Energy Update: Week of January 13

Friends,

I am in a deep state of mourning after Friday’s loss of – unarguably – the greatest rock drummer of all time when Rush’s Neil Peart passed away from brain cancer.  Peart was one of the most flamboyant, yet precise musicians who expanded the technical and imaginative possibilities of drumming. He also was one of Rush’s major lyricists who wrote philosophically, drawing on Ayn Rand and science fiction to scribe personal and emotive songs.  The rightful heir to Peart’s throne as best rock drummer, Tool’s Danny Carey played a tribute to Peart at the Friday’s Tool show in San Diego, where the band also covered Passage to Bangkok. 

In honor of Peart, I was wearing 80s Rush concert shirts and listening to Rush all weekend, but more importantly, I want to encourage you to donate some variation of 2112 ($21.12, $211.20, $ 2,112) to The National Brain Tumor Society, which our friend and former Bracewell colleague Salo Zelermyer serves on the Board of Directors.   Please help as much as you can to honor Peart’s legacy and help others.  While there are so many great songs, please listen to this one for this moment: The Garden

This week, HFCs are the Big Show… Tomorrow, the House Energy Committee’s Environment subpanel will hold a hearing on bipartisan legislation H.R. 5544 phasing down the use of HFCs will be the subject of a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Tuesday. The measure tackling the coolant that is a powerful contributor to climate change has the support of industry groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, as well as greens like the Natural Resources Defense Council. And check out this op-ed from Danfoss NA head John Gaylen (who is testifying at the House hearing) in Bloomberg which says new HFC legislation will “boost American manufacturing of next generation refrigerant technologies, promote American innovation and create tens of thousands of new jobs.”

Other hearings include a House Transpo hearing on carbon-free maritime tomorrow, while House Science holds hearings on Wednesday looking at climate solutions and DOE’s office of Science.  

On the Senate side, the USMCA trade deal hits the Senate Environment Committee (along with a few others) this week before heading to the floor for approval.  While Senators will likely support the deal that overwhelmingly passed the House, several Democratic senators, including Sens. Sanders and Whitehouse oppose the plan over concerns that it doesn’t address climate change.  On Wednesday, Senate Environment also looks at the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act.

Off the Hill, tomorrow evening is the final Democratic President Debate and then we are off the races for Iowa and New Hampshire in early February.  On Wednesday, DOE and ClearPath hold their first Atomic Wings Luncheon and BPC hosts Siemens CEO Barbara Humpton.  On Friday, the US Assn of Energy Economists talks ethanol with Chris Bliley.

BTW, remember we are off next Monday for MLK Day, so MARK YOUR CALENDAR for next Tuesday at 9:00 a.m. because – on the eve of the Washington Auto Show – SAFE is hosting a discussion on micromobility with Horace Dediu, the world’s foremost expert on the topic.  Micromobility refers to small, manually or electrically powered vehicles used to travel short distances like bicycles, e-bicycles, scooters, e-scooters one-wheels and skateboards.

Finally, it is so exciting that DC is becoming the hip protest place for climate issues.  Just last week, Joaquin Phoenix and Martin Sheen were arrested alongside regulars Susan Sarandon and Jane Fonda.  Pretty soon, we’ll just host the Golden Globes right here in DC…

Game On…  Clemson/LSU tonight at 8:00 p.m. from New Orleans.  I am betting the Tigers will win!!!  That’s all for today, call with questions.

Best,

Frank Maisano

(202) 828-5864

C. (202) 997-5932

20 ISSUES FOR 2020

11) Electrification – The newest battleground in the fight over fossil fuels are efforts by activists to force consumers to electrify their homes and ban natural gas. These advocates say we stopped coal and now we will stop gas.  Unfortunately, the main reason they could stop coal was because of the Shale gas revolution which has made natural gas a big part of reducing US GHGs. The bigger problems with the advocates approach are the unintended consequences.  First, demanding behavior change on personal impact items like stoves and hot water heaters is never a great strategy and it imposes significant costs on home owners.  While some can afford it, most can’t and it will have disproportionate impacts on low income communities, which has ginned up minority communities.  It has also ginned up restaurants who say they need gas to cook.  This is a long-term play for activists, and they are just breaking ground in fertile liberal/wealthy places like Berkeley, Brookline and Bellingham.  This is a major fight that will be going on for years.

