Twin Cities transit agency rolling out electric bus plan

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• The transit agency serving Minneapolis and St. Paul redeploys its first electric buses after sidelining them for a year because of reliability problems, and also begins work on a plan to purchase more than 100 electric models over the next five years. (Energy News Network)
• General Motors restarts production and shipments of its Bolt electric vehicle and expects sales to rebound after vehicle fires prompted a high-profile recall last year. (CNBC)

SOLAR:
• A Minnesota school district seeks state grants to cover 85% of the cost of installing solar panels on five buildings, which could save the district more than $750,000 over the next 30 years. (Marshall Independent)
• Local opposition campaigns to utility-scale solar projects are one of the biggest threats the industry faces as it seeks to scale up development. (Reuters)
• A 3,000-acre solar project planned in northeastern Kansas could be co-located with agricultural crops to help diversify farmers’ income. (Kansas Public Radio)

CLIMATE:
• A University of Wisconsin researcher and lead author on the latest IPCC climate report says he remains optimistic about the ability of nations to swiftly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. (Wisconsin State Journal)
• Modeling shows it could require $2.4 billion in capital investments for Ames, Iowa, to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. (Ames Tribune)
• Ann Arbor, Michigan, seeks to be the first city in the U.S. to decarbonize an entire neighborhood through grant-funded solar installations and weatherization upgrades. (WEMU)

COAL: Southern Ohio local governmental entities could be forced to repay millions of dollars in tax revenue if the owner of a former coal plant is successful in appealing the appraised property value. (WCPO)

OIL & GAS: Oil company executives cite the global nature of energy markets while Democrats in Congress blame companies’ record profits and Republicans criticize the Biden administration for high gas prices. (Associated Press)

PIPELINES: While carbon pipeline developers say their projects would reduce ethanol producers’ carbon emissions and generate property tax revenue for communities, safety and land access top property owners’ concerns. (Sioux City Journal)

BIOFUELS: The U.S. EPA is expected to decide as early as today on whether to grant dozens of waivers to biofuel blending requirements for small oil refiners. (Reuters)

COMMENTARY:
• A Michigan tribal chairperson says Enbridge uses high gasoline prices as a reason to keep Line 5 open even though the argument has been ​“debunked by multiple independent studies.” (Bridge Michigan)
• Smaller, strategically distributed solar arrays across rural Minnesota could help ease tension over large-scale solar projects while delivering financial benefits to property owners, a longtime environmental advocate and a state senator write. (Star Tribune)