Maryland company inks $1 billion nuclear energy deal

NUCLEAR: Maryland-based Constellation Energy signs a $1 billion deal to provide nuclear power and energy efficiency services to 13 federal agencies, marking the first time the U.S. has used a major energy purchase to support nuclear power as a clean energy source. (Reuters)

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ALSO: An energy company threatens to sue federal regulators for denying its proposal to expand an Amazon data center located at a nuclear plant in Pennsylvania. (E&E News, subscription)

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CLIMATE:

• Oil interests and business groups are suing Vermont, challenging a state law that would make fossil fuel companies pay for damages caused by climate change. (WCAX)
• A Vermont judge declines to dismiss a state lawsuit accusing oil and gas companies of misleading consumers about the climate impact of burning fossil fuels. (E&E News, subscription)

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OFFSHORE WIND:

• A major energy company closes on $3 billion in financing for an ongoing wind development off the coast of Long Island. (The Maritime Executive)
• On Cape Cod, some local leaders and residents are concerned the incoming Trump administration will disrupt progress on offshore wind while others welcome the likely slowdown. (Cape Cod Times)

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EFFICIENCY: Massachusetts’ newest energy efficiency plan targets rental properties, covering the entire cost of weatherization in some cities and protecting tenants against rent hikes intended to pay for more efficient heating equipment. (Boston Globe)

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SOLAR:

• After the solar panels installed on the White House by Jimmy Carter were removed, they eventually ended up at a small college in Maine, heating water for use in the school cafeteria. (New York Times)
• Cambridge, Massachusetts, awards $1 million in federal money to affordable housing organizations to fund solar panels on 28 buildings. (news release)

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FRACKING: Scientists find contamination in freshwater mussels consistent with the chemical signatures of wastewater produced by fracking in western Pennsylvania. (Inside Climate News)

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TRANSPORTATION: A New Jersey judge agrees to hear a request for a last-minute restraining order against New York’s plan to impose a congestion price on cars entering parts of Manhattan starting this weekend. (4 New York)

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ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Hearing from building owners concerned about the risk of fire from indoor e-bike charging, New York City expands an initiative allowing multifamily buildings to apply for sidewalk space to install charging cabinets. (Streetsblog)

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CLEAN ENERGY: A University of Maryland researcher receives $7.8 million to develop and test a system that uses fermented ocean microbes to power marine sensing devices for scientific or national security applications. (Maryland Today)

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