12) The Future is…Plastics – Plastics are on everybody’s radar screen.  Whether it is ocean pollution, new recycling methods or plastic bags bans in states/cities, there is a lot of issues to digest on this challenge/opportunity.  This year, beyond clean up pushes and local legislative battles that tend to create division, look for positive solutions like recycling to play a more prominent role given they can make the greatest immediate impact on plastic waste.  Last year in the U.S. alone, more than 5.6 billion pounds of bottles, bags, film and "rigid plastics," such as butter tubs and yogurt containers, were successfully recycled. That's 5.6 billion pounds of material that did not end up in oceans, on roadsides, or in landfills. Plastic recyclers have the capacity to greatly increase that amount if there is more investment in the recycling infrastructure.  And brands must appeal to and educate consumers, offering better packaging that signals a brand's commitment to the circular economy.

13) Innovation Agenda Essential for Technology, Climate Future – We talked about Deep decarbonization last week.  A key part is the innovation agenda – and essential to any potential legislation. For the past century, the US has lead on virtually every energy technology, from solar panels to clean coal.  Common sense reforms that enable and inspire American ingenuity are essential to creating an energy future that will reduce emissions and advance the next generation of technologies that will continue to change the way we use energy.  Private-public partnership can also add new value. Exciting efforts like Southern Company’s Energy Innovation Center, which looks for better, more reliable and more efficient ways to increase value, can play an important role in the overall effort.  Southern is also a prime example of innovation leadership promoting several bold technologies like carbon capture, large-scale biomass, improved gas infrastructure, new wind and solar and new generation nuclear.  Watch this innovation space.  It will be where we can find agreement. 

14) Fuel Efficiency Fight as Proxy for Battle with States – One of the biggest fights we may see this year centers on the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards.  CAFE reforms pushed by the Administration were necessary because the phase II targets – moved by the Obama Administration – were unattainable, but the new rules (frozen at 37 mpg) have definitely have activists and states like NY and CA on edge.  One of the major reason is because the EPA is putting forward a long-standing argument that California should lose its long-time CAA waiver status.  While the details are complex, both sides are digging in (perhaps as a negotiating position). The Administration is trying to push the waiver case to the high court before it leaves office but both this and the actual CAFE standards will be key issues to watch in 2020.

15) RFS Saga Rolls on Even with Massive Farm Aid – This debate may never end.  It just takes a new form each year.  One of the most vexing problems President Trump has faced is balancing two of his most vociferous/important constituencies: labor union workers and farmers.  The battle has centered on small refinery exemptions which are in law if the RFS would cause harm to a small refiner.  After losing a number of court challenges, these exemptions increased under the Trump Administration.  The ethanol advocates say that has hurt farmers although there is no real economic evidence that the claim is true. Meanwhile, the administration also gave ethanol supporters a bone when they (some say illegally) allowed E15 fuel to be used year-round.  Beyond the regular back and forth of ethanol policy, the long-term issue faces serious problems.  The absence of second generation biofuels as commercially viable undermines the entire program.  This will remain a precarious issue for the political year, but don’t expect any real solutions until 2021.

16) Nuclear, Now or Never – Nuclear energy is an essential and reliable part of any modern electricity grid. It keeps the lights on regardless of the weather - and does so with zero air pollution. The current construction of new reactors at Plant Vogtle which will run through its final stages before operation starts in 2021 hopes to create a new age of nuclear energy. Vogtle is part of the next generation of reactors that are significantly upgraded from those built in the 1970s. And many companies are innovating further on advanced reactors that will be far more versatile than today’s technology.  In addition, new leadership at NEI will likely also make nuclear issue and more interesting read in 2017.   Georgia Power has an ongoing photo timeline of progress/activity at Plant Vogtle that you can see here. 

17) Energy Storage – The U.S. utility grid urgently needs a more robust storage network to support a growing reliance on renewable energy resources like solar and wind. Now, falling costs and improving battery technology are making larger-scale storage installations an increasingly viable option for meeting that need.  The global research firm Wood Mackenzie expects the U.S. energy storage market to grow by more than 12x (in MW terms) between 2019 and 2024, led by the FTM segment, which is expected to add 825 MW in 2020 and another 2,635 MW in 2021. Globally, energy storage capacity is expected to travel a similarly steep growth curve. Hoping to meet the expanding challenge, DOE just launched a new Energy Storage Grand Challenge, a comprehensive program to accelerate the development, commercialization, and utilization of next-generation energy storage technologies. DOE wants to create and sustain global leadership in energy storage utilization and exports by 2030. In case you looking for more, ClearPath has an Energy storage 101 HERE. 

18) Regs, Regs, Regs – There is no doubt this Administration is going in a different direction on regulations than its predecessor.  And with the President’s approach and the 2020 campaign looming, expect him to continue his heavy dose of rolling back the Obama’s heavier regulatory hand.  In the New Year, there will be a million battles over the regulatory posture of the Trump Administration.  Its case is bolstered by the Senate’s recent approval of Hillsdale College alum Paul Ray to head OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).  I know enviros continue to claim they have won victories in court, but the facts are not that clear and we expect some of it to perhaps reach the SCOTUS. 

