Xcel agrees to Marshall Fire settlement; Avangrid to invest $13.6B in Northeast

TOP NEWS IN ENERGY & UTILITIES

– Xcel Energy Inc. will pay approximately $640 million to settle litigation around the 2021 Marshall Fire in Colorado, the company said Sept. 24, a day before jury selection for a trial over the lawsuit was set to begin.

– Avangrid Inc. plans to prioritize investment in the Northeast US grid to capitalize on projected load growth and the need to replace aging infrastructure. The company is investing $13.6 billion into its US grid network from 2025 to 2028.

➤ 'Noise and chaos' of US energy policy creates grim outlook for shale drillers

Western US shale companies continue to decrease activity, delay investment decisions and raise questions over the Trump administration's trade and energy policies, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' latest quarterly energy survey.

➤ Scientists, companies, ex-NOAA staff race to restore axed climate data

It was a setback — but no surprise — for founders of Crosswalk Labs when the Trump administration proposed to eliminate a program requiring thousands of power-producing and industrial sites to report greenhouse gas emissions.

➤ US Climate Alliance states close to meeting 2025 GHG reduction goal

A coalition of 24 climate change-focused governors representing 55% of the US population and 60% of its GDP said their states cut combined greenhouse gas emissions by 24% between 2005 and 2023. With that, they outpaced a 19% nationwide decline, and the 16% non-alliance states cut their emissions during the same period.

UTILITIES & POWER

– Indiana regulators have agreed to decline jurisdiction over a new NiSource Inc. unit's plan to build generation that will serve large-load customers, primarily data centers, clearing the way for the formation of the new business unit.

– A federal judge determined that a New York state law aimed at preventing contamination of the Hudson River could not impede Holtec International Inc.'s plans to dismantle the Indian Point nuclear power plant, according to Reuters.

– The real estate investment trust Fermi Inc., which is aiming for 11 GW of power to support computing centers, is seeking to raise as much as $550 million in an initial public offering, Bloomberg News reported.

– Maine has launched the cabinet-level Department of Energy Resources, which replaces the governor's Energy Office to lead energy policy, programs and planning in the state.

RENEWABLES & CLIMATE

– The US Energy Department said it will return more than $13 billion in unobligated funds initially allocated for green projects to American taxpayers.

– North Dakota regulators have deemed Montana-Dakota Utilities Co.'s planned acquisition of a 49% ownership interest in the 250-MW Badger wind farm as prudent and cost-effective for customers. The MDU Resources Group Inc. subsidiary is investing approximately $294 million for a 122.5-MW stake in the project.

– Germany has awarded another 3.4 GW of onshore wind support contracts to 376 projects in the third of four tenders this year, regulator BNetzA said Sept. 24.

– Saudi Arabian Oil Co. has hit an impasse on its pursuit of a minority stake in Repsol SA's renewables unit, Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

NATURAL GAS

– Golden Pass LNG LLC has secured DOE authorization to reexport LNG used to cool down its Texas export facility ahead of an expected startup by year-end.

– Turkey's state-owned BOTAŞ has signed two more LNG supply deals: a 20-year sale and purchase agreement with Mercuria Energy Trading Inc. and a heads of agreement with Australia's Woodside Energy Group Ltd. for up to nine years.

OIL

– Alaska's congressional delegation has introduced a resolution to cancel the Biden-era land-use plan for the National Petroleum Reserve, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

– In the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas survey, US shale executives warned that the Trump administration's tariffs and support for low oil prices are hurting the sector, the Financial Times reported.

– India has indicated that it wants to buy more US oil and gas as the country works to secure a trade deal, according to Bloomberg News.

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