Energy Update: Week of November 25

Friends,

Happy Thanksgiving Week!!!!  We are off to Richmond this week for – what else – a field hockey tournament.  We will be getting plenty of turkey for sure, but before that, it is time for TOOL!!!!  The new Fear Inoculum tour hits Washington DC’s Capital One Arena TONIGHT.  Hannah, Adam, Liv and I will be there with our Tool shirts on!!!  So fired up!

As I always like to remind you this week: While many people think Thanksgiving was first started by Ben Franklin and George Washington in 1789, a formal “Day of Thanksgiving” in November was first declared by John Hanson, Maryland Statesman and first President of the United States in Congress Assembled" under the Articles of Confederation, in 1781, eight years prior to Washington’s proclamation.  And since I travel on his highway every day on my commute from Annapolis to DC, I always like to give thanks and credit to Hanson.

With virtually no action this week I wanted to remind you of a few things from last week’s action–packed week, as well as a couple of items for when Congress returns next week in December.

First, DOE launched the Plastics Innovation Challenge, a comprehensive program to accelerate innovations in energy-efficient plastics recycling technologies. Association of Plastic Recyclers head Steve Alexander said the imitative addresses the primary areas of concern for recyclers; “Design, collection and markets are essential for recyclers or else we are only collecting and processing trash.”

Then, more than 30 trade groups sent a letter to Mary Neumayr calling for NEPA reform, calling for regulations that modernize the Federal environmental review and permitting process with the goal of increasing infrastructure investment and project development in a manner that strengthens our economy and enhances environmental stewardship.

And the California Restaurant Association made a big splash with a suit against the City of Berkeley as part of an effort to protect restaurants from a misguided and unlawful ban on the use of natural gas.

Remember, RFS comment period ends on November 30^th – THAT IS SATURDAY when you are shopping or watching Michigan-Ohio State (Go Blue!!!)

Finally, COP 25 starts next Monday in Spain after last minute maneuvering since Chile withdraw as host.  Looks Like everything panned out but going beyond Paris commitments (which countries seem unwilling to do politically) and the White House withdrawal will likely be the focus of the action.

That’s all for today, call with questions and have a great Holiday.

Best,

Frank Maisano

(202) 828-5864

C. (202) 997-5932

FRANKLY SPOKEN

“By focusing on design for recyclability, developing new technology to capture material before it enters the marine environment, and creating market demand for recycled material, the Department of Energy’s Plastics Innovations Challenge addresses the primary areas of concern for recyclers.”

Steve Alexander, President and CEO of the Association of Plastic Recyclers, following DOE’s announcement that launched its Plastics Innovation Challenge

“An overwhelming majority of chefs and cooks are trained using natural gas stoves, with pots and pans over a flame produced by natural gas. This ban will slow down the process of cooking and reduce a chef’s control over the amount and intensity of heat which is needed to prepare food appropriately. It’s like taking paint away from a painter and asking them to create a masterpiece.”

Robert W. Phillips, a professional chef and chairman of the Chef De Cuisine Association of California when discussing a ban on natgas appliances passed by the City of Berkeley, CA.

ON THE PODCAST

NRECA Podcast Looks at Co-ops Role in Grid Security – Season 2 of NRECA’s Along Those Lines launched with a look at co-ops’ role in protecting the national electric grid. Co-Mo Electric Cooperative’s Ryan Newlon, who works with the National Guard on projects that examine real-life threats and defense strategies for cybersecurity, and NRECA’s Barry Lawson, who discusses how co-ops work with key government agencies on cybersecurity, focus on solutions, challenges and future issues. 

Pence Book Author Sits Down with Bracewell Podcast -- The latest episode of Bracewell’s podcast, The Lobby Shop, sits down with Tom LoBianco, former CNN Politics reporter, author of Piety & Power: Mike Pence and the Taking of the White House. Tom has covered VP Mike Pence since his days in the Indiana Statehouse to today. We chat with Tom about his book, his reporting work, and much more.  It is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, Stitcher, and Google Play Music.