19) The New Future of Cement/Concrete – There is a lot of action in the cement/concrete sector and it is leading to a new the path to true sustainability in the built environment.  Innovations in carbon technology offer advantages in many industries, but exposed concrete in buildings (and paving) actually absorbs carbon over the life of those buildings. Now these carbon capture/reuse and carbon uptake (carbonation) technologies combine to offer a realizable path to a carbon positive concrete for the built environment. Concrete may be the carbon sink of the future with scalable solutions at our doorstep.  The approach is permeated the research labs of MIT and will also be feature in a forum on January 31^st that will provide the details and the science behind both the embodied phase and use phase carbon impacts of concrete buildings. 

20) Autonomous Vehicles, Mobility – Forget about EVs as the major future policy opportunity, they are old news and always causing fights.  Automated Vehicle technology and micromobility are the new new. Companies are already beginning to transport people and goods in limited deployments across the United States by AV. As the technology matures, policymakers and stakeholders have the opportunity to collaborate on ensuring that the autonomous revolution fulfills its promises of making transportation safer, more efficient, and more accessible for all Americans. AVs also present an opportunity to reduce congestion, and the consequent reduce emissions and fuel use by driving more efficiently and ensuring smoother acceleration and deceleration. And micromobility is also playing a bigger role, too.  This fast-growing set of services are challenging “gigantism” in transportation and championing the virtues of smallness. Electric scooters, docked/dockless shared bikes and other vehicle types are shrinking the physical footprint needed to move people over relatively short distances.  These services have clearly resonated with consumers, as evidenced by their rapid adoption. They have the potential to better connect people with public transit, reduce reliance on private cars and make the most of existing space by “right-sizing” some forms of transportation, all while reducing GHGs.  Look for safety and urban planning policies/regulations to be the next hurdle. 

The Previous 10

1) 2020 Presidential

2) Election year Challenges

3) Impeachment impact

4) Climate change, Election

5) Utilities Acceptance of Renewable in Mix

6) Deep Decarbonization

7) NatGas Next

8) The Changing Energy Workforce

9) More Wind Offshore

10) Solar Roller

FRANKLY SPOKEN

“The U.S. oil boom is the primary reason nobody is seriously discussing triple digit oil prices even with everything that is going on and went on this summer.”

 

Ashley Petersen, senior oil-market analyst at the consulting firm Stratas Advisors commenting on why oil Prices have not risen in the face of recent Iran attacks and the killing if Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. 

ON THE PODCAST

Stavins Discusses EU Carbon Pricing Schemes – The newest episode of Harvard economist Robert Stavins podcast, “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program, Stavins has a conversation with Jos Delbeke, where he recounts the evolution of carbon pricing in Europe and around the world, and comments on the current state of international climate change negotiations. Delbeke is probably best known for his long service at the European Commission, including as Director-General of the Commission’s DG Climate Action from its creation in 2010 until 2018.  Even before that, he was very heavily involved in the development and implementation of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), and for several years was the European Commission’s chief negotiator at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conferences of the Parties.

Solar CEOs Feature in Podcast Review – Watt It Takes, the live interview series produced by Powerhouse and Greentech Media went through it archives and found several that feature founders and CEOs of the most innovative companies in clean energy and mobility — their backgrounds, their passions, their struggles, their deals, their management philosophies and their near-death experiences.. Part of The Energy Gang podcast, all of the episodes are embedded below so you can dig into each story.

FUN OPINIONS

CA Hispanic Chamber Says NatGas Ban hurts Hispanic Community, Businesses – In an op-ed in the California’s Capitol Weekly, the CEO of the California Hispanic Chamber weighs in on recent efforts to ban natural gas by saying any plan that eliminates a reliable, affordable and comparatively clean source of energy like natural gas will increase energy costs for residents of this state substantially and will hurt businesses that are already struggling to thrive in our state, which has become one of the most expensive in the nation.  Solar, wind, electricity and natural gas should all be part of the equation as we work to address the environmental challenges of our state and preserve our way of life into the future.  Our Hispanic communities stand ready to help in so many ways, but they also know what is best for their families’ needs.

FROG BLOG

CEO Says HFC Plan Will Mean Jobs – A new piece in Bloomberg from Danfoss North America CEO John Gaylen argues that bipartisan legislation in Congress will facilitate a rational, orderly transition from hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in the United States.  He says the heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration industry isn’t afraid of change and transition to new technology and swift enactment of the legislation would create jobs, stimulate investment, and boost exports. Gaylen says this solution will “boost American manufacturing of next generation refrigerant technologies, promote American innovation and create tens of thousands of new jobs. Congress must support this bipartisan legislation quickly: a no-cost regulation to support American businesses, workers, and consumers.”

