Energy Update: Week of April 22nd

Friends,

Happy Passover and Earth Day!!! I was hoping to have slow days of fasting and visiting my brother in Detroit, but was I wrong about that!!

It is about to get crazy this week – which actually started Friday with the Alaska rules (not great critical minerals) and the White House Earth Day pre-brief which was released this morning.  Tomorrow, National Petroleum Council announces its Natural Gas Supply Chain and Hydrogen reports at the 134^th meeting of the NPC tomorrow with Sect Granholm speaking. Then Thursday, we expect four new power plant rules on carbon, mercury, water effluence and coal ash residuals. We also know that NEPA rules are on the list and imminent as well.  Good timing, since more than 1,200 officials from electric co-ops around the country are on the Hill this week as part of the NRECA’s annual fly-in.

Congress remains out for Passover (except for a quick Senate session to finalize Ukraine/Israel aid). There are a couple of field hearings on energy issues in Utah (House Resources on land issues) and Texas (House Oversight on energy production).

There are a few other great events that you must attend:

1. Tomorrow at 3:30, SAFE holds a webinar with DOE Loan Office Head Jigar Shah, Lithium Americas CEO Jonathan Evans and Ultium Cells VP Thomas Gallagher. The webinar will about how the LPO works with private industry to drive an energy transition with key critical minerals and reindustrialization strategy that serves the long-term economic and security needs of the U.S.  
2. On Friday, the Center for the National Interest and the Energy Innovation Reform Project will hold a virtual discussion of Russia’s evolving global energy role. The event looks at the evolution of Russia’s global energy role and its important implications for the United States and for U.S. policy. It will also look at a major new report, Russia’s Future Global Energy Role: War, Sanctions, and the Energy Transition.

So many more really good event this week.  See a rundown below in the weekly “On the Schedule Section.”

I am beginning to archive the weekly Bracewell PRG Energy update on Substack. It will be accessible to all. I would encourage you to subscribe so you can stay in touch, get these update regularly and have access to the archive.  You can subscribe here

The NHL and NBA playoffs are underway, Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame 2024 inductees were announced last night (Dave Matthews, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Ozzy Osbourne, a Tribe Called Quest, Cher and several more made it) and the White House Correspondents Dinner is Saturday.  Have a great week and call with any questions.

Best,

Frank Maisano

(202) 828-5864

C. (202) 997-5932                                                                                                           

FRANKLY SPOKEN

“As a former commission president, I know what keeping energy prices down requires: a sharp pencil to control relentless spending requests from utilities that allow them to generate more profits, adherence to legal mandates that require it to protect ratepayers and allow only ‘just and reasonable’ costs and the backbone to just say no to the utilities’ unceasing demands that customers pay for programs that are ineffective or unnecessarily expensive. None of this is happening, and Californians should be outraged.”

Former CPUC Chair Loretta Lynch in a San Francisco Chronicle opinion piece about why electricity prices are so high in California.

ON THE PODCAST

Volts Looks at China on Energy, Climate – On this week’s episode of David Roberts’ Volts Podcast, Dave sits down with researcher Lauri Myllyvirta who brings data to bear on China’s recent decarbonization efforts and helps demystify the country’s larger intentions. Myllyvirta heads the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and is a senior fellow with the Asia Society Policy Institute. Topics include what is going on with coal in China, the approaching inflection point in the country’s emissions and the escalating trade tensions between China and the US.

FUN OPINIONS

LNG Pause is Bad for PA – In an op-ed in The Delaware County Daily Times, former PA Senate Labor and Industry Committee Chair and former Chester County commissioner Earl Baker writes energy is shaping up to be a major issue on the ballot for Pennsylvanians in 2024 and voters are clearly lining up to defend American energy independence. Baker says politicians should take heed and avoid prioritizing the expensive values of coastal elites and climate lobbyists over the livelihoods of hard-working Pennsylvanians.

Louisiana Leads Low Carbon Energy Future – In an op-ed in The Times-Picayune/The Advocate, Greater New Orleans CEO Michael Hecht writes on a generational opportunity for Greater New Orleans and Louisiana  to lead the nation and world towards a responsible, job-producing, lower-carbon, “all-of-the-above” energy future. Since 2018, companies have invested $50 billion in new energy projects across our state, creating nearly 5,500 jobs with an average salary of $82,000. Combined with the more than 10,000 jobs in our pipeline, this represents a potential 20% increase in total energy employment in Louisiana.

