WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY: Good afternoon and Happy Tuesday, readers! Hope your week is off to a good start. Maydeen is taking the lead on the newsletter the rest of this week while Callie travels for graduation. Congratulations, Callie!
In today’s edition, Maydeen (with the help of Joe, who is Daily on Energy’s editor) looks at the EPA’s new funding for ports across the country to help achieve zero-emission operations.
A few other stories in today’s newsletter include oil giant BP reporting its lowest quarterly earnings since the COVID-19 pandemic and EPRI collaborating with big tech companies to launch an initiative examining how data centers can support grid reliability. We then look at a report that $78 trillion in investment across clean energy sectors is needed to meet the Paris Agreement goals of reducing global heating.
Meanwhile, environmentalists are fighting back against a new interstate highway in Birmingham, Alabama.
For today’s election countdown, we look at a Minnesota ballot measure that will decide whether to continue financing the state’s environmental trust fund with lottery revenue.
Welcome to Daily on Energy, written by Washington Examiner energy and environment writers Callie Patteson (@CalliePatteson) and Maydeen Merino (@MaydeenMerino). Email cpatteson@washingtonexaminer dot com or mmerino@washingtonexaminer dot com for tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email, and we’ll add you to our list.
EPA GRANTS $3 BILLION FOR PORTS ZERO-EMISSION OPERATIONS: The Environmental Protection Agency will spend nearly $3 billion on ports across the country to help achieve zero-emission operations.
The EPA selected 55 applicants across 27 states to receive funding through its Clean Ports Program, announced earlier this year. The agency said the ports’ ability to operate with zero emissions will reduce public health and environmental effects on surrounding communities.
“Our nation’s ports are critical to creating opportunity here in America, offering good-paying jobs, moving goods, and powering our economy,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement.
“Delivering cleaner technologies and resources to U.S. ports will slash harmful air and climate pollution while protecting people who work in and live nearby ports communities,” he added.
Read more from Maydeen here.
ZOOMING WAY OUT ON U.S. ENERGY TRENDS: Over the past 50 years, U.S. energy production has outpaced consumption, the Energy Information Administration outlined in a new analysis today.
Since 1974, in the aftermath of the oil embargo, energy production has increased by 68%, or 24.0 quadrillion British thermal units (quads). Consumption has risen by only 32%, or 13.2 quads.
Let’s take a look at both sides of that equation…
Production: Production is up in large part because of the fracking revolution, which has made the U.S. the largest crude oil and natural gas producer in the world. Since 2019, the U.S. has been a net energy exporter – a trend that began under President Donald Trump but has continued under President Joe Biden, as crude oil production has hit new records and LNG exports have soared.
Consumption: The analysis notes that primary energy consumption has decreased on both a per capita basis and in terms of energy consumed per dollar of GDP. Partly, that decline represents advances in efficiency. But it also indicates that Americans are just using less energy than in the past.
BP REPORTS LOWEST EARNINGS IN FOUR YEARS: BP announced its net income was $2.3 billion in the third quarter, down from $2.8 billion in the previous quarter. The quarterly result marks the lowest drop since 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Compared with the second quarter 2024, the underlying result reflects weaker realized refining margins, a weak oil trading result and lower liquids realizations, partly offset by higher gas realizations,” BP said.
The company’s third quarter net income also fell from $3.3 billion in the third quarter of last year.
BP said the company’s debt also rose to $24.3 billion from $22.6 billion last quarter. The increase was driven by lower operating cash flow, higher capital expenditures, and lower divestment and other proceeds, it said.
EPRI LAUNCHES INITIATIVE WITH BIG TECH TO ENHANCE GRID RELIABILITY: EPRI, a non-profit energy research and development organization, launched the DCFlex, an initiative with Google, Meta, and Nvidia to examine how data centers can support grid reliability.
“This collaborative initiative aims to unlock innovative strategies that may help reduce emissions, enhance resilience, and accelerate the transition to a net-zero future,” EPRI tweeted.
EPRI said the initiative will create five to 10 “flexibility hubs, demonstrating innovative data center and power supplier strategies that enable operational and deployment flexibility, streamline grid integration, and transition backup power solutions to grid assets.”
Deployment will begin in the first half of 2025 and run through 2027. EPRI discussed development recommendations with the DOE, highlighting the need for collaboration among stakeholders when powering data centers to support the economy.
$78 TRILLION NEEDED TO MEET PARIS AGREEMENT GOALS: Wood Mackenzie, an energy transition data and analytics company, said a cumulative investment of $78 trillion across clean energy sectors like critical minerals is needed to meet the Paris Agreement goals of limiting global heating to below 2°C above pre-industrial levels.
A series of global events, such as the wars between Russia and Ukraine and in the Middle East, has derailed the energy transition, said Prakash Sharma, vice president and head of scenarios and technologies for Wood Mackenzie.
“However, there is still time for the world to reach net zero emissions by 2050 – provided decisive action is taken now. Failure to do so risks putting even a 2˚C goal out of reach, potentially increasing warming to 2.5˚C – 3˚C trajectory,” Sharma said.
