by wp_sysadmin | Jan 29, 2021 | News
News of the Day:
Biden Swings Waters Pendulum With Final Resolution Still Elusive
Bobby Magill, Bloomberg Law, January 29, 2021
- Attorneys see waters litigation continuing despite stays.
- Some pushing courts to resolve federal jurisdiction question.
The Biden administration is swinging the pendulum of repeated changes to water regulation back to expanding after those regulatory powers contracted under President Donald Trump.
But the swing isn’t likely to be permanent, legal scholars say.
The expansion of regulation has turned the question of federal jurisdiction over waters of the U.S., or WOTUS, from an arcane rule into a facet of America’s culture wars, given its impact on how private property is developed. Trump claimed—inaccurately, his critics said—that WOTUS “gave bureaucrats virtually unlimited authority” and “basically took your property away from you.”
Environmental litigators are urging the new administration to act fast.
“We want to it to be proper. I want them to follow science and develop a rule relatively quickly, so we’re not left with a complete lack of protection,” said Janette Brimmer, an Earthjustice attorney who is litigating several WOTUS cases.
Political compromise is unlikely, however, until the Supreme Court or Congress can settle the issue once and for all, the observers say.
The pendulum is likely to continue swinging “indefinitely, unless one party establishes political dominance,” said Dave Owen, a professor at the University of California, Hastings College of Law.
OIL:
5 Oil And Gas Predictions For 2021
Robert Rapier, OilPrice.Com, January 27, 2021
When I made my 2020 predictions a year ago, the world was on the cusp of a pandemic that would upend the oil markets. In the process, it upended two of my energy sector predictions, but three others ended up being correct. The Covid-19 pandemic last year was a black swan event that caused an unprecedented fallout across the energy sector. The evolution of the pandemic this year will be the largest variable impacting the energy sector. Yes, larger even than any policies our new President will enact.
The energy sector is already off to a fast start in the equity markets this year, as the market is anticipating a return to normal. But if those expectations falter and it takes longer than expected to get the pandemic under control this year, there is a risk of a significant pullback.
Against that backdrop, below are my predictions for some of the significant energy trends I expect this year. As I usually point out, the discussion behind the predictions is more important than the predictions themselves. That’s why I provide extensive background and reasoning behind the predictions.
I also make predictions that are specific and measurable. At year’s end, there are specific metrics that will indicate whether a prediction was right or wrong.
GAS:
No More Gas Pipelines? Gas Pipeline Owners Eye Hydrogen Potential
David R. Baker, Vanessa Dezem & Gerson Freitas Jr., Bloomberg, January 29, 2021
Three million miles of natural gas pipelines criss-cross the U.S., and the fight against climate change could render them all obsolete.
The last two weeks alone illustrate the stakes. President Joe Biden canceled the permit for the $9 billion Keystone XL oil pipeline on his first day in office, a clear signal any new fossil fuel pipeline project in the U.S. will face long odds. His climate envoy, former Secretary of State John Kerry, warned that natural gas pipelines could become “stranded assets” within 30 years as the administration seeks to end carbon emissions from power plants. And NextEra Energy Inc. wrote off $1.2 billion of its investment in the Mountain Valley gas pipeline from West Virginia to Virginia, which has been tied up in regulatory and legal delays.
So pipeline owners are eyeing another, possibly future-proof fuel: hydrogen.
MINING:
What Should We Do About Mining?
Alexander Kaufmann, HuffPost, January 29,2021
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden signed a series of executive orders that paused new oil and gas leasing on federal lands, directed the government’s international financing entities to phase out funding for fossil fuel projects overseas, and created a Civilian Climate Corps.
Biden’s special climate envoy, John Kerry, met the usual climate obstructionist talking points with clear, confident responses at a White House press briefing.
But on the same day, in the Senate confirmation hearing for Energy Secretary nominee Jennifer Granholm, a more complex side of the clean energy revolution was under discussion: mining. Granholm repeatedly said that she supports ramping up U.S. mining to help meet the demand for raw materials required to make the batteries that power electric vehicles and store renewable electricity.
