COAL: Montana advocates push back on NorthWestern Energy’s plan to acquire a larger stake of the Colstrip coal plant from a Washington-based utility, saying the aging facility is unreliable and will need about $2 billion in pollution control upgrades to continue operating beyond 2032. (Montana Free Press)

SOLAR: California’s grid operator says smoke from dozens of wildfires burning across the West is diminishing solar output this summer even as high temperatures drive up demand. (Reuters)

BATTERIES: 

GRID: 

CLIMATE: 

  • Colorado’s Supreme Court considers hearing a city’s lawsuit looking to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for climate change-related damages. (E&E News, subscription)
  • A report by a former California official finds the state’s energy transition is constrained by lack of a clear plan to balance out increasing solar output after the sun goes down. (E&E News, subscription)

OIL & GAS: 

UTILITIES: Hawaii Gov. Josh Green expects a host of lawsuits against a utility and other entities over last year’s deadly Maui wildfires to be settled later this month. (Associated Press)

URANIUM: Arizona’s attorney general backs the Navajo Nation in its push to block uranium ore shipments across tribal lands and criticizes the mining company for its lack of transparency and inadequate emergency planning. (news release)

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Jonathan hails from southwestern Colorado and has been writing about the land, cultures, and communities of the Western United States for more than two decades. He compiles the Western Energy News digest. He is the author of three books, a contributing editor at High Country News, and the editor of the Land Desk, an e-newsletter that provides coverage and context on issues critical to the West.