He said a carbon price could be the most effective way to reduce emissions, but it is unlikely to happen in the U.S., given the entrenched opposition of Republicans. Instead, policy certainty and global cooperation to double annual investments in energy supply to $3.5 trillion by 2050 could help overcome challenges to reducing emissions.
ENVIRONMENTALISTS TAKE ON BIRMINGHAM HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION: Environmentalists are resisting an effort by Alabama to construct a new interstate highway north of Birmingham, Alabama, that would complete a loop around the city, Inside Climate News reports.
It’s an interesting case study: Officials say the highway will boost commerce, while green opponents say it will harm the local environment while failing to deliver the promised benefits.
The background: The highway, meant to complete a belt line around Birmingham, has been under consideration for decades, and the state built part of it in the last decade, but abandoned construction in 2016 for a lack of funds. Now, the state has gained federal funding, in part through the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and construction is set to resume.
The critique: “It is a very destructive environmental project that has no utility, or very little utility,” Sarah Stokes, a senior attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, told the publication. “It will have little traffic impact. It will have little economic growth impact. So it’s such a shame we are putting so much money into this project and going to cause so much destruction to our Earth for little or no gain.”
Rep. Gary Palmer, the Republican U.S. congressman whose district includes Birmingham suburbs, invoked “Field of Dreams” in touting the highway project, saying that it would spur development.
SELC commissioned a study from economists at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte challenging that logic, though, claiming that growth necessitates and justifies infrastructure, not the other way around.
MAINE OFFSHORE WIND AUCTION DRAWS LITTLE INTEREST: The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management carried out an offshore wind lease auction for the Gulf of Maine this morning that resulted in bids for only four of the eight lease areas in one round, for a total of only about $22 million in winning bids.
Avangrid Renewables won bids for two lease areas off the coast of Massachusetts. Invenergy NE Offshore Wind won bids for areas off the coast of Massachusetts and Maine.
Together, the leased areas have the potential to power 2.3 million homes, the Department of the Interior said in a press release.
“I’m surprised that this lasted only one round,” said Stephen Maldonado, an analyst with Wood Mackenzie, according to Reuters. “I’m also curious how the timing of the election influenced the thinking of the bidders.”
The administration’s reaction: “With ten approved offshore wind projects capable of powering over 5 million homes, we are well on our way to a clean energy future,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a press release. “Today’s successful auction marks yet another critical step in our fight against climate change.
Why it matters: Today’s auction was seen as a gauge of the industry’s willingness to invest as it faces a number of obstacles. BOEM recently canceled auctions in the Gulf of Mexico and off Oregon due to a lack of interest. The setbacks have raised doubts about the Biden administration’s goal of installing 30 gigawatts of offshore wind this decade.
DOE ANNOUNCES $150 MILLION FOR NET-ZERO PROJECTS AT FEDERAL FACILITIES: The Department of Energy will provide almost $150 million for 67 clean energy projects at federal facilities across 28 states.
The funding represents the second and final installment of the $250 million Assisting Federal Facilities with Energy Conservation Technologies grant program to help federal buildings reach net-zero emissions by 2045.
For one of the projects, a Montana federal building and courthouse plans to install a geothermal heating and cooling system to replace existing gas boilers. A military fort in South Texas will implement water conservation technology to create a self-sustaining water system.
The DOE estimated the projects will save taxpayers $41.7 million yearly in energy and water costs.
ICYMI – DOE GIVES $2.26 BILLION LOAN FOR NEVADA LITHIUM PROJECT: The Department of Energy announced Monday it would provide a $2.26 billion loan to Lithium Americas’ subsidiary, Lithium Nevada, to help build facilities for processing lithium at Thacker Pass in Humboldt County, Nevada.
The DOE said the project is near a mine containing North America’s largest confirmed lithium resource. Lithium-ion batteries are used for electric vehicles, defense applications, and consumer electronics.
The department said the facilities are expected to produce 40,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium carbonate per year. The project will annually produce 800,000 batteries for EVs.
We’ve previously reported on how the mine would be a major boost to the administration’s climate goals, especially the target of having half of all cars sold in 2030 be zero-emission vehicles.
ELECTION COUNTDOWN – MINNESOTA BALLOT MEASURE: This year, voters in Minnesota will decide whether to continue to finance the Environment and Natural Resources Fund from the state’s lottery revenue.
The “Minnesota Continue to Provide Lottery Revenue to Environment and Natural Resources Fund Amendment” is on the ballot for those in Minnesota and it would extend the dedicated 40% of funding from the state’s lottery revenue to the trust fund through 2050.
The fund was established in 1988 to finance projects that protect and preserve the state’s natural resources. The Environment Initiative, Minnesota Conservation Federation, Minnesota Environmental Partnership, Minnesota Land Trust, and Conservation Minnesota support the measure.
“Without renewal, thousands of future programs and projects throughout the state could be in jeopardy,” Conservation Minnesota stated.
There are 6 days until election day.
RUNDOWN
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Publish date : 2024-10-29 08:56:00
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