Top Stories

  • Utility company FirstEnergy Corp., which serves 2.2 million customers in northern Ohio as well as others in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and New York, said it plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent in the next decade and become carbon neutral by 2050. The announcement came days after FirstEnergy fired several executives, including Chief Executive Officer Chuck Jones, as the utility faces federal and state investigations accusing company officials of being involved in a $60 million bribery scheme to obtain a $1 billion bailout in Ohio for two nuclear power plants. (The Associated Press)
  • A bipartisan House bill introduced by Reps. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) and Dave Schweikert (R-Ariz.) would temporarily make the solar Investment Tax Credit refundable and slow the credit’s phasedown by one year as the renewables sector continues to be impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The bill does not have companion legislation in the Senate, but some Senate GOP lawmakers have suggested they would support offering companies more time to take advantage of the credit. (The Hill)
  • The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management delayed an environmental study that was expected to be released this week that is considered critical to greenlighting the 800-megawatt Vineyard Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts. The publication of the study has been delayed since April 2019, but the bureau, which said it is still reviewing over 13,000 public comments on the matter, is now expected to release the document by Dec. 11, which would allow the Trump administration to approve the project by Jan. 15. (Reuters)

Chart Review

Events Calendar (All Times Local)

11/13/2020
SIEA Solar Goes Corporate event
RFF webinar: The Future of Direct Air Capture 12:00 pm
Wilson Center event: Antarctica: U.S. Research and Diplomacy on the Southern Continent 2:00 pm
EESI briefing: What Congress Needs to Know About Pending Nuclear Waste Legislation 2:00 pm
Baker Institute event: Life Cycle Assessment a Key for Clean Energy Transition? 3:00 pm
Atlantic Council event: EnergySource Innovation Stream with Greentown Labs: Climatetech startup incubator 3:30 pm
11/16/2020
Atlantic Council event: A conversation with Claudio Descalzi, chief executive officer of Eni 10:00 am
Environmental Law Institute event: Cities Race to the Top: Corporate Climate Commitments and Competition for Jobs 12:00 pm
Carbon Capture Coalition event: Carbon Capture and the Power Sector: Building a Business Model for Carbon Management 1:00 pm
MIT Climate Action Symposium: What is the World Waiting For? Policies to Fight Climate Change 2:00 pm
11/17/2020
ACORE Grid Forum: Maximizing Renewables Integration through Grid Modernization
Southeast Renewable Energy conference
MIT Energy Initiative event: The New Map: A conversation with Daniel Yergin 9:00 am
EESI briefing: Ports Leading the Way on Mitigation and Resilience 12:00 pm
Atlantic Council event: Building a climate resilient and just future for all: Delivering action and ambition 1:00 pm
Day 1: Developing CCUS Projects in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast 1:00 pm
WRISE webinar: What the Hail? – A Conversation About Insurance in the Renewable Energy Industry 3:00 pm
11/18/2020
ACORE Grid Forum: Maximizing Renewables Integration through Grid Modernization
Bloomberg New Economy Forum: Climate
Southeast Renewable Energy conference
REV2020 conference: Resilience
Atlantic Council webinar: To Glasgow and beyond: Building a path towards renewed US climate engagement 8:00 am
Day 2: Developing CCUS Projects in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast 9:00 am
USEA and USAID industry panel: Energy Sector Cyber Threats, Intrusion Detection & Testing 9:00 am
ITIF webinar: Battery Manufacturing Powers Up: Transatlantic Catch-Up and Cooperation 10:00 am
Foreign Policy and ClearPath event: Clean Energy Innovation: A Path to Strengthen U.S. Competitiveness & Drive Global Development 11:00 am
EESI briefing: After COVID: A Lower Carbon Future for Commercial Aviation 12:00 pm
Columbia SIPA event: Carbon Capture in California: Part of a Statewide, Net-Zero Strategy 12:00 pm
SEIA webinar: Evaluating the Impact of the 2020 Election on the Clean Energy Industry 3:00 pm
U.S.-Asia Gas Partnership webinar: A Deep-Dive into American Petroleum Institute Standards for the LNG Industry 10:00 pm
View full calendar

New White Paper – The Effect of the 2020 Election on the Economy in 2021

Against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, the 2020 U.S. election will be key in shaping economic outcomes throughout 2021.

Our new white paper draws on Morning Consult Political Intelligence and Economic Intelligence data to assess the likely impact of the election on the economy, both in terms of the fundamental drivers of economic growth and Americans’ expectations of the future. Download here.

General

Trump races clock on remaining environmental rollbacks
Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill

The Trump administration is scrambling to wrap up a slew of environmental rollbacks before President-elect Joe Biden takes office in less than 70 days.

California official sees state auto emissions deal as ‘template’ for Biden
Nichola Groom and David Shepardson, Reuters

California Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols, who sources say could be the next federal environment chief, said on Thursday her state’s agreement with manor automakers for fuel efficiency requirements could serve as a “good template” for federal standards through 2025.

Contender to lead Biden EPA says agency should focus on environmental justice
Valerie Volcovici, Reuters

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should strengthen its use of the federal Civil Rights Act to better to protect poor and minority communities from pollution and climate change, a top candidate to head the agency under the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden said. Heather McTeer Toney, a former regional EPA administrator under the Obama administration and senior director at the Moms’ Clean Air Force, is among a short-list of candidates being vetted for the post, according to sources close to Biden.

Phishing Exercise That Angered Staffers Won’t Reoccur, EPA Says
Stephen Lee, Bloomberg Law

The EPA this week sent its employees a “phishing” test disguised as a network update, falsely informing workers that they could keep teleworking full time for as long as they saw a risk to their health or their family’s health, according to internal emails reviewed by Bloomberg Law.

