S&P Global Market Intelligence editors' picks for the best stories for the week ended June 1.
1. NextEra deal with Southern fits both companies' playbooks
Recent transactions by NextEra Energy Inc. and Southern Co. demonstrate the immediate focus by the two integrated utility giants on recalibrating strategic priorities to achieve longer-term balance sheet flexibility.
2. Reviews mixed for nearly 7-year-old FERC transmission rule
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Order 1000, with some utilities praising the rule for increasing competition to build new power lines.
3. NiSource head sees system spending, not M&A, as key to growth
NiSource Inc. and other U.S. utilities are navigating changing corporate taxes, shifting interest rates and evolving cyber threats.
4. Trump DOE's fossil fuel office envisions spreading futuristic, small coal plants
President Donald Trump's leader on fossil energy research and development said he envisions "coal-based power plants of the future" that, like in the 1970s, will again enable the United States to spread coal technology to developing countries around the globe.
5. Trade talks with China could open door to export boost for US coal producers
U.S. coal exports are reportedly being considered as a path to reducing the country's international trade deficit with China, and a state that solidly backs President Donald Trump might particularly stand to benefit.
6. Devon finds common ground with dissident shareholders ahead of annual meeting
Facing five separate shareholder proposals on topics ranging from lobbying expenditures to hydraulic fracturing, shale driller Devon Energy Corp. relied on a new steering committee focused on environmental and social issues to reach agreements to provide additional disclosures sought by dissident shareholders and avoid proxy votes at the company's June 6 annual meeting.
