Displaying items by tag: energy

Over the past few years, corporate demand for cleaner energy to power their operations has directly led to the development of large-scale wind and solar projects across Michigan.

COVERT TWP. — The odds of a Southwest Michigan nuclear plant coming back to life after recently closing have improved as the owner pursues targeted federal funding for distressed nuclear facilities.

Dana Lowell and his co-founders at Lilypad Labs Inc. have set out to change the way we think about accessing water — an abundant resource in West Michigan that at times can be out of reach for some.

The wind and solar industries could fully replace the number of lost jobs at U.S. coal-fired power plants that are expected to close to meet emission-reduction targets, a recent University of Michigan study has found.

Legislation similar to bills that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer vetoed in 2020 involving the taxation of commercial solar energy developments was reintroduced this summer with changes to gain broader support from local governments.

Multiple highway corridors through West Michigan would land high-speed electric vehicle charging stations in the coming years under a plan submitted last week for federal infrastructure funding.

PORT SHELDON TWP. — Consumers Energy’s recently approved plan to shut down the J.H. Campbell coal plant in Ottawa County in 2025 has caused a breach of contract dispute between the utility and another electricity provider.

Katherine Peretick was appointed to the Michigan Public Service Commission in 2021 for a term that expires in 2027. In that time, Michigan and other states are transitioning through a crucial moment for the energy and utility industries as hulking, centralized fossil fuel plants are displaced by clean energy technologies to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

COVERT TWP. — Southwest Michigan economic development officials are hoping to lure new employers to the region to help offset the job losses from the retirement of the Palisades nuclear power plant along Lake Michigan.

Michigan energy regulators have reopened a case involving Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline and the company’s request to build an underground tunnel in the Straits of Mackinac, calling for more information on the line’s current and future safety.

Michigan added more energy-sector jobs than any other state in 2021, boosted primarily by the automotive industry and growing attention to hybrid and electric vehicle models.

The Michigan Public Service Commission has approved Consumers Energy’s latest long-term energy plan that calls for eliminating its coal-fired power in 2025 while also speeding up the deployment of energy storage.

Two Michigan-based biofuel producers have received a total of nearly $8.7 million in federal relief to help recover from unexpected losses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A statewide advanced energy trade group recently released a “roadmap” for the state to maximize hundreds of millions of dollars in federal infrastructure funding in the coming years.

HOLLAND — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appeared in Holland today to launch a partnership with an electric vehicle manufacturer, a nonprofit and energy companies to build out an electric vehicle charging network in state parks along the Lake Michigan shoreline.

In late March, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued a sweeping proposal that would require publicly traded companies to disclose climate change risks that are likely to affect their business, as well as their direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions.

Clean energy and housing advocates in Michigan are working to spend down an increasing amount of weatherization funds with a shrinking pool of contractors at their disposal. 

The global energy transition that is underway to combat the worst effects of climate change can be encapsulated along roughly 125 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline.

GRAND RAPIDS — CMS Energy and Spectrum Health West Michigan are partnering on a new solar energy project that will help meet the power needs at a planned 80-bed subacute rehabilitation center on the city’s northeast side.

The planned May 31 closure date of the Palisades nuclear power plant in Van Buren County is now in limbo after federal officials last week issued guidance on a new $6 billion program to save operating U.S. nuclear plant.

Michigan’s two major electric utilities that jointly own the Ludington Pumped Hydro Storage power plant along Lake Michigan claim the contractor hired for a $500 million upgrade of the facility has “delivered defective work” and is failing to meet contractual deadlines.

COVERT — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and state energy regulators now see a path to keep the Palisades Power Plant in Van Buren County open beyond its scheduled May 31 closing date in hopes of preserving hundreds of jobs and a major clean energy resource.

COVERT — The owner of the Palisades nuclear power plant in Southwest Michigan disclosed last week that 184 jobs will be eliminated soon after the plant permanently closes on May 31.

Major automakers, craft breweries and an outdoor recreation resort are among Michigan companies calling on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to finalize a statewide climate action plan that includes a carbon neutral target by 2050.

KENTWOOD — Certified B Corp and food producer The GFB: The Gluten Free Bar is now participating in a Consumers Energy program to offset its Kentwood production facility’s electricity usage entirely with renewable energy.

Michigan is seeking more than $30 million in federal funding to accelerate the cleanup of hundreds of abandoned oil and gas wells across the state.

BOYNE CITY — Michigan’s largest member-owned electric utility is poised for new leadership as Shaun Lamp prepares to take over as president and CEO of Great Lakes Energy on March 19.

WALKER — Meijer Inc. has signed a 15-year contract to purchase output from a large-scale solar project in Texas under an agreement that will offset the retailer’s carbon emissions.

Consumers Energy announced plans today that it will issue 200 rebates over the next two years to help offset the cost for site hosts to install electric vehicle charging stations.

JACKSON — Consumers Energy plans to provide 200 rebates for electric vehicle charging stations in its Lower Peninsula service territory over the next two years.