“We are missing a massive opportunity for our own security, but also for a market for our trading partners who may want to have access to minerals that are produced in a responsible way,” Granholm, the former Michigan governor, told the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. “We know we can mine in a responsible way.”
At one point, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) pressed Granholm for a commitment that she would follow the law passed in December to set up a $75 million strategic uranium reserve, which would boost domestic mining of uranium.
“I will certainly act upon the instructions of Congress,” Granholm said.
POLITICS:
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
GOOD LUCK HASHING IT OUT: Republican Senators John Kennedy of Louisiana and Dan Sullivan of Alaska, along with more than 20 other GOP colleagues, yesterday requested a meeting with Biden to discuss his actions targeting fossil fuel leasing and infrastructure.
“We have been surprised by your immediate actions upon taking office that have targeted hundreds of thousands of these jobs in our states and which run counter to your stated goal of creating good-paying jobs and helping struggling American families,” the senators wrote in a letter.
We are surprised they are surprised, since Biden is doing what he campaigned on. White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said today that Biden has no plans for a meeting with Republicans as a group, but that he engages regularly with members individually. She also joked that the proposed gathering “sounds like a lot of people for a meeting during COVID.”
CLIMATE CHANGE:
It Is Time for Environmentalism 3.0
Kenneth P. Green, The Reason Foundation, January 28, 2021
Many of the policies promoted to address the most serious and high-profile environmental problems—climate change, declining biodiversity, oceanic dead zones, and tropical deforestation—simply aren’t working.
The modern environmental movement, founded on the very best of principles—protecting people and the planet—is failing.
To put it bluntly, many of the policies promoted to address the most serious and high-profile environmental problems—climate change, declining biodiversity, oceanic dead zones, and tropical deforestation—simply aren’t working. Worse, some of those policies have become politically divisive and, in more than a few cases, actually make the problems worse.
It’s time to reconsider what we’re doing.
by wp_sysadmin | Jan 28, 2021 | News
News of the Day:
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
GRANHOLM’S OLIVE BRANCH TO GOP ON LNG AND CRITICAL MINERALS: During yesterday’s craziness, we missed a couple things in Granholm’s hearing to be Energy secretary, in which she sought to assure Republicans that fossil fuels through carbon management techniques would play a role in Biden’s net-zero emissions goal.
She also committed to follow federal law as it relates to approving applications for exporting LNG providing clarity in an area where Biden was murky during the campaign.
“The Natural Gas Act of 1938 dictates the requirements and the considerations, and I would certainly abide by that act, including issues related to whether something is in the public interest, what the economics are, what the geopolitical concerns are,” Granholm said in response to a question from GOP Sen. Mike Lee on how climate considerations would factor into DOE’s analysis.
Granholm added in some cases, such as small-scale LNG exports to Caribbean islands, approvals could even provide a net climate benefit compared to other dirtier fuels.
She did indicate, though, that the administration, likely through FERC which works with DOE in approving LNG projects, would apply stricter greenhouse gas reviews.
“I would also want to work with the natural gas providers to see if we could continue to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the point of production,” she added.
Critical minerals key climate goals: Granholm also promised Republicans she shares their interest in boosting domestic mining for critical minerals that could be crucial to developing more batteries, wind turbines, and solar panels. The issue is tricky for Democrats and environmentalists, who want to expand clean energy development but generally oppose new mining.
“These minerals can be mined in a responsible way in a way that respects the environment,” Granholm said. “We don’t want to be under the thumb of China or other countries that corner the market on minerals.” She added she is “enthusiastically supportive” of DOE’s role in critical minerals “for both jobs and energy security and supply chain security in the United States.”
Today’s Rasmussen Poll:
57% of Voters Say Trump Impeachment Will Further Divide America
Most voters say former President Trump should be acquitted in next month’s Senate impeachment trial, which they expect to make America’s political division worse.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 50% of Likely U.S. Voters say the Senate should not convict Trump of “high crimes and misdemeanors” in the trial scheduled to start Feb. 9. Forty-five percent (45%) of voters think Trump should be convicted.
