities and the oil and gas industry. (Oklahoman)

CLIMATE:

• A tropical disturbance causes flooding across Florida, kicking off a 2024 hurricane season that’s forecast to be especially active. (Associated Press)
• A 2016 flood’s disturbance of gravesites in Louisiana shows how severe storms exacerbated by climate change are damaging burial sites around the world. (Inside Climate News)