FUN OPINIONS

WSJ Conversation: Expert Discuss Fracking Ban, Politics – Our friend Christopher Matthews had an interesting Q&A column in the Wall St Journal’s Energy Journal blog that focused on what would happen if the US banned fracking.  The Journal hosted a conversation with Kassie Siegel, director of the Climate Law Institute at the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity, and Sam Ori, executive director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.  See the full transcript here.

FROG BLOG

Stanford Expert: Banning Natural Gas is a Bad Climate Policy – A new column in the San Jose Mercury News by Stanford Energy Institute expert Anthony Kovscek says California's misguided "electric-only" approach has significant unintended consequences on climate, reliability and resilience.  Kovscek says importance of decarbonizing the energy system is indisputable, but the daily transition from significant renewable electricity to mostly natural gas-generated electricity seems unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. There are no large-scale energy storage solutions for daily and seasonal variations that are currently economic and environmentally acceptable.

Column: CCS Support Increasing – A Forbes.com column by Dipka Bhambhani highlights the growing support for carbon capture and sequestration. “A sense of urgency to keep global emissions of greenhouse gases from peaking beyond 2020 is bringing environmentalists to accept the oft-contentious carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technology.”  She highlighted ClearPath executives who say they’ve seen an increase in non-governmental organizations joining business and industry groups, and bipartisan members in Congress supporting CCS. “Rich Powell, executive director of ClearPath Action, a Washington insider and a regular witness for congressional hearings, said, "We need an aggressive innovation policy for clean energy that will also facilitate breakthroughs relevant for the developing world. That absolutely means carbon capture and sequestration technology for coal and natural gas power plants. There are strong bipartisan carbon capture policies that help commercialize cutting-edge clean energy technologies needed to reduce global emissions as quickly and cheaply as possible and we continue to see strong momentum in Congress,” Powell said.

POLL TIME

Poll Shows Little Ethanol Impact from Ethanol in Iowa – The Des Moines Register has polling from last week that shows Republican strongly support President Trump despite claims from ethanol advocates that his support would drop because of the long-stranding fight on ethanol.  

For those of you who thought folks were running away from the President because of ethanol, maybe not….  As I have said to many of you, so many more factors at play…

IN THE NEWS

California Restaurants Sue Berkeley Over Nat Gas Ban – The California Restaurant Association filed a suit against the City of Berkeley as part of an effort to protect restaurants from a misguided and unlawful ban on the use of natural gas. The CRA filed the lawsuit to protect Berkeley’s businesses and consumers from bearing the brunt of higher energy costs, as well as ensure the City’s vibrant culinary community is able to continue preparing and serving the food it has become well-known for.  CRA says the ordinance violates long-established state and federal law, but more importantly, the City’s decision will negatively impact restaurants and other energy users – and those impacts are likely to spread beyond the four walls of newly-constructed buildings, the structures where it bans natural gas infrastructure.  Berkeley’s rush to become the first electrified city in the state was a drastic step that will have a long list of negative impacts: restaurants and residents in newly-built structures will not have the ability to use gas stoves or heat their homes or businesses using natural gas.

ClearPath Endorses Collin in Senate Race – The ClearPath Action Fund has pledged $500,000 to help Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins get reelected, Anthony reports. "We think it's super important to have someone like Susan Collins who's incredibly pragmatic, laying out an agenda that Republicans and Democrats can get behind," said Jay Faison, founder of the conservative group ClearPath. "We need bipartisan legislation in Congress, and who better than Susan Collins?"  ClearPath moved up its endorsement after the League of Conservation Voters Action Fund switched its endorsement from Collins, whom it backed in 2014, to her Democratic challenger, Sara Gideon, last week. ClearPath has praised some of Collins' work on clean energy legislation this Congress, including S. 1602 (116), which aims to boost grid-scale energy storage technologies; legislation that would enhance federal weatherization programs, S. 983 (116); a bill that would streamline permitting for distributed energy technologies, S. 2447 (116); and legislation that would create tax incentives for offshore wind projects, S. 1988 (116).