By a 3-to-1 margin, however, voters expect the Senate trial to make the country more divided, rather than more united. Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters say Trump’s trial will cause more division in America, compared to 19% who say the trial will help unite the country. Twenty percent (20%) say the impeachment trial will not make much difference.
OIL:
Argus Live: Crude prices could surge to $80/bl in 2021
Argus, January 27, 2021
Global crude prices could soar to $80/bl this year because of severe inventory shortages and rising demand, but US shale producers are unlikely to ramp up production, a panel of experts told the Argus Live Crude Summit today.
Crude supply is shrinking much faster than widely estimated, Marshall Adkins, a managing director who oversees energy investment banking at Raymond James, said. Global inventories have dropped by about 370mn bl since last May, which means Opec+ needs to produce at full capacity by the end of 2021 to keep up with demand.
Once demand starts to gain momentum, the resulting supply crunch will cause prices to jump by as much as 35pc this year to $80/bl from a little over $50/bl today.
The outlook “is exceptionally bullish,” Adkins said. “Oil demand has been stronger and faster than expected. And inventories are falling very fast.”
Ed Morse, managing director and global head of commodity research at Citi Group, concurred.
“The world overestimated the decline in demand,” Morse said. “And the world is now dramatically underestimating the decline in inventories.”
GAS:
New LNG projects will start going ahead, but green credentials to be closely watched
Nina Chestney, Reuters, January 26, 2021
Companies will press ahead with some new liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects despite pressure on lenders to divert funding from fossil fuels, industry executives said at the annual European Gas Conference, but scrutiny of their environmental standards will be tight.
Several LNG projects have been delayed or cancelled in recent years due to weak gas prices and worries about oversupply.
While prices have recovered somewhat as Asian demand picks up, lenders also face growing calls to starve fossil fuel projects of finance due to pressure to meet climate change targets.
Mark Gyetvay, chief financial officer, and deputy chairman of the management board of Russian gas producer Novatek, told the conference, held virtually, that by the end of the decade, the LNG market will be 150 million tons short on the supply side.
MINING:
Coal wins curious reprieve in Biden’s assault on climate change
Bloomberg News, January 28, 2021
President Joe Biden enlisted the entire US government in the fight against climate change on Wednesday, even telling the Central Intelligence Agency to consider global warming a national security threat.
Yet he left out coal — the fossil fuel most widely blamed for global warming — when he froze the sale of leases to extract oil and gas from federal land.
It was a conspicuous omission for a president who has vowed to make the electric grid carbon-free by 2035 and who has said the world’s “future rests in renewable energy.”Top of Form
White House national climate adviser Gina McCarthy said coal leasing will still get a review as part of a broad analysis of fossil-fuel leasing. But unlike oil and gas development on federal land, which Biden promised to target when running for president, a pause on selling coal rights “was not part of the commitments on the campaign.”
Administration officials had planned to include coal in the order, but the decision was made to leave it off the list by Monday afternoon, according to three people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named describing internal deliberations.
Bottom of Form
POLITICS:
Bank cop halts Trump rule boosting loans to private prisons, energy industry
Victoria Guida, Politico, January 28, 2021
A key bank regulator on Thursday halted a last-minute, Trump-era rule that would prevent big banks from denying loans and other services to entire industries like energy or private prisons, a regulation that had drawn ire not just from Democrats but from banks themselves.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said the decision on the fate of the rule should be left to whomever President Joe Biden names to head the national bank regulator.
“Pausing publication of the rule in the Federal Register will allow the next confirmed Comptroller of the Currency to review the final rule and the public comments the OCC received, as part of an orderly transition,” the OCC said in a press release.
The rule, finalized before former acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks left office earlier this month, has been criticized by lenders, investors, consumer groups, Democrats, and some conservatives.
Lenders increasingly are weighing the economic risks of climate change and are under pressure from activists and shareholders to adopt business practices that are environmentally and socially responsible. In some cases, that has led them to deny loans to gun manufacturers, oil and gas firms and other categories of companies.