FROG BLOG

LAT Editorial: CA Electricity Rates Threaten State’s Clean Energy Future – In a new editorial, the Los Angeles Times editorial board writes California has some of the nation’s highest electricity rates, and power bills are rising fast. That’s a problem because it makes it harder for people to afford switching from fossil fuels to clean electric cars and appliances that are essential to combating climate change. The editorial supports new CPUC efforts to charge electric customers to pay a modest flat fee and a lower per kilowatt-hour rate. “To be clear, this new billing plan doesn’t solve the problem of rising electric bills, and state regulators and lawmakers need to get serious about pushing back against constant rate increase requests and holding these monopolies accountable for keeping costs low. Otherwise, the critical resource that the future of our planet and economy rests on will keep growing less affordable and undermine California’s climate policies.”

FUN FACTS

China & Oil: EIA says China's crude oil imports hit a record last year, becoming the world’s largest importer of crude oil. It imported 11.3 million barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil in 2023, 10% more than in 2022. Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iraq were China’s main sources of crude oil imports in 2023.

IN THE NEWS

LNG Study Shows Limited Life Cycle Impacts of LNG – A new Berkeley Research Group study shows US LNG has the lowest greenhouse gas emissions intensity for power generation compared to other leading fossil fuel supply chains, with few exceptions. The results show GHG emissions intensity of USLNG in 2022 was less than 50% of coal in both Europe and Asia and lower than pipeline gas imported from Algeria, Russia, and Turkmenistan. The GHG emissions intensity of USLNG was, on the other hand, 4% higher than pipeline gas from Azerbaijan and 38% higher than gas from Norway in European markets.

Berkeley Research Group conducted the study on life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of US LNG and other fuels in top global markets. By definition, a life-cycle analysis (LCA) involves a thorough inventory of the energy required and emissions generated across the supply chain and value chain of a product. Using full life-cycle methodologies and the most recent publicly available methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) data, BRG has produced comparative results for three types of energy supply—USLNG, pipeline gas, coal—in eight European and five Asian nations in 2022. Two years in the making, this is the most exacting and comprehensive LCA comparing USLNG, pipeline gas, and coal ever completed.

Scope of Analysis

The LCA presented in the BRG report evaluates the CO2 and CH4 emissions volumes and intensity for the full supply chains of USLNG, pipeline gas, and coal. Each supply chain spans from upstream production or extraction, through midstream infrastructure and/or shipping, to down-stream combustion in power generation in each of the markets. The analysis uses the best and most current available data (generally 2022) and converts CH4 emissions to a CO2 equivalent (CO2e) basis using the 20-Year Global Warming Potential of CH4 relative to CO2.

The findings of this study differ significantly from the result of other studies, which purport to show GHG emissions intensity from LNG is greater than coal (Howarth) when used to produce electricity.  This study differs in its:  

• Methodology: This study employes a bottom-up methodology to arrive at a comprehensive comparison of the emissions intensity of USLNG and competing fuels for a specific historical time-peri-od (2022) and specific trade corridors and supply chain segments. By comparison, other studies are based on analyzing aggregated emissions information to develop general theoretical conclusions about the comparative GHG footprint of USLNG and coal supplies, without specific evaluation of regional, trade route, or timeframe distinctions.
• Data Used: BRG uses the most up-to-date emissions data and reported/ measured emissions for each supply chain segment and delivery route. Other studies rely primarily on aggregated emission intensity results for gas and coal supply chains derived from other theoretical studies.

Results

The GHG emissions intensity of USLNG in 2022 was less than 50% of coal in both Europe and Asia and lower than pipeline gas imported from Algeria, Russia, and Turkmenistan. The GHG emissions intensity of USLNG was, on the other hand, 4% higher than pipeline gas from Azerbaijan and 38% higher than gas from Norway in European markets.

Interior Pushes Restrictive Alaska Rules – The Interior Department Bureau of Land Management on Friday recommended against building the Ambler Road — a proposed 211 mile-long roadway that would have expanded critical mineral mining operations into an undeveloped part of the state — a recommendation that effectively kills the project and puts zinc and copper deposits out of reach. Interior also issued a final rule that will remove the entire U.S. Arctic Ocean, 11 million acres of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska and nearly 3 million acres of federal waters off the Alaska coast from consideration for new oil and gas leasing.