IN THE NEWS

NEPA Reforms Roll Out – The White House was joined by workers, EPA head Andrew Wheeler and CEQ chief Mary Neumayr and others as it released its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reforms at an event this morning at the White House.  The proposal would streamline and simplify the review process for major construction projects by reducing costly delays and litigation, all in the name of supporting those workers who build the nation’s infrastructure.  Here is the WH Info: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/NEPA-NPRM-01092020_Pre-publication-version.pdf [whitehouse.gov]  It Is important to note that the Act hasn’t been updated in more than 50 years. My NEPA expert colleagues here at Bracewell Ann Navaro (ann.navaro@bracewell.com) and Christine Wyman (christine.wyman@bracewell.com) are ready to help with you background perspective and questions. 

Chamber Leads New Coalition – In addition, the U.S. Chamber is leading a new coalition to support the NEPA updates, Unlock American Investment. The coalition consists of more than 35 organizations from across the economy, including farmers, labor, contractors, home builders, road builders/users and industry sectors. A list is available here.

Groups weigh in on Reform plan – Here are a few other NEPA comments:

U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Tom Donohue made the following statement:

 

“If America is to meet its growing challenges on infrastructure, energy and the environment, then we must modernize the 40-year old NEPA process. In many cases, it takes far longer to obtain a permit than it actually takes to build one of these critical projects, and that should not be acceptable. “That’s why the Chamber strongly supports the Administration’s efforts to streamline permitting processes, and why we are leading a broad coalition representing the business community and workers to support the new rule. We support NEPA’s requirement for environmental reviews and public input. But too often, the current rules are used as a tool to obstruct important projects, such as highways, bridges, public transit and even renewable energy projects. Reducing delays and uncertainties associated with infrastructure investment and related projects will allow businesses to plan and invest with confidence while enhancing economic productivity and supporting more and better-paying jobs throughout the country.”

Amy Farrell, Senior Vice President of Government and Public Affairs for AWEA:

“The American Wind Energy Association supports improving the National Environmental Policy Act review process, “While America’s wind energy industry supports the fundamental goals of NEPA to appropriately consider potential environmental and climate impacts, the NEPA process has not been revised in decades. As a result, infrastructure projects, including land-based and offshore wind energy and transmission development, have encountered unreasonable and unnecessary costs and long project delays. It is time to update and modernize the permitting process, which would both strengthen our economy and enhance environmental stewardship.  We look forward to reviewing the proposed rule and working with the Administration to advance infrastructure permitting reform.  Reducing permitting delays and uncertainties associated with responsible wind energy infrastructure development will create jobs, increase deployment of clean, reliable American-made domestic power; expand manufacturing opportunities for workers in local communities (especially in rural and coastal areas); add to local tax revenue; and support broader infrastructure development, such as port revitalization from the development of offshore wind facilities.”

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall

“Farmers and ranchers rely on the land, some directly on federal forests and rangelands, so keeping them healthy and productive is critical to us. But current NEPA regulations have become an obstacle instead of an instrument for responsible management. The government has reached a point of analysis paralysis, which serves no one well, least of all the environment. Updating these 40-year-old regulations is smart government.”

AGA President and CEO Karen Harbert

“This proposed rule from the White House Council on Environmental Quality is an important step to greater transparency and efficiency in the NEPA process and will help America’s natural gas utilities continue to provide timely, safe, reliable and affordable service to the 179 million Americans that enjoy the benefits of natural gas and the millions more that want it. It is promising to see the CEQ take feedback and concerns from all stakeholders, including our industry, into account during this review. We are hopeful that this rule will result in a federal environmental review and permitting process that increases infrastructure development while growing the economy and enhancing environmental stewardship.”

Greg Ugalde, Chairman, National Association of Home Builders:

“The plan to reform the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is the most recent example of the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to reduce harmful regulations that hurt small businesses and impede economic growth. Updating NEPA will streamline the federal permitting process and allow badly needed transportation and infrastructure projects to move forward. In turn, this will build strong communities and support a thriving housing market.”

North America’s Building Trades Unions:

“NABTU supports reforms to NEPA that provide regulatory certainty through the permitting process while maintaining the integrity of underlying regulations that protect the health and safety of our members on the jobsite as well as the environmental and human impacts of projects in communities throughout the country.  Endless delays, limited transparency and agency ambiguity far too often prevent project sponsors, our hard working members, and the public from realizing the benefits of impactful investments in all manner of projects.  Common sense reforms and interagency accountability are long overdue.”

