Energy news in brief

** The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Monday asked a federal judge to delay a hearing on a temporary shutdown of the Dakota Access oil pipeline, citing the changeover in personnel with the new administration. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg asked the Corps to outline its plans after an appeals court two weeks ago backed Boasberg’s order for an extensive environmental review on the project and essentially confirmed that the pipeline was operating without a key permit.

**In a quarterly earnings call Tuesday morning, Arch Resources announced will begin shutting down its Coal Creek mine in Wyoming next year and reduce production at the nearby Black Thunder mine; the company had previously signaled the move but had not set a timeline.

** Georgia lawmakers debate a bill that would prohibit local governments from writing restrictions on energy sources into their building codes; a vote is expected later this week.

** University of Chicago researchers find electric vehicles are driven significantly less than vehicles with internal combustion engines, perhaps because some drivers see them as complements rather than substitutes for gasoline cars.

** A new report credits Florida policies for creating a successful market for electric vehicles, with roughly 60,000 already on state roads and that number projected to double within a decade.

** A commercial KLM airlines flight powered with synthetic fuel carried passengers from Amsterdam to Madrid last month in a world first, the Dutch government and the airline said on Monday.

** In its latest climate change move,  e-commerce giant Amazon has struck a deal to buy 380 megawatts (MW) of wind energy from Hollandse Kust Noord, a wind farm off the coast of Netherlands making it the company’s “largest single-site renewable energy project” yet.

** A state representative in South Dakota wants a new law giving the state the power to nullify executive orders from the Biden administration it deems unconstitutional, heightening the chances of a conflict with the White House in a state that has already vowed not to enforce any potential federal mask mandate.

** Chevron Corporation CVX announced that it offered to purchase shares in Noble Midstream Partners LP NBLX in an all-stock deal, subsequent to the acquisition of its parent enterprise Noble Energy Inc in 2020.

** In a signal of things to come from the Biden administration, the Justice Department on Monday dropped out of a lawsuit that seeks to block California from enacting its own net neutrality law.

** Maine Gov. Janet Mills asks state regulators to investigate why the state’s largest utility told solar developers projects, including some already built, will cost tens of millions more to connect to the transmission grid.

** Denver’s Guzman Energy, a wholesale power provider based in Colorado, has hired Daniela Shapiro to serve as Chief Financial Officer. Shapiro will oversee Guzman Energy’s finance activities and capital strategy.

** Arizona Republicans have filed additional bills aimed at undermining a regulatory order requiring 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050.