API’s Dustin Meyer on the Biden administration’s restrictive final rule:

“This misguided rule from the Biden Administration sharply limits future oil and natural gas development in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve, a region explicitly intended by Congress to bolster America’s energy security while generating important economic growth and revenue for local Alaskan communities. At a time when the world is looking for American energy leadership, this is yet another step in the wrong direction.” 

In December 2023, API submitted comments to BLM and raised concerns that the proposed regulatory changes restrict energy development, jeopardize economic growth for native communities and ignore Congressional intent. The comments also emphasized the economic and national security benefits of the oil and natural gas industry in Alaska, which supports nearly 70,000 direct and indirect Alaska jobs. Revenue derived from oil and natural gas development provides the vast majority of revenue for the North Slope Borough (95%), which is then used to provide a wide range of essential public services. According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey, NPR-A is estimated to hold 8.7 billion barrels of oil and 25 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, supplying critical resources that will bolster U.S. energy security now and into the future.

AGA Challenges DOE Energy Rules – AGA and its partner organizations filed an initial brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals to challenge three DOE rules that limit customer access to energy-efficient natural gas products. The challenged standards would, in violation of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), eliminate from the market furnaces and commercial water heaters installed in millions of homes and businesses today. AGA strongly supports advancing energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and the industry has been a leader in driving customer energy conservation.  However, these DOE rules do not follow statutory requirements and fail to meet the necessary legal standard of being technologically feasible and economically justified. DOE’s final rules ban the sale of non-condensing natural gas furnaces and commercial water heaters. The consumer furnace rule affects 55 percent of U.S. households and impacts senior-only households, low-income households and small business consumers disproportionately. However, EPCA explicitly forbids the department from promulgating any standard that is likely to result in the unavailability in the United States of any product type of performance characteristics that is already on the market (i.e. products such as all non-condensing natural gas furnaces with a specific venting design feature). Energy efficiency is also one of the many strategies in the pathways explored by AGA’s Net-Zero Emissions Opportunities for Gas Utilities report. The natural gas industry continues to lead in driving down emissions and paving the way for a cleaner energy future. According to the study, pathways that utilize natural gas and the vast utility delivery infrastructure offer opportunities to incorporate renewable and low-carbon gases, provide optionality for stakeholders, help minimize customer impacts, maintain high reliability, improve overall energy system resilience, and accelerate emissions reductions.

EPA, CDC, CSPC Report Says No Risk from Field Turf – A new report form the EPA, Centers for Disease Control and Consumer Product Safety Commission says players are not at elevated risk of exposure to certain chemicals, metals or air emissions from playing fields using crumb rubber infill. The completed research on synthetic turf playing fields under the “Federal Research Action Plan on Recycled Tire Crumb Used on Playing Fields and Playgrounds” (FRAP) support the conclusion that while chemicals are present (as expected) in the tire crumb rubber and exposures can occur, they likely are limited. The study’s findings, “Generally, only small amounts of most organic chemicals are released from tire crumb rubber into the air through emissions. For many analytes measured during active play at the outdoor fields, next-to-field concentrations in air were not different than background samples while others were somewhat higher.” The study also found that only small fractions of metals are released from tire crumb rubber into simulated biological fluids compared with a default assumption of 100% bioaccessibility.

ON THE SCHEDULE THIS WEEK

Earth Day – TODAY

Passover Begins – Sundown TODAY.

WTOP Holds Energy Series – Today, tomorrow and Wednesday (all at 10:00 a.m.), WTOP holds its inaugural Energy Strategy Series to bring together government and industry experts to share initiatives and insights about efforts to transform the nation’s energy infrastructure. The series – presented by Clean Fuels Alliance America, ICF and Washington Gas – will explore critical topic like collaboration to make the energy grid both more resilient and climate-friendly, converting large municipal truck fleets to biodiesel deliver, near-term changes for the energy infrastructure and challenges in policy, funding and implementation that need to be addressed. Among the speakers will be DOE Grid Director Maria Robinson.

Wilson Holds Innovation Forum – The Wilson Center and U.S. National Laboratories hold its Innovations in Climate Resilience Conference today through Wednesday. DOE Undersecretary for Science and Innovation Geri Richmond speaks today while White House NSC Official Sarah Ladislaw speaks tomorrow.

Forum Looks at Transmission Planning – The Conservative Energy Network hold a webinar today at 1:00 p.m. on the importance of Long-term transmission planning. The event explores the impact of domestic manufacturing, data center growth, and AI advancements on energy needs. Former Arkansas PUC Chair Ted Thomas is among the speakers.  