The regulation finalized under Brooks would require banks to treat customers on an individual basis rather than refusing to serve them because they’re part of a particular industry.
CLIMATE CHANGE CONVERSATIONS:
Climate Change Does Not Mean Job Creation
Jim Geraghty, National Review, January 28, 2021
Yesterday, President Biden announced, “Today is ‘Climate Day’ at the White House and — which means that today is ‘Jobs Day’ at the White House. We’re talking about American innovation, American products, American labor.”
Biden’s chief climate adviser, former Obama-era EPA administrator Gina McCarthy, added, “when we say, ‘climate change,’ eventually, people are going to think ‘jobs,’ just like President Biden when he hears the words ‘climate change.’”
The problem is that Biden’s first major move on climate, canceling the Keystone Pipeline, already eliminated 1,000 jobs, according to TC Energy. And defenders of the Biden administration are being ludicrously disingenuous when they insist that “most of the [Keystone Pipeline] jobs would be temporary.” Yes, all construction jobs are temporary. (It only seems like the contractor working on your kitchen is taking forever.) When the construction crew has built what they’ve been assigned to build, that job is over, and they have to find a new one.
The Biden administration answer to those 1,000 laid-off workers is to tell them to find other jobs. A week ago, the incoming transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, declared in his confirmation hearing, “We are very eager to see those workers continue to be employed in good-paying union jobs, even if they might be different ones.”
And yesterday, “Special Climate Envoy” John Kerry suggested that coal miners could and would easily transition into the solar-power industry: “You know, you look at the consequences of black lung for a miner, for instance, and measure that against the fastest-growing job in the United States before COVID was solar power technician. The same people can do those jobs, but the choice of doing the solar power one now is a better choice.”
by wp_sysadmin | Jan 27, 2021 | News
News of the Day: Manchin’s Mission as Senate Energy & Natural Resources Chair
Today’s Rasmussen Poll:
Voters Say U.S. Is More Divided, Doubt Biden Can Unite Americans
Most voters think the country has become more divided since Election Day, and fewer than 1-in-5 say they are very confident President Biden will be able to unite Americans.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 56% of Likely U.S. Voters say America has become more divided since the election. Just 16% say the country is more united since the election, while 25% say it is about the same.
OIL:
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
EXAMINING BIDEN’S LEASING BAN: The leasing pause is a big deal, no doubt, given it lasts indefinitely while the administration reviews whether, and under what conditions, oil and gas development could resume under the federal minerals leasing program.
But there’s carveouts, and the immediate impact, especially on emissions, seems pretty minimal, as Josh wrote this morning.
The order exempts Native American tribes, which control about 20% of known oil and gas reserves on federal lands.
Banking leases and permits: The Biden administration is also emphasizing how the oil and gas industry has already stockpiled millions of acres of leases, which can last up to 10 years, while stashing permits as well. The Interior Department said in a fact sheet this morning that of the more than 26 million acres under lease to the oil and gas industry on public lands onshore, nearly 13.9 million (or 53%) of that is unused and non-producing. Of the more than 12 million acres of public waters under lease, over 9.3 million of those are not being used.
The industry is also sitting on 7,700 unused, approved permits to drill.
Permits are safe, to a point: Despite concern Interior would also freeze permitting, the agency says the pause “won’t impact existing operations or permits for valid, existing leases, which are continuing to be reviewed and approved.” Permits to drill usually are good for two years. But the Biden team is likely to impose tougher permitting requirements, with new guidance that requires permitting officers to evaluate factors such as greenhouse gas lifecycles, the social costs of carbon, methane, and more.
“Producers who can will likely shift their focus to assets on state and private lands. But the existing stockpile of drilling permits won’t last forever,” Dan Eberhart, CEO of the oil services company Canary and a Republican donor, told Josh.
GAS:
Endangered species signoff puts LNG facility in Alaska closer to handling imports
S & P Global Platts, January 26, 2021
The oldest LNG export facility in the US, dormant since 2015, is a step closer to being brought back online to handle imports to power a nearby refinery.