Sean O’Neill, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs at the Portland Cement Association

“NEPA reform is critical to maintaining a modern, sustainable, and globally competitive US manufacturing base,” said “Federal permitting requirements should advance our nation’s environmental, energy, and economic goals, not establish procedural roadblocks that prevent access to affordable clean energy, better roads, and resilient critical infrastructure.”

HFC Legislation Introduced in House –House members introduced the American Innovation and Manufacturing Leadership Act (AIML Act) that would bring about a phase down of a class of refrigerants known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and allow for a market- and consumer-friendly transition to new and better performing refrigerants and related products and equipment The legislation, which was introduced by Reps. Paul Tonko (D-NY), Pete Olson (R-TX), Scott Peters (D-CA) and Elise Stefanik (R-NY) is similar to the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act (S. 2457), introduced in the Senate on October 30^th by Sens. John Kennedy (R-LA) and Tom Carper (D-DE), which now has 32 bipartisan co-sponsors.  HVACR Industry trade association head Steve Yurek says the legislation will “accomplish our industry's refrigerant objectives while also protecting consumers and providing significant economic and environmental benefits."  The legislation will be the subject of a hearing next week.  Testifying will be HVACR manufacturing companies Danfoss NA and Lennox as well as NRDC who also weighed in in favor of the legislation here. 

House Leaders Outline Climate Principles – House Leaders today released a 15-page document outlining a set of climate principles.  The CLEAN Future Act formally adopts the goal of achieving of a 100% clean economy by 2050. The draft bill incorporates both proven and novel concepts which will form a set of policy proposals that will put the United States on the path to a clean and prosperous economy, according to Democrats. Over the coming months, the committee will continue to develop and refine the CLEAN Future Act. This process will include additional hearings focused on various topics raised throughout this document and ongoing stakeholder engagement. The Committee particularly looks forward to working with Members on both sides of the aisle to develop bipartisan solutions as part of this process and in the hope of achieving consensus on climate action to the maximum extent possible.  Document Attached…  My colleague Scott Segal on the move:

“Speaker Pelosi has made it clear that House action on climate is an important Democratic objective before Election Day.  Just today the House Energy and Commerce Committee released legislative principles for their bill.  The House Select Committee will have its legislative climate report out in March.  And Natural Resources is working on climate legislation as well.  In this election year, climate will be a priority and much of the regulated community is gearing up to participate constructively in the legislative process.”

Tom Reed Introduces Clean Energy Tax Bill – Republican Rep. Tom Reed unveiled a bipartisan bill – cosponsored by Reps. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Darin LaHood (R-IL), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Dave Schweikert (R-AZ) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) – to provide federal tax subsidies for “first-of-a-kind” clean energy technologies for combating climate change. Reed’s Energy Sector Innovation Credit is unique in that it is technology-neutral, providing new electricity sector tax credits to use applications rather than specific energy sources. While existing clean energy tax policy provides subsidies for wind and solar, for example, Reed’s bill would direct credits to applications such as energy storage, carbon capture for natural gas plants, advanced nuclear reactors, and offshore wind.

ClearPath’s Rich Powell on the Reed legislation: 

"This tax code fix complements a series of bipartisan bills that could turbocharge clean power innovation. ESIC would be a market based solution in the truest sense because the incentive is designed to reward the most flexible clean power sources – the ones that can respond to market signals to provide power."

ACORE CEO Greg Wetstone also favors the legislation:

“We commend Rep. Reed’s commitment to energy innovation and look forward to working with him on the Energy Innovation Credit Act as the legislation moves forward.”

DOE Launches Energy Storage Initiative – The Department of Energy is launching an Energy Storage Grand Challenge, a comprehensive program to accelerate the development, commercialization, and utilization of next-generation energy storage technologies and sustain American global leadership in energy storage.  The vision for the Challenge is to create and sustain global leadership in energy storage utilization and exports, with a secure domestic manufacturing supply chain that is independent of foreign sources of critical materials, by 2030.  It has five big goals over the next decade:

• Technology development with ambitious, achievable performance goals.
• Technology transfer to speed up the process of moving from research to system design to use in the private sector.
• Policy and valuation to enable the most effective value proposition and use cases for storage technologies.
• Bolstering the U.S. manufacturing and supply chain for storage technologies.
• Workforce training to help U.S. workers meet the needs of the 21^st Century electric grid and energy storage value chain.

In case you looking for more, ClearPath has an Energy storage 101 HERE. 

Report: GHGs Go Down for 2019 – The Rhodium Group recently released a new report, Preliminary US Emissions Estimates for 2019 that shows greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. fell last year, putting the country back on a downward emissions trend. The results estimate a decline in greenhouse gas emissions of around 2% in 2019. Rhodium attributes the drop, which counters an emissions rise in 2018, to wind, solar and natural gas gaining popularity over coal-fired power in the electricity sector.  According to Rhodium's estimates, U.S. coal generation experienced a historic year-on-year decline, falling 18% last year. Renewables supplemented a chunk of that decline, with large-scale renewables (including hydro) increasing 6% in 2019.  