House Resources Hearing Looks at Land Overreach – The House Resources Committee’s Subcommittee on Federal Lands holds a field hearing in Hurricane, Utah today at 2:00 p.m. to focus on federal land management policies that some Western congressional leaders complain hamper economic development by prioritizing conservation.

Forum Looks at Decarb Innovation – Energy Innovation holds a webinar today at 3:00 p.m. to look at Federal policy to decarbonize US industry. This webinar will discuss federal policies and incentives enacted by the Biden Administration to cut greenhouse gas emissions and manufacturing costs using clean energy technologies.

AEI Looks at Climate, Science – Today at 6:00 p.m., AEI holds a forum on climate science. Steve Hayward—a resident scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, who previously authored an AEI book on favorable environmental trends—will present on how the trend data demonstrate the momentum of environmental progress in the US and around the world.  Afterward, Hayward and AEI’s Roger Pielke Jr. will discuss environmental trends and the exceptional case of climate change, which overshadows almost every other environmental issue. Dr. Hayward and Dr. Pielke will explore what we have learned about the environment, what important information gaps remain, and lessons for future policy choices.

Methane Summit Set – One Future holds the 7^th annual Methane and Climate Strategies Workshop tomorrow and Wednesday and will focus on environmental and regulatory issues, policy, investor relations, and technological advancements across the natural gas supply chain. Attendees will connect with peers with the same challenges and opportunities to reduce methane emissions. Williams CEO Alan Armstrong, Cheniere’s Fiji Geoge and AGA’s Richard Meyers all speak.

Pyatt to Address CSIS Energy Summit – CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change program and the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program holds its 2024 Energy Security and Geopolitics Conference tomorrow at CSIS HQ. This year’s conference will feature a keynote from State’s Geoffrey Pyatt and Public Power Corporation CEO Georgios Stassis. The conference will convene senior leaders from government, private sector, and think tank communities. Speakers will reflect on the last two years of policy developments in Europe related to energy security, specifically how energy policy is informing and shaping geopolitical decisions, and vice versa.

House Oversight to Look at Energy Production, Drilling – Tomorrow at 11:00 a.m., the House Oversight holds a field hearing on energy production issues in Plano, Texas. Witnesses include Energy Workforce and Technology Council president Tim Tarpley, Liberty Energy president Ron Gusek and Coterra Energy’s Bill desRosiers.

Congressional Briefing to Look at Hydrogen, IRS Rules – Tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. in 366 Dirksen, the Roosevelt Caucus Foundation and the Roosevelt Conservation Caucus host a lunch briefing for Congressional staff on the Department of Treasury and the IRS’s proposed rule implementing the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax credit for clean hydrogen. The briefing will involve a panel discussion examining the proposed rule with the context of the Administration’s emissions reduction and clean energy goals and include perspectives from across the hydrogen value chain.

Shah Leads SAFE Webinar on Loan Program – Tomorrow at 3:30, SAFE holds a webinar with DOE Loan Office Head Jigar Shah, Lithium Americas CEO Jonathan Evans, and Ultium Cells VP Thomas Gallagher. The webinar will about how the LPO works with private industry to drive an energy transition and reindustrialization strategy that serves the long-term economic and security needs of the U.S. SAFE's Center for Critical Minerals Strategy Executive Director Abigail Hunter moderates.

EPA’s Uhlmann to Address Air Regulators – The Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (AAPCA) holds its 2024 Spring Meeting on tomorrow to Thursday in Indianapolis.  David Uhlmann, Assistant Administrator for U.S. EPA’s Office of Enforcement & Compliance Assurance (OECA) will provide the keynote.

Forum to Look at Nuclear – On Wednesday at 9:00 a.m., the Atlantic Council holds a virtual discussion building an advanced nuclear ecosystem. The event will focus on the development of a diverse, iterative advanced nuclear technology suite. The Global Energy Center will host Stefano Buono, founder and chief executive officer at Newcleo to discuss the company’s approach to advanced nuclear energy technologies.

RAND Looks at Climate – The RAND Corporation holds a virtual discussion on Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. on new technologies that can help mitigate the effects of climate change. RAND's Aimee Curtright breaks down the pros and cons of a wide range of emerging decarbonization options—in this installment of the Policy Lab webinar series.

Forum Look at AI for Carbon Reductions – On Wednesday at Noon, the Center for Data Innovation holds a panel discussion to explore the current landscape of AI applications in transitioning to a greener economy, identify key areas ripe for further exploration, and discuss actionable policy measures to foster innovation and adoption.

