• More than 250 environmental and Indigenous groups have written letters asking the heads of Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips and Hilcorp Energy Co. to agree not to participate in the federal government’s auction of drilling rights in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Their argument resembles that of a previous lobbying campaign that convinced five of the country’s largest six banks to forswear financing oil development projects in the refuge, where the Trump administration has slated 1.56 million acres for auction later this year. (Bloomberg)

• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has made the decision to open the country’s electric markets to operators aggregating small-scale power sources like renewable technologies. The federal power generation rules have typically put these smaller sources, which utilize sources like rooftop solar or building efficiency programs, at a disadvantage to traditional power plants. (Houston Chronicle)

• In the aftermath of Hurricane Sally, at least 30 offshore oil and gas platforms, as well as other energy producers and exporters, have begun rebooting after five days of widespread closures. (Reuters)

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee dismisses possible Biden Cabinet post
Axios

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee indicated at an Axios virtual event Thursday that he’s not interested in a Cabinet post should Joe Biden win the presidency.

Cheney asks DOJ to probe environmental groups
Rachel Frazin, The Hill

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) has asked the Justice Department to investigate some of the country’s leading environmental groups, arguing that Russia and China are attempting to influence U.S. policies through the groups. 

Wildfires have burned over 5 million acres in the West. Are they too big for Washington to ignore?
Anna M. Phillips and Jennifer Haberkorn, Los Angeles Times

With massive wildfires across the West burning more than 5 million acres and displacing tens of thousands of people, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon says this is the moment for Congress to reform the nation’s fire management policies, or brace for more Septembers like this one.

Trump pledges ‘no politics’ in Pebble Mine review
Rachel Frazin, The Hill

President Trump is pledging to keep politics out of decisionmaking involving the controversial Pebble Mine that has been proposed at the site of a prominent salmon fishery. 

Kudlow: ‘No sector worse hurt than energy’ during pandemic
Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Thursday there was “no sector worse hurt than energy” during the economic downturn due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Oil Set for Best Week Since June With Saudis Defending Recovery
Sharon Cho and Grant Smith, Bloomberg

Oil is poised for its biggest weekly advance since early June after Saudi Arabia piled pressure on fellow OPEC+ nations to deliver on promised output cuts.

UN chief: don’t ‘throw away’ stimulus money on fossil fuels
Frank Jordans and Philipp Jenne, The Associated Press

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called Thursday on governments not to “throw away” economic stimulus funds by supporting fossil fuel industries that contribute to global warming.

Court temporarily pauses EPA methane emissions rollback
Rachel Frazin, The Hill

A court has temporarily halted an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that rescinded Obama-era standards for methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, preventing the rollback from taking effect for the time being. 

Amazon defends working with oil companies to reach its zero-carbon goal
Orion Rummler, Axios

Partnering with oil and gas producers is necessary for Amazon and other companies to achieve their climate goals, the tech giant’s chief of sustainability, Kara Hurst, said during an Axios virtual event on Thursday.

A Legacy of Greenwashing Haunts BP’s End-of-Oil Vision
Kate Mackenzie, Bloomberg

BP Plc is probably the first oil major that has made concrete plans for the end of oil—or at least the shrinking of its role. The company announced a big strategic pivot last month that would see it turn from an “integrated oil company” to an “integrated energy company.”

Saudi Arabia chafes at Opec partners’ ‘false promises’ on cuts
Anjli Raval, Financial Times

The kingdom’s energy minister says he will make the market ‘jumpy’.

How sudden geopolitical events bring about long-term changes in oil use
Amy Harder, Axios

Sudden changes in world politics can bring about permanent changes in oil-and-gas use, per a recent Morgan Stanley report.

POLITICO Q&A: Daniel Yergin, oil sector doyen
Ben LeFebvre, Politico

Daniel Yergin has been chronicling the world of oil and gas for industry insiders and the broader public since his Pulitzer Prize-winning book “The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power” was first published in 1990.