Companies Launch CCS Study at CO Cement Plant – Occidental and Total are partnering with LafargeHolcim to explore attaching carbon capture equipment to a cement plant in Colorado. The companies announced the design study Monday, in collaboration with Svante, Inc., which would provide the capture equipment.  The companies are looking at a project that could capture up to 725,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, which Occidental would store underground. The carbon-capture facility under review will employ Svante’s technology to capture carbon directly from industrial sources at half the capital cost of existing solutions. Occidental, the industry leader in CO2 management and storage, would sequester the captured CO2. Pairing carbon capture from a cement plant with CO2 sequestration is a significant step forward for the cement industry in reducing its carbon footprint.

ON THE SCHEDULE THIS WEEK

House Transpo Looks at Carbon-Free Maritime – The House Transportation Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee holds a hearing tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. on the investments and innovations needed to create a path for a carbon-free maritime industry. Witnesses include Washington governor Inslee’s maritime sector lead Joshua Berger, World Shipping Council CEO John Butler, Maesk’s

Lee Kindberg, Peter Bryn of ABB Marine & Ports and Chamber of Shipping of America CEO Kathy Metcalf.

House Energy to Look at HFCs – The House Energy & Commerce Committee will hold a hearing tomorrow on HFC legislation.  Danfoss NA head John Gaylen (AHRI President) and Lennox CEO Gary Bedard and CEI’s Ben Lieberman testify.   Already the Senate has introduced legislation that has 34 bipartisan cosponsors (17 Rs/17 Ds).  The hearing will likely mean that House legislation is probably imminent early in January.   More on this in our first 2020 Update. 

GTM Host Webinar Call on Energy Transition – Greentech Media hosts a webinar call tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. on the global energy transition.  In this webinar, analysts from Wood Mackenzie will walk through its Accelerated Energy Transition scenario and provide an interpretation of what it would mean to reach a 2 degree pathway. Topics will include an overview of how Wood Mackenzie believes there is a more sustainable pathway, which energy-intensive areas of the economy are the most challenging and recommendations to policy makers over the next two decades.

Forum to Look at Freight Issues – The National Center for Sustainable Transportation holds a forum tomorrow at noon in 2043 Rayburn to look at emerging research in freight efficiency and sustainability.  Goods movement is critical for the U.S. economy. The freight sector is growing and changing rapidly, with significant implications for traffic congestion, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. National Center for Sustainable Transportation researchers working to understand the sustainability implications of the evolving freight sector will share recent findings and discuss policy implications.

Senate Enviro to Address Nuclear – The Senate Environment Committee holds a hearing on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. focused on implementation of the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act.  The committee will look at the Trump administration's efforts to implement a new law to bolster advanced nuclear reactors.

House Science Looks at Climate, DOE Science Office – The House Science Committee holds two hearings Wednesday.  At 10:00 a.m., the will Look at climate science and solutions with Michael Shellenberger,  Rutgers’ Pamela McElwee, Richard Murray of Woods Hole, Fort Lewis College’s Heidi Steltzer and WRI’s Taryn Fransen.  Then, at 2:00 p.m., the Committee’s Energy panel will host DOE’s Science office to discuss future energy research and scientific discovery, with office Director Chris Fall.

Atomic Wings Planning Session Set – DOE and ClearPath hold their first Atomic Wings Luncheon on Wednesday at Noon in 2043 Rayburn.  Kick off the New Year with Movers & Milestones in Nuclear Energy.  Speakers include DOE’s Rita Baranwal and former DOE official Clay Sell, now CEO of X-energy.

Forum to Focus on DOE Solar Prize – On Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. at the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, Nation of Makers’ Energy Innovation lead Tim Bailey will discuss the Department of Energy's $3 million American-Made Solar Prize.  The DOE Prize is revitalizing U.S. solar manufacturing by tapping into American’s competitive spirit and the nation's unparalleled innovation ecosystem. Through the American-Made Network, the world's best-in-class national laboratory research base is combined with an unparalleled entrepreneurial support system consisting of pioneering fabrication facilities, energy incubators, and other valuable resources.  Bailey will look in detail at how the DOE is structuring this prize competition to create a portfolio of innovations primed for private investment and commercial scale up--and learn where you might fit into the network.

BPC to Host Siemens CEO – The Bipartisan Policy Center hosts its Bob and Elizabeth Dole Series on Leadership featuring a discussion Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. with Siemens CEO Barbara Humpton, where she guides the company’s strategy and engagement in serving the company’s largest market in the world, with more than 50,000 employees and over $23 billion in revenues and $5 billion in annual exports.