The National Marine Fisheries Service has concluded, in a Jan. 25 letter, that the proposal to modify the Kenai LNG facility in Alaska so it can receive four cargoes a year is not likely to adversely affect endangered whales.
While LNG exports have flourished since 2016 from the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, there aren’t any active shipments from the US West Coast, despite the shorter shipping distance to East Asia, the world’s biggest import market. For several years, uncertainty has surrounded the fate of the proposed Alaska LNG export project, which would be built along the eastern shore of Cook Inlet, because of its massive price tag and differences among state and local officials. A proposed liquefaction terminal to be built in Oregon, Pembina’s Jordan Cove LNG, has been held up by state permitting and commercial challenges.
Former plant owner ConocoPhillips began shipping LNG from Kenai LNG to overseas buyers in 1969, exporting the bulk of more than 1,300 cargoes to Japanese utilities. For more than 40 years, the plant in Nikiski, Alaska, was the only LNG export terminal in the US. A year after the 1.6 million mt/year facility went idle, Cheniere Energy shipped its first cargo from its Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana, launching a wave of new supplies produced from shale gas.
The Alaska facility’s current owner, Marathon Petroleum subsidiary Trans-Foreland Pipeline, wants to add equipment and perform modifications that will allow the terminal to cool down its existing LNG storage tanks by importing LNG. It would then deliver boil-off gas generated by the facility to the adjacent Kenai Refinery that is owned by an affiliate.
MINING:
Northern Dynasty stock surges as it releases Pebble appeal details
Mining.Com, January 27, 2021
Northern Dynasty Minerals (TSX:NDM) (NYSE:NAK) is appealing the decision by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to issue a negative Record of Decision (ROD) for the proposed massive Pebble mine project in the Bristol Bay region of Southwest Alaska.
On Wednesday, the company published the request for appeal (RFA) document on its website. According to Northern Dynasty CEO Ron Thiessen, there are some “very compelling arguments” persuasively presented in the RFA.
“We believe our submission clearly demonstrates the USACE’s Record of Decision for the Pebble project is contrary to law, unprecedented in Alaska and fundamentally unsupported by the administrative record. These are matters not only of concern to Northern Dynasty and its investors, but to all Alaskans,” Thiessen said in a news release.
The Pebble project has received additional support from the State of Alaska, which has also submitted a request to appeal to the USACE addressing its concerns as the owner of land and sub-surface mineral resources at Pebble.
POLITICS:
Republicans press Granholm on fossil fuels during confirmation hearing
Rachel Frazin, The Hill, January 27, 2021
Republicans on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee pressed Energy Secretary nominee Jennifer Granholm on fossil fuel issues during her sometimes-tense confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
Granholm, the former governor of Michigan, will be tasked with helping implement the president’s goal of expanding clean energy as part of an effort to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
Both Biden and Granholm have stressed that they want to create jobs as part of the transition, with Granholm saying during the hearing the goal is to create 10 million jobs.
Republicans, particularly those from fossil fuel-producing states, expressed skepticism during the hearing about replacing oil and gas jobs.
In opening remarks, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), who will be the top Republican on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said he won’t “sit idly by…if the Biden administration enforces policies that threaten Wyoming’s economy or the lifeblood of so many people in my home state.”
He also asked Granholm if it is a “good thing” that the U.S. is the world’s largest oil and natural gas producer.
“It is a good thing, and I look forward to working with you to make sure that it’s clean and reduces [greenhouse gas] emissions,” Granholm said.
CLIMATE CHANGE CONVERSATIONS:
Exxon Planning Board, Other Changes Amid Activist Pressure
Cara Lombardo, Emily Glazer and Dana Cimilluca, The Wall Street Journal, January 27, 2021
Exxon could announce the changes as soon as next week, possibly with its fourth-quarter earnings Tuesday. An ExxonMobil chemical complex in Baytown, Texas, is seen in 2020.
Exxon Mobil Corp. XOM +0.88% is preparing to make changes to its board and adopt further measures to reduce its carbon footprint as the beleaguered energy giant faces pressure from a pair of activist investors.
