Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II, the Republican candidate for governor, released his energy plan to promote all sources with special focus on coal and offshore oil development, The Washington Post reports.
Moody's Investors Service said increased shale gas production would help refiners, utilities and chemical producers but poses a threat to coal's market share, Platts reports.
Coal prices have fallen 57 percent from records in 2008 and its share in electricity generation has declined as a result of more natural gas production and new regulations, Bloomberg reports.
A federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected an industry attempt to intervene in the Environmental Protection Agency's proposal to tighten coal-fired power plant water pollution rules.
The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia came four days after EPA proposed new plant water pollution standards that would affect about 500 plants starting in 2017. The rule also could alter EPA's proposed regulations on coal ash disposal.
The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday proposed tighter limits on water pollution from coal-fired power plants starting in 2017, limits it said would be aligned with its planned coal ash disposal rule.
EPA said the update to Clean Water Act rules would impose costs at about 500 of the nation's 1,200 steam fed plants and cut toxic metals pollution by up to 2.6 million pounds annually.
A new study from ExxonMobil Corp.'s Research and Engineering Company reports that natural gas retrieved by hydraulic fracturing produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than coal, The Hill reports.
The growing use of natural gas for electrical production in place of coal has played a large role in cutting national carbon-dioxide emissions, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe is tying his vote to support Environmental Protection Agency administrator nominee Gina McCarthy's confirmation to a reversal of policies he calls a "war on fossil fuels."
Inhofe, a Republican who sits on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, on Thursday released a letter he sent earlier in the week to McCarthy asking for responses questions on pending greenhouse gas regulations, EPA's hydraulic fracturing study and two other Clean Air Act issues. He said the answers would determine if he would support her nomination.
A report from the International Energy Agency found carbon emissions from today's energy sources remain similar to levels 20 years ago, a result of stalled climate change efforts and an increase in coal use, Bloomberg reports.
The House approved a bill that would protect electric utilities from environmental fines and lawsuits if the Energy Department orders them to keep power flowing, FuelFix reports.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will meet to discuss safe development of shale gas and hear testimony from government and industry officials today, The Hill reports.
Activists and environmentalists launched criticisms against the Environmental Defense Fund for its decision to join industry groups to help develop hydraulic fracturing standards, Bloomberg reports.
Some industry leaders are concerned that shifting opinions and increased legislative action on hydraulic fracturing could hinder their chances to develop Colorado's energy resources, Bloomberg reports.
Dominion Resources Inc. told the Nuclear Regulatory Commission last week that it had removed all nuclear fuel from the reactor at the shuttered Kewaunee Nuclear Plant, the Green Bay Press-Gazette reports.
A Colorado bill to establish a renewable energy mandate for cooperatives has faced a lawsuit and an advertising campaign over whether the bill would incentivize state renewable energy, The Gazette reports.