Mexico Forum to Look at Infrastructure – The 5th Mexico Infrastructure Projects Forum will take place in Monterrey on Wednesday and Thursday at the Camino Real San Pedro. In its fifth year, this unique energy infrastructure event brings together high-level executives from various industries and provides access to key decision makers. Fields of interest are engineering, construction, hydrocarbon, energy, renewables, logistics, service providers, investors, and lenders. The forum connects attendees with international speakers from the private and public sector, including multi-lateral development banks and project sponsors from Mexico, Texas and the United States

Iowa RFA to Hold Summit – The Iowa Renewable Fuels Assn will hold Its 2020 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit on Thursday at the Prairie Meadows Conference Center in Altoona, Iowa.  The forum will take on all facets of the Renewable Fuel Standard and discuss the future for the policy.

Energy Economists Host Growth Economist to Talk Ethanol – The U.S. Energy Economists host their January lunch on Friday at The National Union Building.  Chris Bliley, vice president of regulatory affairs at trade association Growth Energy, will talk to us at lunch about the evolving picture for ethanol at lunch and the state of the Renewable Fuels Standard, specifically Renewable Volume Obligations, Renewable Identification Numbers and the small refinery exemption. He will also talk about E15 blending, E10 in Mexico and other ethanol production drivers.

IN THE FUTURE

National Biodiesel Conference Set – Off a fresh victory to renew the Biodiesel Blenders Tax Credit in December’s budget deal, the National Biodiesel Board holds its annual National Biodiesel Conference in Tampa on January 20^th to 23^rd.  Our friends Jim Massie, Tim Urban and John Eichberger will be among the speakers. 

SAFE Hosts MicroMobility Guru – Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE) hosts a presser with the inventor of “Micromobility” Horace Dediu, on Tuesday, January 21^st at 9:00 a.m. Dediu organized the first Micromobility Summit in 2017 and is one of the world’s most respected business analysts and renowned experts in complex data analysis. He has made numerous keynote speeches at major industry conferences, including the upcoming Micromobility America in Richmond, CA this April. Dediu is also the co-founder of “The Micromobility Podcast” and has been described by Fortune magazine as the “king of Apple analysts.”

Washington Auto Show Policy Days Set – On January 21^st and 22^nd, the Washington Auto Show holds its annual policy days just prior to the launch on the 2020 auto show.  As the “Public Policy Show” on the auto show circuit, the 10-day public show is preceded by two Public Policy Preview Days of special events and announcements for officials in government, industry and the media.  This year, Mobility Talks will focus on a policy discussion talk on Smart Cities and Urban Mobility with a significant discussion on autonomous vehicles.  SAFE’s Robbie Diamond will be featured on the plenary panel on Wednesday January 22^nd. 

Forum to Look at CCUS – The National Petroleum Council hosts a forum on Wednesday January 22^nd at Noon in Arlington looking at Carbon capture, use, and storage (CCUS).  Building on existing research and expertise, this forum – Meeting the Dual Challenge – addresses the entire CCUS supply chain and recognizes that at-scale success requires economic and operational integration across industries, harmonized local/state/federal regulations, innovation and technology development, and broad public acceptance. Meeting the Dual Challenge details the actions needed to deploy carbon capture technologies at scale in the United States.

RFF Looks at FERC Clean Energy Order – Resources for the Future (RFF) hosts a brief primer on Wednesday, January 22^nd at 9:00 a.m. on the implications of FERC’s minimum price offer rule (MOPR) order.  A panel will look at what it means for states’ clean energy policy goals, anticipated impacts on the resource mix in PJM, and potential impacts on ratepayers.  Speakers include RFF’s Kathryne Cleary, PJM’s Craig Glazer, Our friend Robert Gramlich of Grid Strategies, Calpine’s Sarah Novosel and former DOE official Susan Tierney. 

Trump to Attend Davos Economic Forum – The World Economic Forum Annual Meeting will be held In in Davos-Klosters on January 21^st to 24^th.  The forum is the foremost creative force for engaging the world's top leaders in collaborative activities to shape the global, regional and industry agendas.  President Trump has already announced he will attend this year after missing last year because of the government shutdown. 

CSIS Looks at Deep Decarbonization – On Thursday January 23^rd at 10:00 a.m., CSIS launches its Climate Solutions Series, a year-long initiative which will bring together a wide range of audiences over six sessions to examine global pathways to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in different sectors of the economy.  The first session will look at various pathways to net-zero emissions, ranging from a significant reduction in fossil fuel consumption and major behavior changes with little reliance on “negative emissions,” to smaller structural changes with a heavy reliance on technologies to reduce carbon from point sources and the atmosphere. The event will feature a presentation on these various pathways, followed by a facilitated discussion featuring perspectives from national, state, and city government officials.