The company is discussing adding one or more new directors to the board and stepping up sustainability investments, people familiar with the matter said. Irving, Texas-based Exxon, which has been reducing its overall capital spending, could also curtail it further.
Exxon is in talks with one of the activists, D.E. Shaw Group, which may end up supporting the moves, some of the people said. Meanwhile, the other, Engine No. 1 LLC, is moving forward with a planned proxy fight for four board seats, it said Wednesday.
Exact details couldn’t be learned and the talks with D.E. Shaw could still fall apart. Like other activists, D.E. Shaw sometimes employs nonbinding handshake agreements with the companies it targets to avert a proxy fight.
The company said in a statement in response to the Engine No. 1 move that it has engaged with the firm since mid-December and that its board-affairs committee will evaluate the nominees. “ExxonMobil will continue to update shareholders in the coming weeks on the company’s strategy to build long-term, sustainable value for shareholders,” the company said. “It will also provide updates on company performance and actions to address climate change, including initiatives to commercialize technologies which are key to reducing emissions and meeting societal goals consistent with the Paris Agreement.”
by wp_sysadmin | Jan 26, 2021 | News
News of the Day:
Tribes exempt from pause in U.S. federal drilling program
Reuters, January 25, 2021
Native American tribes are exempt from the Biden administration’s temporary suspension of U.S. oil and gas leasing and permitting on federal lands, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Interior said on Monday.
The clarification comes after an oil-producing tribe in Utah last week asked Interior for an exemption from the 60-day pause, saying it would hit its economy and sovereignty.
“The approval process for oil and gas activities does not apply to tribal and individual trust lands,” Interior spokesman Tyler Cherry said in an email, referring to the secretarial order issued on Jan. 20, President Joe Biden’s first day in office.
Connections: Utah tribe blasts Biden’s drilling freeze on federal lands as ‘direct attack’ on sovereignty
OIL:
Biden to Suspend New Federal Oil and Gas Leasing Pending Review
Timothy Puko, Ken Thomas and Andrew Restuccia, The Wall Street Journal, January 26, 2021
President Biden is planning on Wednesday to halt new oil and gas leasing on federal territory, people familiar with the matter said, setting up a confrontation with the oil industry over the future of U.S. energy.
The Biden administration has drafted an order to impose the moratorium while it conducts a review of the federal oil and gas leasing program, the people said, in what is potentially a first step toward his campaign pledge to end future leases. The order is expected to be included in a package of measures across government aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and boosting land conservation.
As a candidate, Mr. Biden had said he would push the country to “transition away from the oil industry” because of its pollution, and he has acted more swiftly and broadly to do that than many expected.
In addition to the moratorium on oil and gas leasing, Mr. Biden is expected to set a goal of protecting 30% of federal land and water by 2030, the people said. The president is also planning to re-establish a White House council of science advisers that was established during the Obama administration. Mr. Biden’s plans were reported earlier by Bloomberg News and other publications.
GAS:
New LNG projects will start going ahead, but green credentials to be closely watched
Nina Chestney, Reuters, January 26, 2021
Companies will press ahead with some new liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in the next few years despite pressure on lenders to divert funding from fossil fuels, industry executives said, but scrutiny of their environmental standards will be tight.
Several LNG projects have been delayed or cancelled in recent years due to weak gas prices and worries about oversupply.
While prices have recovered somewhat as Asian demand picks up, lenders also face growing calls to starve fossil fuel projects of finance due to pressure to meet climate change targets.
Mark Gyetvay, chief financial officer, and deputy chairman of the management board of Russian gas producer Novatek, said that by the end of the decade, the LNG market will be 150 million tons short on the supply side.
MINING:
US gives high priority status to Graphite One’s Alaska project
Mining.Com, January 20, 2021
The US Government’s Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Committee designated Graphite One’s (TSX-V: GPH) Graphite Creek project as a high-priority infrastructure project (HPIP), following a nomination by Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy.
In its decision, the FPISC states that it has determined that the project qualifies as an HPIP under the ‘manufacturing’ and ‘renewable energy’’ sectors.