DOE Launch Plastics Innovation Campaign – DOE launched the Plastics Innovation Challenge, a comprehensive program to accelerate innovations in energy-efficient plastics recycling technologies. Plastics are used in thousands of products that are essential to modern life, but plastic waste is a growing global challenge. Drawing on both fundamental and applied research capabilities within the National Laboratories, universities, and industry, the Plastics Innovation Challenge will advance new technologies that use recycled materials to reduce manufacturing energy consumption for some of the most prevalent plastics by up to 50 percent, including those used in grocery bags and beverage bottles. Through a coordinated suite of funding opportunities and public-private partnerships, the Plastics Innovation Challenge sets the following goals for the United States to reach by 2030:

1. Collection: Develop novel collection technologies to prevent plastics from entering the ocean in the first place.
2. Deconstruction: Develop biological and chemical methods for deconstructing plastic waste, including from rivers and oceans, into useful chemical streams.
3. Upcycling: Develop technologies to upcycle waste chemical streams into higher-value products, which reduces energy intensity and encourages further recycling.
4. Design for recyclability: Develop new plastics that are recyclable-by-design and can be scaled for domestic manufacturability.
5. Commercialization: Support a domestic plastics upcycling supply chain for U.S. companies to scale and deploy new technologies in domestic and global markets.

The Plastics Innovation Challenge is a Department-wide initiative led by DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy in collaboration with the Office of Science and other DOE programs. Over the coming weeks, DOE will release requests for information and gather stakeholders to address the technical and market barriers to advanced plastic recycling technologies and shape the work that will bring those technologies to market.

Green Tax Package Aims at Biodiesel Blender Credit – House Democrats proposed a major Green Energy tax package today that extends and phases out a $1/gallon tax credit for biodiesel and renewable diesel. The legislation from House Ways & Means proposes extending biodiesel and renewable diesel credit through 2021, and then phases the credit down to $0.75 in 2022, $0.50 in 2023, and $0.33 in 2024, according to a summary.  Senate Finance Committee Chuck Grassley is a strong supporter of the biodiesel tax credit extension. And remember, there was a pair of new reports (here and here) that highlight the significant risk the biodiesel industry faces unless the blenders tax credit is renewed.  In addition, there was a letter from 40 House Democrats earlier this month backing the credit,

Market Report Highlights Biodiesel Problem – And remember last week’s market analysis report  from Cap Alpha Energy analyst Jim Lucier that discusses the challenges facing the industry that includes biofuels producers, co-ops and many refiners who are often at odds (but not here).  Congress is going to have to take action quickly to stop the bottom from falling out of the biodiesel market since the credit expired at the end of 2017 and is going on two years overdue.

ClearPath Exec Discusses DOE, Climate – ClearPath Executive Director Rich Powell testified at House Energy & Water Appropriations late last week on DOE and climate challenges. Rich highlighted three key points in his testimony 1) the global nature of the climate challenge requires an innovation-focused policy; 2) How scaling up American’s innovations means more investing than spending and 3) How we might modernize our innovation engine towards the climate challenge.

Legislation Introduced to Reduce HFCs – The American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act of 2019 (S. 2754) was introduced Last week by Sens. John Kennedy and Tom Carper.  The legislation would authorize EPA to phase down hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) production and consumption, allowing a transition to next-generation refrigerants and new technologies that protect the environment while supporting U.S. manufacturing jobs and the needs of consumers.  The legislation has a broad bipartisan group of cosponsors including Sens. Cassidy (R-LA), Coons (D-DE), Collins (R-ME), Whitehouse (D-RI), Wicker (R-MS), Merkley (D-OR), Graham (R-SC), Booker (D-NJ), Young (R-IN), Markey (D-MA), Boozman (R-AR), Blumenthal (D-CT), Alexander (R-TN), Cardin (D-MD), Grassley (R-IA), Murphy (D-CT), Ernst (R-IA), King (I-ME), Murkowski (R-AK), Schatz (D-HI) and Heinrich (D-NM).