USEA Annual Energy Forum Set – The U.S. Energy Assn holds its annual State of the Energy Industry Forum on Thursday January 23^rd at 10:00 a.m. at the National Press Club.  USEA begins each calendar year with its widely- recognized State of the Energy Industry Forum.  The Forum brings together distinguished leaders from the most influential energy trade associations to share their outlook and to discuss dynamic issues facing the energy industry in the New Year.

FERC Open Meeting – Thursday January 23^rd

SEJ Launches 2020 Journalists Guide – The Society of Environmental Journalists will hold its annual Policy roundtable and release its 2020 Journalists’ Guide to Energy and Environment on January 24^th in a forum at the National Geographic Society In Washington.   Our friend Jeff Burnside presents the Journalists guide while NYT’s Lisa Friedman, E&E’s Jennifer Hijazi and others discuss the issues. 

WM Phoenix Open Set Features Sustainability Roundtable – Waste Management hosts the 2020 Phoenix Open on January 27^th to February 1^st.  Known as “The Greatest Show on Grass,” the Waste Management Phoenix Open has gained legendary status for being unlike any other tournament on the PGA Tour. From the notorious 16^th hole and star-studded Birds Nest music festival to the biggest names in professional golf, this event also features the annual Sustainability Forum on Thursday January 30^th featuring WM CEO Jim Fish, former UN climate official Christine Figueres and former Secretary State John Kerry.

Yale Forum on Carbon Neutral Construction Set – On Friday, January 31, AIA Connecticut, in collaboration with the CT Green Building Council will host an important Net Zero Schools Summit in Rudolph Hall at the Yale School of Architecture. The event hosts and sponsors will assemble a group of thought leaders and experts from across the country to discuss the issues of sustainability, carbon sequestration in construction, and construction methods to achieve Net Zero schools and move the design and construction industries toward a carbon positive future.  The Summit’s goal is to host a candid discussion of sustainability and design of Net Zero schools with a goal of providing actionable information for the stakeholders behind school design and construction as it relates to carbon impacts of the built environment.

Super Bowl LIV – Sunday February 2^nd

Iowa caucuses – Monday February 3^rd

State of the Union – Tuesday February 4^th

International HVACR Conference Set – The International Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Expo is set for February 3^rd to 5^th in Orlando.  The AHR Expo is the world’s largest HVACR event, attracting the most comprehensive gathering of industry professionals from around the globe each year. The Show provides a unique forum where manufacturers of all sizes and specialties, whether a major industry brand or innovative start-up, can come together to share ideas and showcase the future of HVACR technology under one roof.

Forum to Look at CCS – The Atlantic Council holds a forum on Tuesday February 3^rd at 3:00 p.m. to look at the global status of CCS technologies.  This event explores the current status of carbon capture and storage, the next generation of CCS projects, policies, and technologies taking shape around the world, and the important role they play in global decarbonization.

State Energy Officials Look at Policy Issues – The National Association of State Energy Officials 2020 Energy Policy Outlook Conference and Innovation Summit will be held on February 5^th to 7th at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, DC.  The conference will examine the key policies and initiatives needed to drive modernization and resilience across our energy infrastructure – grid, pipelines, buildings and transportation.

National Ethanol Conference ready for Houston – The National Ethanol Conference is set for February 10^th to 12^th in Houston at the Marriott Marquis.  The forum focuses on marketing, legislative and regulatory issues facing the ethanol industry.

Sustainable Energy Factbook Forum Set – BloombergNEF and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) will be releasing the 2020 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook in Washington, DC, on February 13^th.  In its eighth year, the Factbook provides new industry information and trends for the U.S. energy economy, with an in-depth look at the energy efficiency, natural gas and renewable energy sectors as well as emerging areas such as digitalization, micro-grids, offshore wind, hydrogen and renewable natural gas.

ACORE Policy Forum Set – The 2020 ACORE Policy Forum is set for March 4^th at Convene.  This year, the event will address the most important issues facing the renewable energy industry, such as the implications of the 2019 tax extenders agreement, the prominence of climate in the 2020 election and more. Panelists and keynote speakers will explore a variety of topics within four key themes, including the latest from Congress, Clean Energy Standards, Climate and Power Markets/Transmission.

Solar Conference Set for SD – Infocast is holding its Solar + Storage Finance & Investment Summit on March 17^th at the Omni LaCosta Resort in San Diego.  The forum focuses on innovative deals, discuss structures and investment challenges, and assess the opportunities that come with implementation and integration.