Virginia deal paves way for clean energy on coal mine land

CLEAN ENERGY: A public-private partnership signs a deal to test emerging clean energy technologies on 65,000 acres of former coal mine land in Southwest Virginia. (Virginia Mercury)

ALSO: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper says Toyota’s new battery plant investment shows the state is emerging as a hub in the growing clean energy economy. (WRAL)

COAL:

• Two Kentucky utilities seek approval from regulators to close seven coal-fired generating units under a new state law meant to make it harder to close fossil fuel plants. (Louisville Public Media)
• Two Alabama communities organize against coal ash pollution, monitoring air near a landfill and opposing a utility’s disposal plans. (Alabama Public Radio)
• As part of a legal settlement with an environmental group, a Virginia city agrees to take new steps to stop coal tar from leaking into the Potomac River from the former site of a coal-to-gas plant. (Washington Post)
• One man was dead and another trapped after an abandoned, 11-story coal preparation plant in eastern Kentucky collapsed Tuesday evening. (Associated Press)

GRID:

• A $1.9 billion electric grid upgrade is underway in Virginia as Dominion Energy prepares its system for renewables and rising demand. (VPM News)
• Staff at grid operator PJM Interconnection recommend tapping Dominion Energy to build $2.5 billion of transmission projects as part of a regional transmission expansion plan to address reliability concerns. (Utility Dive)
• San Antonio’s city-owned utility wants the ability to temporarily disconnect from the state’s power grid during periods of high demand. (San Antonio Report)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• New federal funding aims to help ensure Black Georgians have equal access to the state’s growing electric transportation sector. (GPB News)
• Tennessee is gradually expanding EV charging options, and advocates hope newer, younger lawmakers may help overcome political opposition. (WKRN)
• A new Oklahoma law that took effect yesterday prevents utilities from using ratepayer money to build electric vehicle charging stations. (KOCO)
• An electric aviation company announces that it will install an electric plane charger at a regional airport in northeastern Arkansas. (KAIT)

SOLAR:

• A Virginia city moves forward with plans for a possible solar farm at a former landfill after a remediation of the site with a state grant. (WJHL)
• Construction begins on the first of five planned solar projects in a West Virginia county that are expected to total 50 MW of capacity. (Weirton Daily Times)

UTILITIES: Several nonprofit advocacy groups file a motion demanding that the Tennessee Valley Authority make its integrated resource planning process more open and transparent. (news release)

CARBON CAPTURE: Carbon capture researchers, engineers and boosters discuss the technology’s potential to ​“future-proof” the Southeast Texas economy. (12 News Now)

HYDROGEN: U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito discuss the benefits of a planned hydrogen hub with West Virginia business leaders. (Weirton Daily Times)

GEOTHERMAL: A Georgia community planned and developed by the CEO of Chick-fil-A is entirely heated and cooled by geothermal energy. (Commercial Observer)

COMMENTARY: A columnist writes that Florida calls itself the ​“Sunshine State” — so why did it just turn down its share of a $7 billion federal fund to help lower-income residents install solar panels? (Florida Phoenix)