RMI to Roll Out at Flaring Map – On Wednesday at 12:30 p.m., RMI is releasing the Flaring Risk Map, a new feature on the Oil Climate Index plus Gas (OCI+) platform web platform that assesses the negative environmental justice impact of oil and gas flares on nearby communities. This webinar will include a walkthrough of the tool, expert panel discussion highlighting use cases and Q&A session.

Forum Looks at Climate Lawsuit – The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies In-House Counsel Network hold a discussion on Wednesday at 2:00 p.m. on climate lawsuits and status at the US Supreme Court. Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., Partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and counsel for Chevron, will discuss these cases and address arguments raised in the pending cert petition.

Forum to Discuss Energy Security – The Atlantic Council holds a discussion on the U.S. Development Finance Corporation's role in U.S. efforts to advance global energy security and other strategic U.S. priorities. The event features a conversation featuring Scott Nathan, chief executive officer of the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) on the DFC’s role in US efforts to advance global energy security and other strategic US priorities. 

Economists Look at Reliability – The National Capital Area Chapter of the U.S. Association of Energy Economists hold its 27^th Annual Energy Policy Conference on Thursday at George Mason University. The forum will be on ensuring reliability.  Keynote speaker will be Julian Nebreda, President and CEO of Fluence. This conference will examine the potential supply-demand gaps across energy systems and consider the solutions through the lens of energy economics. Topics will include the supply and demand challenges, both domestically and internationally, how data centers and electrification are driving unexpected electricity demand while examining the constraints on supply and the incentives needed to drive solutions. Finally, it will examine the role of natural gas in this context and feature a major study by the National Petroleum Council on greenhouse gases across the gas value chain to be released that week.

FERC Meeting Set to Address Transmission – FERC holds its monthly meeting on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. with transmission planning rules on the agenda. 

Forum Looks at Cyber Resilience – The United States Energy Association holds a virtual discussion on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. on leveraging procurement for cybersecurity resilience. This webinar focuses on how procurement in the energy sector can be leveraged to strengthen cybersecurity across TSOs, DSOs, and generation. Topics explored include how systems associated with managing energy infrastructure, like SCADA and other industrial controls systems, energy market applications, advanced metering infrastructure and billing systems can be made more resilient by embedding cybersecurity specifications in procurement. Speakers will consider how existing standards can be implemented to guide procurements through the lifecycle of operations.

RFF Looks at Equity, Clean Energy – Resources for the Future (RFF) holds a forum on Thursday at 12:00 p.m. to look at an equitable transition and energy and economic development in Tribal Nations. This webinar will explore these issues, their environmental implications, and more—featuring leading experts on tribal energy and economic development policy.

Forum Looks at Central Asia Energy Challenges – On Thursday at 1:00 p.m., the Center for the National Interest is hosting the third in a monthly series of expert discussions organized by the Center’s Central Asia Connectivity Project on converging foreign policies in the Gulf States and Central Asia.

Forum to Look at Russia Global Energy Issues – The Center for the National Interest and the Energy Innovation Reform Project will hold a virtual discussion of Russia’s evolving global energy role on Friday at 9:00 a.m. The event looks at the evolution of Russia’s global energy role and its important implications for the United States and for U.S. policy. It will also look at a major new report, Russia’s Future Global Energy Role: War, Sanctions, and the Energy Transition. Speakers will include some really GREAT EXPERTS: Harvard University Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies head Craig Kennedy, Columbia Center on Global Energy Policy Russia expert Tatiana Mitrova, (also a former Head of Research in the Oil/Gas Department at the Russian Academy of Sciences Energy Research institute) and former State Department Official Paul Saunders, who wrote the Russian report. Robinson West moderates.

Wilson Looks at Central America, Climate – The Wilson Center's Latin America Program holds a virtual discussion on Friday at 11:15 a.m. on climate resilience and Democratic governance in Central America's Northern Triangle. The forum will focus on a new report on El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and features a virtual conversation with the report authors on the policy lessons it draws about forest protection, the role of community-based climate action in deepening social cohesion, and the involvement of community leaders, municipal authorities and non-governmental organizations in projects that improve agricultural yields for small farmers.

ACORE Addresses Community Solar – On Friday at 12:30 p.m., the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) holds a virtual discussion on investing in community solar. Speakers will discuss the market’s growth potential, recent announcements, and considerations for attracting tax equity, transferability, cash equity, and debt.