The designation means that Graphite One can elect to list on the Federal Permitting Dashboard, which ensures that federal permitting agencies coordinate their project review authorities, resulting in a more efficient process than the one pursued under regular channels.
The Graphite Creek project is considered the highest grade and largest known, large flake graphite deposit in the US.
POLITICS:
Lieutenant governor to introduce bill to repeal automatic PFD voter registration initiative
Sean McGuire, KTUU News, January 25, 2021
The lieutenant governor is set to introduce legislation that would repeal a 2016 voter initiative that automatically registers Alaskans to vote when they apply for a Permanent Fund dividend.
Wasilla Republican Sen. Mike Shower pre-filed an election reform bill with a similar provision. His legislation would mean that Alaskans could register to vote when applying for their PFD, but they would need to tick a box signaling that that is their intention.
Automatic voter registration in Alaska was approved by almost 65% of voters through the state’s initiative process at the November 2016 general election. Over 70,000 more Alaskans registered to vote between October of 2016 and January of 2021.
Meyer said the initiative created a process that’s “convenient” for Alaskans to register to vote but said repealing it isn’t intended to disenfranchise anyone. Voters would need to ensure they’re registered to vote 30 days before an election, which is the deadline under state law.
CLIMATE CHANGE CONVERSATIONS:
Schumer calls for Biden to declare climate emergency
Jordan Carney, The Hill, January 25, 2021
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Monday night that President Biden should consider declaring an emergency when it comes to the climate.
“It might be a good idea for President Biden to call a climate emergency,” Schumer told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow.
Schumer appeared to be referencing Biden making a national emergency declaration, with the Senate leader noting that former President Trump used it for the border wall.
Declaring a national emergency would give Biden more leeway on combating climate change, including being able to direct additional funding.
by wp_sysadmin | Jan 25, 2021 | News
News of the Day:
52% Say Biden’s Paris Climate Agreement Decision Will Mean Lost Jobs, Higher Bills
Rasmussen Reports, January 25, 2021
On his first day in office, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to have the United States rejoin the Paris climate agreement, but most voters believe Biden’s decision will mean lost jobs and higher bills for Americans.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 52% of Likely U.S. Voters agree with what Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said on Twitter last week: “The decision … to re-join the Paris Climate Agreement will cost American jobs and force households and small business to pay higher utility bills.” Thirty-three percent (33%) of voters disagree and 15% say they’re not sure.
OIL:
Oil’s allies gird for Biden fossil fuel moratorium
Heather Richards and Emma Dumain, E&E News, January 25, 2021
The Biden administration has yet to act on its campaign promise to bar oil and gas leasing and permitting on federal lands, but the political battle has already begun.
Rumors that the Biden administration will announce a one-year oil and gas moratorium this week have marshaled oil-friendly Republicans to a fight reminiscent of the Obama era.
But progressives, too, are galvanized and plan to press for an even more aggressive action to retire the U.S. government’s vast federal mineral estate.
The frenzy started shortly after President Biden’s inauguration, when the Interior Department’s acting chief, Scott de la Vega, ordered that all permitting, and leasing decisions go through top brass for 60 days.
In light of the suite of climate provisions, signed the same day Biden took office — along with the revocation of the Keystone XL pipeline’s permit and rejoining the Paris climate agreement — many saw the administrative order as a shot across the bow. House and Senate Republicans instantly rallied against it.
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) questioned the order’s legality and said it was a “disastrous start” for the new president. The ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee said the interruption of oil and gas lease sales in his state would “kill jobs” and eliminate the influx of revenue.
Other conservatives made clear that they saw the Interior order as a sign of the permanent ban that was still to come.
“This day-one attack on American energy jobs signals an alarming return to the same failed energy policies of the past that inflicted real harm on hardworking families,” said House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), referencing the fossil fuel fights between the left and right during the Obama era.
GAS:
Center for LNG Announces Methane Principles
January 25, 2021
The Center for LNG (CLNG) today announced its adoption of principles to address methane emissions. CLNG’s members represent all aspects of the U.S. LNG supply chain, including all six large-scale LNG export facilities in the United States, shippers, and multinational developers.
