** Roughly 20% of electric vehicle owners in California replaced their cars with gas ones, a recent study shows. The main reason drivers made the switch was the inconvenience of charging.
** U.S. pump prices soared to seven-year highs above $3 per gallon this week despite stockpiles of gasoline surging by 10.5 million barrels over the past three weeks — nearly four times above forecast.
** After killing off the Clarity EV last year, Honda is ending production of its hydrogen fuel-cell and plug-in hybrid Clarity models this summer, Autoblog has reported. The decision reportedly came due to weak demand and Honda’s new focus on electrification, according to Nikkei.
** Ford has two electric vehicles in the pipeline — the E-Transit cargo van and F-150 Lighting Pro —aimed at commercial customers. Now, the automaker is rounding out its future EV commercial business with the acquisition of battery management and fleet monitoring software startup Electriphi.
** Maine became the first U.S. state to enact a law requiring divestment from fossil fuels, after Governor Janet Mills signed a measure ordering public funds to jettison investments in coal, petroleum, natural gas and related products.
** The Biden administration is developing targets for biofuel that are likely to be relatively flat or even lower as it seeks to balance the interests of blue-collar refining workers and advance a clean-energy agenda. The Environmental Protection Agency is set to propose renewable fuel requirements within weeks, according to several people familiar with the strategy who asked not to be named before a formal announcement.
** Fifteen Democratic lawmakers are warning the Biden administration against taking any steps to exempt oil refiners from biofuel blending mandates under the Renewable Fuel Standard — something Biden is reportedly considering , amid pressure from unions and oil-state senators.
** Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan has reinstated one of two key advisory boards, both of which he dismantled in March as a commitment to “scientific integrity,” AP reports. These panels help provide scientific guidance to the agency that can inform its rule-making on air quality standards and other environmental policies.
** The White House on Friday announced the intent to nominate the following officials to serve at the Department of the Interior:
- Laura Daniel-Davis, Assistant Secretary – Land and Minerals Management
- Maria Camille Calimlim Touton, Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation.
** Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) urged Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to wrap up the department’s review of federal oil and gas leases, which DOI says needs to be finished before it can resume lease auctions.