Docs: Trump aides pushed EPA for fewer methane checks
Jean Chemnick, E&E News

EPA bowed to White House pressure to reduce requirements for monitoring and repairing methane leaks at facilities that push natural gas through pipelines. EPA staffers said it could “compromise” the legal underpinning of the rule.

More call for pause as US weighs New Mexico drilling plan
Susan Montoya Bryan, The Associated Press

Environmentalists want federal land managers to suspend efforts to amend a plan that would guide oil and gas development and other activities near Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

PG&E CFO Leaving for Another Utility
Mark Maurer and Katherine Blunt, The Wall Street Journal

PG&E Corp. said Chief Financial Officer Jason Wells is leaving for a job at another utility. Mr. Wells will resign from the San Francisco-based company Sept. 25, PG&E said. Starting Sept. 28, he plans to serve as CFO of Houston-based CenterPoint Energy Inc., an electric and gas utility serving seven million customers in eight states, according to CenterPoint.

McKinley, Schrader float draft clean energy standard
Nick Sobczyk, E&E News 

Reps. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) and Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) are plotting a bipartisan clean energy standard bill that would also invest heavily in carbon capture and offer new incentives for renewables and nuclear, according to draft legislation circulating on Capitol Hill.

Google made clean energy cool for corporations, and it’s about to do the same for batteries
Michael J. Coren, Quartz

By 2030, Google plans to precisely match every electron of electricity flowing into its offices and data centers with one produced from a renewable source. If someone clicks on a search at 3 AM, Google will find the electricity to power that query from a battery, wind turbine, solar panel, hydroelectric dam, or some other carbon-free technology at that precise moment.

Ford’s electric F-150 plans come into focus
Ben Geman, Axios

Ford is offering more info about the design and strategy around its long-awaited entry into the electric truck market, the battery-powered F-150 pickup arriving in mid-2022.

Big potential, but challenges to overcome: A look at offshore wind in the U.S.
Anmar Frangoul, CNBC

Stretching for thousands of miles, the east coast of the United States is home to major cities, stunning beaches and millions of people. Soon, though, it could also host several major offshore wind farms, a development that would have a significant effect on America’s energy mix.

Prime minister pledges 100% renewable energy generation in New Zealand by 2030
Rebecca Falconer, Axios

New Zealand’s prime minister has pledged to achieve 100% renewable energy in the country by 2030 if her party wins re-election in October.

This Billionaire Governor’s Coal Company Might Get a Big Break From His Own Regulators
Ken Ward Jr., ProPublica

West Virginia environmental regulators are proposing fine reductions for water pollution violations from a coal company owned by Gov. Jim Justice, even after the company promised to clean up its mines.

Air quality in American West among the worst in the world
Jennifer A. Kingson, Axios

The air quality in Portland has become the worst in the world — with Seattle, Los Angeles and Denver also ranking up there with notoriously polluted places like Delhi and Shanghai.

What wildfires in Brazil, Siberia, and the US West have in common
Lili Pike, Vox

Climate change and mismanagement are fueling large, uncontrolled fires around the world.

The slow death of Big Oil
The Editorial Board, Financial Times

The industry must reinvent itself to survive in a low-carbon era.

A Climate Center on Governors Island? Could Be a Game Changer
Michael Kimmelman, The New York Times

A rezoning proposal that has been floating around is finally up for city review. This kind of development is just what New York needs now.

Final annual data for 2019 from Form EIA-860
Energy Information Administration

The survey Form EIA-860 collects generator-level specific information about existing and planned generators and associated environmental equipment at electric power plants with 1 megawatt or greater of combined nameplate capacity. Summary level data can be found in the Electric Power Annual. Starting with 2013 data, the EIA-860 began collecting construction cost data for new electric generators. Aggregated average construction cost information can be found on the Construction cost data for electric generators page.