Charlie Riedl, Executive Director of the Center for LNG (CLNG), said: “As part of their commitment to building a clean energy future, our member companies believe that it is essential to address methane emissions in the natural gas industry. As part of our effort, our industry is voluntarily investing in innovative technology and processes to reduce methane emissions. We support improved data quality and well-designed government policies to help achieve further reductions of methane emissions. “Our principles on methane emission reductions can help guide our work with the Biden Administration and enable LNG to further benefit consumers and the environment around the world.”
CLNG’s methane announcement consists of six principles to address methane emissions, including investing in technologies and processes, improving data quality, and supporting voluntary efforts and well-designed government policies. Read the full text of CLNG’s Methane Principles here. Visit LNGFacts.org to learn more about natural gas, LNG and how they are contributing to a bright energy future.
MINING:
Ucore strengthens support for Alaska SMC
Shane Lasley, North of 60 Mining News, January 22, 2021
The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority unanimously passed a resolution authorizing the formalization of a preliminary due-diligence process for a potential US$3 million to US$5 million investment for the development and commercial-scale operation of the rare earths separation facility Ucore Rare Metals Inc. plans to build near the Southeast Alaska port town of Ketchikan.
Development of this Alaska Strategic Metals Complex, or Alaska SMC, is the first step toward Ucore’s larger goal of developing a mine at Bokan Mountain, a rare earth elements mine project about 35 miles away from Ketchikan.
The Alaska SMC is a planned rare earths separation and processing facility that would initially process mixed rare earth concentrates from United States-allied suppliers into commercial purity REE oxides, specifically for REE permanent-magnet applications. This plant would utilize RapidSX rare earths and critical minerals separation technology developed by Innovation Metals Corp., a company Ucore acquired last year.
Alaska SMC is the first step of Alaska2023, a business plan unveiled by Ucore earlier this month that envisions the start of rare earths production in Alaska in three years. After getting this separation facility churning out rare earth oxides from feedstock supplied by others, the company plans to develop a mine at its Bokan Mountain REE and critical minerals project on Prince of Wales Island.
POLITICS:
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
EPA SEEKS PAUSE IN LAWSUITS OVER ALL TRUMP RULES: The request, issued in a letter Friday by EPA’s acting general counsel Melissa Hoffer, comes on the heels of Biden’s executive order last week asking the EPA to review nearly 50 Trump-era deregulatory actions.
The request allows new EPA leadership an opportunity “to review the underlying rule or matter,” Hoffer said in a letter. It’s likely the Biden EPA could decide to change its stance in much of the litigation, especially lawsuits over Trump rulemakings that weakened greenhouse gas mandates. That could help the Biden team’s quest to rewrite and tighten those environmental rules.
Worth noting Hoffer joined the EPA from the Massachusetts attorney general’s office, where she oversaw the energy and environment bureau and led the state’s work challenging the Trump administration’s environmental rollbacks.
CLIMATE CHANGE CONVERSATIONS:
MUSK OFFERS $100MN FOR CARBON CAPTURE TECH
Natural Gas News, January 22, 2021
Billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted on January 21 he would offer a $100mn prize for developing the “best” technology to capture CO2 emissions.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) warned in December that carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) needed to be deployed at a much faster pace for countries to meet their climate goals. It can handle emissions from many industries and can be used to make natural gas-derived hydrogen clean.
“Am donating $100mn towards a prize for best carbon capture technology,” Musk said in a tweet, promising in a second one that details would come next week.
Tesla is a pioneer in electrifying vehicle transport, and electrification is touted as a key way to decarbonize other industries. But CCUS is a potential solution for areas that are not easily made clean with renewable power supply alone. “When green gurus argue against carbon capture, they often invoke the name of Elon Musk, along the lines of ‘carbon capture is rubbish, we will electrify everything with 100% wind and solar, just look at Tesla’,” Laszlo Varro, the IEA’s chief economist, said on his personal LinkedIn page.1 “Well, it turns out that the real Elon Musk while having historical achievements on electrification apparently still regards carbon capture as an important technology which should get an innovation push.”