Trade Groups Release NEPA Letter – More than 30 trade groups sent a letter to Mary Neumayr calling for NEPA reform.  The letter follows this meeting a number of the groups had at OMB/CEQ on Wednesday delivering the same message.  The letter calls for regulations that modernize the Federal environmental review and permitting process with the goal of increasing infrastructure investment and project development in a manner that strengthens our economy and enhances environmental stewardship.

New Report Looks at Iran Tension Impact on Global Oil Market – In a new joint report from the Center for New American Security (CNAS) and Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University SIPA, "In Dire Straits? Implications of U.S.-Iran Tensions for the Global Oil Market," authors Ilan Goldenberg, Jessica Schwed, and Kaleigh Thomas assess what would happen to the global oil market if tensions between the United States and Iran continue to escalate. The report examines three scenarios for military conflict between Iran and the United States and assesses the potential impacts on global oil prices as well as broader strategic implications:

1. Increasing U.S.-Iran tensions that ultimately lead to a new “Tanker War” scenario similar to the conflict of the 1980s, in which Iran attacks potentially hundreds of ships in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman over a prolonged period while also launching missiles at Gulf oil infrastructure.
2. An escalation of tensions between Iran and the United States in which Iran significantly increases the scope and severity of missile attacks directed at major oil and energy infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
3. A major conflict between Iran and the United States that includes damage to Gulf oil infrastructure and a temporary closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The authors conclude that the impacts on oil prices from a U.S.-Iran crisis in the Gulf are significant, but likely overestimated by experts and policymakers who view Iran’s ability to close the Strait as a major source of leverage. The report finds that only in more extreme scenarios would a dramatic shift in oil prices be seen. The more serious consequence would be that the United States would be forced to maintain a significant air and naval presence in the Persian Gulf in perpetuity, undermining efforts to refocus American military power on great power competition with China and Russia and costing the U.S. taxpayers billions of dollars.

House Science Field Hearing in Houston Discusses Carbon Capture, Petra Nova Plant – The House Science & Technology Committee held a field hearing in Houston Friday to examine carbon capture research and development. The Petra Nova Plant, the first large scale carbon capture project at a US coal plant, will be a focus of the hearing. They are also expected to discuss the need for the House of Representatives to pass the Fossil Energy Research and Development Act (FE R&D Act) which cleared the committee earlier this year. The legislation will direct investments for carbon capture research and development as well as new research efforts aimed at improving carbon dioxide (CO2) storage and use and developing new CO2 utilization technologies. Environment subpanel chair Lizzie Fletcher, Energy panel ranking Randy Weber (R-TX), Committee members Rep. Brian Babin (R-TX) and Rep. Michael Cloud (R-TX), as well as Rep. Dan Crenshaw all attended.

ON THE SCHEDULE THIS WEEK

Thanksgiving – November 28^th

EPA RFS Comment Deadline – November 30^th

IN THE FUTURE

COP 25 Set for Madrid – The UN Holds its 25^th Conference of the Parties will take place at IFEMA - Feria de Madrid in Madrid, Spain from December 2^nd to 13^th. The updated overview schedule can be found on the COP 25 session website. The pre-sessional period remains as planned (25 November – 1 December), with the preparatory meetings of regional groups from November 25 – 30.  Only recently, was the forum moved from Chile to Spain. 

BioEnergy Conference to be in Baltimore – The 15^th World Bioenergy Congress and Expo will be Held in Baltimore On December 2^nd and 3^rd focusing on renewable energy issues.

GTM Energy Storage Summit Set – On December 3^rd and 4^th, Greentech Media hosts its 5^th annual Energy Storage Summit 2019 in Denver.  The Summit will bring together utilities, system integrators, financiers, regulators, battery and software innovators, and other key storage players for two full days of data-intensive presentations, analyst-led panel sessions.  CO Gove Jared Polis and our friend, CO Co-op Holy Cross CEO Brian Hannagan will be among the speakers.

POLITICO to Look at Environmental Election Impact – On Wednesday, December 4^th at Georgetown University, POLITICO holds a deep-dive conversation on environmental issues and the 2020 presidential election. The panel will look at the path forward and key party differences and where can we come together. 

