Posted in climate, energy policy, tagged climate, Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan on September 21, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Rep. Rashiba Tlaib: “Does your bank have a policy against funding new oil and gas products?” (I assume her script said “projects,” and that she misread it. She also butchered “Celsius,” a word that should be very familiar to such a climate expert.)
Jamie Dimon: “Absolutely not and that would be the road to Hell for America.”
Posted in climate, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, tagged climate task force, energy policy, EO 14082, White House on September 19, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Per Executive Order 14082, September 12, 2022, yet another White House office and task force has been established to coordinate (direct?) the 26 Federal Departments (plus many bureaus and offices) with energy and climate responsibilities.
Sec. 3. White House Office on Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation. There is hereby established the White House Office on Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation within the Executive Office of the President, which shall coordinate the policymaking process with respect to implementing the energy and infrastructure provisions of the Act and other essential initiatives. The White House Office on Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation shall have a staff headed by the Senior Advisor for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation; shall have such staff and other assistance as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this order, subject to the availability of appropriations; and may work with established or ad hoc committees and interagency groups.
Sec. 4. ‘‘There is hereby established a National Climate Task Force (Task Force). The Task Force shall be chaired by the Senior Advisor for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation. The National Climate Advisor shall serve as Vice Chair.’’
Task Force Membership:
(i) the Secretary of the Treasury; (ii) the Secretary of Defense; (iii) the Attorney General; (iv) the Secretary of the Interior; (v) the Secretary of Agriculture; (vi) the Secretary of Commerce; (vii) the Secretary of Labor; (viii) the Secretary of Health and Human Services; (ix) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; (x) the Secretary of Transportation; (xi) the Secretary of Energy; (xii) the Secretary of Education; (xiii) the Secretary of Homeland Security; (xiv) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; (xv) the Director of the Office of Management and Budget; (xvi) the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy; (xvii) the Administrator of the Small Business Administration; (xviii) the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality; (xix) the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs; (xx) the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy; (xxi) the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism; (xxii) the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy; (xxiii) the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; (xxiv) the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service; (xxv) the Administrator of General Services; (xxvi) the White House Infrastructure Coordinator; and (xxvii) the heads of such other departments, agencies, and offices as the Chair or Vice Chair may from time to time invite to participate.’’
Over the years, the work of cabinet departments has been increasingly directed by the White House, such that cabinet officials confirmed by the Senate are often subordinate to White House staff. Critics contend that the centralization of energy and climate policy in the White House has delayed and altered important Departmental actions. Did the White House climate office author this rather extreme statement in the introductory text for the proposed 5-year leasing plan?
“The long-term nature of OCS oil and gas development, such that production on a lease can continue for decades makes consideration of future climate pathways relevant to the Secretary’s determinations with respect to how the OCS leasing program best meets the Nation’s energy needs.“ (Interpretation: offshore oil and gas production must be throttled down to correspond with the climate office’s energy fantasies.)
Posted in climate, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged 5 year leasing plan, BOEM forecast, EIA, Gulf of Mexico production on September 1, 2022| Leave a Comment »
GoM oil production for June increased (see chart below) with King’s Quay and Spruance contributing to the uptick. Other anticipated 2022 startups are not yet producing.
The EIA production forecast for 2022 is proving to be pretty accurate. Kudos to them. However, BOEM’s 2022 forecast of 1.9 million bopd is not achievable and concerns about the intermediate and longer term persist. Unfortunately, BOEM’s highly optimistic forecast for 2022 and beyond, along with unrealistic expectations regarding the energy transition, have significant policy implications. This stunning quote from the 5 year leasing plan explains why so few lease sales were proposed:
“BOEM’s short-term (20-year) production forecast for existing leases shows steady growth from 2022 through 2024 and declining thereafter (see Section 5.2.1). The long-term nature of OCS oil and gas development, such that production on a lease can continue for decades makes consideration of future climate pathways relevant to the Secretary’s determinations with respect to how the OCS leasing program best meets the Nation’s energy needs.“
5 Year Leasing Program, p.3
Posted in CCS, climate, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged CCS, fair market value, Inflation Reduction Act, Lease Sale 257 on August 31, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Per legislation signed by the President on Aug. 16, 2022:
(b) LEASE SALE 257 REINSTATEMENT.—
(1) ACCEPTANCE OF BIDS.—Not later 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall, without modification or delay—
(A) accept the highest valid bid for each tract or bidding unit of Lease Sale 257 for which a valid bid was received on November 17, 2021; and
(B) provide the appropriate lease form to the winning bidder to execute and return.
The Department of the Interior has been silent on their implementation of this provision. We are particularly interested in:
Posted in climate, energy policy, tagged China, coal on August 23, 2022| Leave a Comment »
China also has boosted annual coal production by 490 million tonnes since last year, enough to meet demand from Germany and Russia combined, the coal mine safety bureau said this month, describing coal as “still our country’s most important source of power”.
The country has continued to develop new coal-fired plants, with construction on the second phase of the Zheneng Liuheng coal-fired power station in eastern China’s Zhejiang province beginning at the start of this month. New coal-fired power construction was at its highest since 2016 last year.
Reuters
Posted in climate, drilling, energy, tagged gyrotron, Ken WIsian, Quaise Energy, ultradeep geothermal, UT Austin on August 17, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Quaise Energy’s ultradeep geothermal energy concept is most intriguing and media interest continues to build. Ultradeep geothermal has a big advantage over other renewable concepts which have much greater space and aesthetic challenges and suffer from intermittency. As is very well explained in the quote below, it’s now up to Quaise to demonstrate gyrotron drilling and the associated technology in pilot projects.
“A lot of the technology advances [needed] are coming into that proof step where you’ll have physical proof that they work. So I would say we are ready to launch, if we can just bring together the right utility, the right contract and engineering expertise, and the right site to launch the proofs to show that this can be done,” said Ken Wisian, a geothermal geophysicist and associate director of the Bureau of Economic Geology at the University of Texas, Austin. “The picture could be accelerating dramatically over the next few years. We just need the proof projects to land.”
altenergymag.com
Posted in climate, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, tagged flaring, Inflation Reduction Act, Lease Sale 257, offshore oil, Offshore Wind on August 15, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Posted in climate, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, tagged Amendments, Congressman Roy, Inflation Reduction Act on August 11, 2022| Leave a Comment »
They are listed here. This one is the most entertaining 😀
AMENDMENT TO SENATE AMENDMENT TO H.R. 5376
OFFERED BY MR. ROY OF TEXAS
Strike line 1, page 1, and all that follows.
Posted in climate, energy policy, tagged DOE, electric grid, Green Pork, renewables on August 4, 2022| Leave a Comment »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Biden-Harris Administration, through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), today announced $26 million to fund projects that will demonstrate that America’s electricity grid can reliably run with a mix of solar, wind, energy storage, and other clean distributed energy resources.
DOE
Shouldn’t the research precede DOE’s declaration of victory?
Rest assured that none of the studies will question the reliability of a grid dependent on DOE’s preferred energy mix; nor will they raise concerns about the associated economic, national security, or environmental risks. These are the types of projects that the WSJ calls “Green Pork.”
Posted in climate, energy policy, Uncategorized, tagged clean energy corps, DOE, Robert Downey on August 2, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 