Frustrated by lack of renewable energy, Louisiana companies find a workaround

SOLAR: Louisiana regulators approve a sleeved power purchase agreement to purchase power from non-utility sources for a coalition of 26 companies, including some of the state’s largest industrial giants, that have grown frustrated with the lack of renewables available from utilities. (Louisiana Illuminator)

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ALSO:

• The owners of an dilapidated Oklahoma apartment announce plans to rebuild and add rooftop solar, with a dedicated solar fuel cell for each apartment. (Oklahoman)
• A Norwegian energy company announces plans to build a $620 million factory in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to make monocrystalline silicon wafers for the solar industry. (Journal Record)
• Virginia officials fine a solar company more than $100,000 for 75 violations that range from erosion control to not performing inspections at multiple solar farms in the state. (Farmville Herald)
• A group of churches partner with Entergy to build “community lighthouses” around New Orleans where solar panels charge backup batteries in case of power outages. (WVUE)
• An energy company introduces two models of a pre-constructed solar canopy at a Florida warehouse. (PV Magazine)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• An investigation reveals federal, state and local officials seem to have largely glossed over the water needs of Hyundai’s electric vehicle plant in Georgia, which now faces a potential legal challenge. (Savannah Morning News)
• Electric vehicle maker Rivian’s stock price rises 23% after this week’s announcement Volkswagen would invest up to $1 billion in the company. (Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

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CLEAN ENERGY: Columbus, Georgia, business leaders say they’re building out the area’s higher education systems and freeing up land in hopes of taking part in the clean energy manufacturing boom that’s seen $32 billion invested in the state since 2021. (Columbus Ledger-Enquirer)

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OIL & GAS:

• Texas residents warily eye an oil and gas company’s proposal to build a pipeline to its planned liquified natural gas plant in Louisiana. (KBMT)
• Virginia residents organize against Dominion Energy’s plans to build a natural gas-fired power plant at an old coal plant. (WTVR)

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HYDRO: A federal loan program provides $16.6 million for construction of the third of six planned hydroelectric plants in Kentucky, while a grant will fund solar power at a farm. (Kentucky Lantern)

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GRID: A Virginia county supervisor proposes requiring new data centers to build on-site power to limit the use of eminent domain and construction of new transmission lines. (Loudoun Times-Mirror)

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EMISSIONS: Researchers find plumes of toxic gas at the fenceline of some chemical plants in Louisiana’s “Cancer Alley” to be more than 1,000 times higher than what the U.S. EPA deems “an acceptable risk.” (Inside Climate News)

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UTILITIES:

• The Tennessee Valley Authority notifies a Mississippi utility it may sue over unresolved questions about its financial reports and audits. (South Reporter)
• The Tennessee Valley Authority considers what to do with an office complex in Chattanooga, Tennessee. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

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COAL: Businesses owned by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice reach a settlement with a Virginia bank over roughly $300 million in outstanding loans, but now face the prospect of the forced sale of a coal company to satisfy different debts. (Cardinal News, WV Metro News)

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COMMENTARY: A college student interviews climate activist Bill McKibben about the campaign to push the Tennessee Valley Authority away from building new natural gas-fired power plants toward solar power. (Tennessean)

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