Forum to Focus on Resilience on West Coast – The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Coastal States Organization hold a briefing on Wednesday December 4^th at 1:30 p.m. looking at science and policy initiatives that are helping protect West Coast ecosystems and communities from erosion, sea level rise, and other coastal hazards. The briefing will showcase nature-based solutions, which can protect human lives and property while creating habitat for wildlife and supporting various coastal industries. The panelists will describe the collaborative process between federal, state, local, and Tribal stakeholders in collecting, sharing, and acting on scientific data to inform policy decisions around adaptation and help communities define and achieve their resilience goals.

MIT Forum Looks at Electricity Sector – The third of MIT's six Climate Action Symposia, Decarbonizing the Electricity Sector, will be held on Wednesday, December 4^th at 3:00 p.m. Topics will include 1) developments in solar energy, energy storage, and nuclear energy; 2) electrification in the building and transportation sectors; and 3) innovation opportunities for zero-carbon electricity technologies in the coming decades.  This symposium will discuss the attributes, system impacts, adoption prospects, and innovation opportunities for net-zero carbon emission technologies in the electricity sector over the next thirty years. It will discuss developments in solar energy, energy storage, and nuclear energy. On the demand side, it will focus on electrifying vehicles. Issues from both developed and developing countries will be covered.

AGU Celebrates 100 years at Meeting in SF – The American Geophysical Union marks its Centennial in 2019 by returning to San Francisco, the home of the AGU Fall Meeting for more than 40 years on December 9-13.  A diverse community will convene at the newly renovated Moscone Center to explore and develop research.

Forum to Look at BNEF EV Report – CSIS will host a panel on December 9^th to discuss strategies and policies to develop and deploy EVs. Aleksandra O'Donovan will outline BloombergNEF's report, Electric Vehicle Outlook 2019, to set the scene with the global forecast for EVs and the implications on the growth of the clean energy economy. Garrett Fitzgerald, with Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), will discuss its recent report, Driving a Shared, Electric, Autonomous Mobility Future, which evaluates mobility in China, India, and the United States.

Grid Forum Set – The GridWise Alliance and Clean Edge hold the 3^rd annual gridCONNEXT 2019 in Washington, DC on December 10-12 at The Liaison Hotel.  The event will bring together technology, policy, utility, and business leaders to explore the most important topics impacting the electric utility industry. Speakers will include former Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and former FERC Commissioner Nora Mead Brownell.  The full agenda is now available online. 

RFF to Hold ESA Panel – Resources for the Future (RFF) for a forward-looking panel discussion on Thursday, December 12^th looking at the Endangered Species Act (ESA), with a focus on how best to implement the recent regulatory revisions and what additional reform ideas the current administration might be interested in pursuing. Speakers include RFF’s Rebecca Epanchin-Niell, NOAA’s Stuart Levenbach, Ya-Wei (Jake) Li of the Environmental Policy Innovation Center and our friend Michael Doyle of E&E News as moderator. 

MD Activists Hold Climate Action Summit – On December 14^th at the University of Maryland College Park campus, a coalition of advocacy groups large and small — faith leaders, labor activists, environmental groups, and others — will be hosting a one-day conference called Rebuild Maryland: Climate Action Summit. The conference will be co-sponsored by MD Climate Coalition, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, MD League of Conservation Voters, MD Chapter of the Sierra Club, Interfaith Power & Light, MD Legislative Coalition, 350 dot org, Howard County Sunrise, HoCo Climate Action, MoCo Students for Climate, Climate Law & Policy Project.

RFF Forum to Look at Healthy Soils – Resources for the Future (RFF) and Cornell University’s Atkinson Center for Sustainability holds a forum on Tuesday December 17^th at 9:30 a.m. to explore the important role of soil health in finding climate solutions.  The event will open with a short primer on soil health, including an overview of the current health of US soils, what healthier soils might look like in future, and how research suggests we can foster such improvements. A panel of experts will share perspectives from various sectors—government, industry, and the conservation community—on how practices, technologies, and policies related to soil health are evolving.