WHCA Dinner Set – The White House Correspondent Association’s is on Saturday at the Washington Hilton.

THE FUTURE

Hill Forum to Discuss Hydrogen Air Travel – The Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association holds a forum Monday, April 29^th at 3:30 p.m. in Capitol Visitors Center South Congressional Meeting Room (CVC 217). As energy production and road transportation rapidly progress toward cleaner technologies, commercial aviation remains stubbornly difficult to decarbonize. Three companies working to overcome that difficulty are Airbus, Joby Aviation, and ZeroAvia, all of which are developing hydrogen-based technologies for safe, clean flight that is cost-competitive with traditional fossil fuels.

Cement Techs on Display at Denver Forum – The cement industry holds its 66^th annual IEEE Industry Applications Society (IEEE-IAS) and the Portland Cement Association (PCA) Conference in Denver, Colorado on April 28^th to May 2^nd at the Colorado Convention Center. Keynoters include Baseball great Jim Abbott and geologist Rob McCaffery.

Forum Looks at Procurement, Supply Chains – Ceres and the Security and Sustainability Forum co-host a webinar on Monday April 29^th to address a new era of Federal procurement, managing climate risks and promoting sustainable supply chains. The event will provide a comprehensive overview of the proposed rules, including their scope, compliance requirements, and broader relevance to meeting climate goals, saving taxpayers money, and promoting national security.

CSIS Hosts Fannon on Critical Minerals – On Tuesday April 30^th at 11:00 a.m., CSIS and the CSIS Project on Critical Minerals Security hold a fireside conversation with Frank Fannon on strengthening US critical minerals security. Fannon, the inaugural Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Energy Resources, will discuss a stocktake of U.S. critical minerals policies and outcomes, whether the Inflation Reduction Act and Foreign Entity of Concern rules are providing adequate carrots and sticks to achieve its goals and what more could and should the U.S. do. 

NREL Holds Industry Forum – The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) holds its 29^th Annual Industry Growth Forum Wednesday to Friday, May 1^st to 3^rd in Denver. This premier climate tech and cleantech event is designed for startups, investors, and industry experts. It is a great opportunity to build relationships and showcase innovations — and for promising entrepreneurs to connect with Third Derivative, RMI’s global climate tech accelerator.

Forum Discusses Press Freedom, Environment – The Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) and SEJ holds a webinar on the intersections of press freedom and the environment on Wednesday May 1^st at 10:00 a.m. This panel discussion will address obstacles U.S. journalists face when reporting urgent climate change and environmental issues for their communities — whether violence or arrest when covering environmental protests or denials of access and legal obstructions when investigating centers of political and corporate power.

USEA Presser Looks at Labs – For the next virtual press briefing on Wednesday May 1^st at 11:00 a.m., the US Energy Association will host directors of the DOE National Laboratories to discuss what their labs are doing to meet the challenges of the energy sector, particularly electricity.

SAF Forum to Look at Future Fuels – The Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA) holds a forum on Wednesday May 1 at 11:00 a.m. looking at the SAF Market and the results from its multi-year RFP process. In this webinar, a diverse group of participants in the SABA RFP, including corporate customers Novo Nordisk and Watershed, SAF providers World Energy and Twelve, and Alaska Airlines, will expand on these themes from the perspective of the deals they struck and their roles in the SABA RFP.

Forum to Host Backer Book Discussion – On Wednesday May 1^st at 5:30 p.m., the American Conservation Coalition, ClearPath and CRES Forum hold a reception celebrating the launch of The Conservative Environmentalist: Common Sense Solutions for a Sustainable Future by ACC founder and executive chairman Benji Backer.  The vent will be at the National Institute for Civil Discourse.

Milken Global Conference Set –The 27^th annual Milken Institute Global Conference will be held in Los Angeles on May 5^th to 8^th. The events biggest moments with global leaders in health, finance, tech, philanthropy and beyond. This year’s event will unite our catalytic community to tackle these challenges and seize the opportunity to collectively shape our shared future.

CLEANPOWER Set for Minnesota – The American Clean Power Assn holds its annual CLEANPOWER 2024 forum on May 6^th to 9^th at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minnesota.

Webinar Focuses on Western Transmission – On Thursday May 9^th at 2:00 p.m., RMI holds a webinar exploring the economic opportunity that an expanded transmission system presents for Western states and how state actors can work together to plan this system. 

ACORE Holds NYC Finance Forum – ACORE Finance Forum will be held on June 4-5 in New York City.