Oil Falls Below $41 With Surging Covid Cases Menacing Demand
Alex Longley, Bloomberg

Oil fell for a second day — dropping below $41 a barrel in New York — as the ongoing spread of coronavirus dampens the demand outlook.

Oil and Natural Gas

Renting a Slice of U.S. Oil’s Hot Spot Is 70% Cheaper After Rout
Gerson Freitas Jr., Bloomberg

The price to drill an acre of land in the biggest U.S. shale basin has tumbled amid the oil rout, creating conditions ripe for more mergers and acquisitions.

Vaccine Hopes Fail to Spark Revival in Oil Demand Forecasts
Julian Lee, Bloomberg

You’d think that the euphoria around the announcement of a big step toward a vaccine against the coronavirus that has run riot this year would brighten the outlook for oil. Not so fast.

Generation share for gas in the US Northeast likely to fall this winter as prices rise
J. Robinson and Kieran Kemmerer, S&P Global Platts

As more winter-like temperatures arrive across the US Northeast, rising cash prices there could begin to pressure market share for gas as power generators switch away from the fuel in favor of coal.

Top Trader Vitol Strikes Deal to Buy Oil Liquids Made from Tires
Andy Hoffman and Lars Erik Taraldsen, Bloomberg

Vitol Group, the world’s biggest independent oil trader, is betting on a new technology to produce hydrocarbon liquids from recycled car and truck tires.

Utilities and Infrastructure

Lawsuit seeks to stop construction of $1B transmission line
David Sharp, The Associated Press

Three conservation groups are asking a judge to stop construction of a 145-mile (230-kilometer) power transmission line corridor to bring Canadian hydropower to the New England grid.

Future of Dakota Access pipeline uncertain as Biden presidency looms
Laila Kearney, Reuters

The election of Democrat Joseph Biden could create more headaches for the Dakota Access Pipeline’s (DAPL) owners, who are already embroiled in legal battles to keep the main conduit for flowing oil out of North Dakota running.

Enbridge Line 3 Oil Pipeline Project Wins Minn. Water Permit
Robert Tuttle, Bloomberg Law

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency grants Enbridge so-called 401 Water Quality Certification to build its Line 3 Pipeline replacement through the state, according to letter posted on agency website.

Exelon, owner of Baltimore-based Constellation and BGE, weighs splitting business
Lorraine Mirabella, The Baltimore Sun

Energy giant Exelon, owner of Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. and five other utilities, is weighing the benefits of spinning off its power generation business, including Baltimore-based power supplier Constellation, to form a separate company.

Transmission troubles? A solution could be lying along rail lines and next generation highways
Herman K. Trabish, Utility Dive

Recent studies, including the landmark and reportedly suppressed Department of Energy Seam study, show expanded transmission is critical. But two key barriers — where to put the new lines and how to pay for them — still slow development, according to a June 2020 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission report to Congress. 

Renewables

Ford Adds Electric Van to Keep its Grip on Commercial Market
Keith Naughton and Edward Ludlow, Bloomberg

Ford Motor Co., playing catch-up to Tesla Inc. in electric cars, is rolling out a battery-powered cargo van to lay claim to a new segment of the commercial fleet market that its gas-powered vehicles dominate.

Fiat Lays More Groundwork for Getting Into the Electric-Car Game
Daniele Lepido, Bloomberg

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, one of the carmakers that was slowest to embrace electrification, is signaling it’s serious about making a shift.

Coal/Nuclear

Coal Unit in Oklahoma Accused of Putting Tribal Health at Risk
Paul Stinson, Bloomberg Law

An obscure decision over a proposed modified air permit for a coal-burning unit in Oklahoma is raising broader environmental justice concerns for its health impact on local American Indian communities.

Contura Energy signs deal to divest Pennsylvania assets, Cumberland mine
Tyler Godwin, S&P Global Platts

Contura Energy reached an agreement with Iron Senergy Holding for the divestment of Contura’s Pennsylvania coal operations, including the Cumberland coal mine in Greene County, Pennsylvania, Contura said Nov. 12.

Climate

Biden SEC Likely to Push More Climate, Diversity Disclosures
Andrew Ramonas, Bloomberg Law

The SEC will have the power, under Democratic control, to mandate corporate disclosures on diversity and climate change risks, police more of Wall Street, and reverse recent efforts to ease capital raising in private markets in the coming years.

Biden climate ambitions for EPA hamstrung by conservative Supreme Court
Abby Smith, Washington Examiner

President-elect Joe Biden’s plans for aggressive climate regulations at the Environmental Protection Agency face huge challenges: a conservative-majority Supreme Court and dozens of Trump-era rollbacks.

Opinions, Editorials and Perspectives

Remember Climate Change?
David Leonhardt, The New York Times

The issue is simply more salient today than it was in 2008, as Gina McCarthy, who ran the Environmental Protection Agency under Mr. Obama and has advised Mr. Biden, points out. “The difference between then and now is that the issue of climate change is so much more relevant and personal now,” said Ms. McCarthy, who runs the Natural Resources Defense Council. 

Research Reports

Shale Shocked: Cash Windfalls and Household Debt Repayment
J. Anthony Cookson et al., The National Bureau of Economic Research

How do persistent cash flow shocks affect debt repayment across the distribution of households? Using individual data on natural gas shale royalty payments matched with credit bureau data for 215,639 consumers, we estimate that individuals repay 33 cents of debt per dollar of windfall, and that initially-subprime individuals repay approximately 5 times more debt than initially-prime individuals do.

Morning Consult