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MORNING ENERGY NEWS | 02/20/2020
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** "Thousands are dying and millions are at risk, but hey, at least carbon emissions are down."
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Carbon Brief ([link removed]) (2/19/20) blog: "Electricity demand and industrial output remain far below their usual levels across a range of indicators, many of which are at their lowest two-week average in several years. All told, the measures to contain coronavirus have resulted in reductions of 15% to 40% in output across key industrial sectors. This is likely to have wiped out a quarter or more of the country’s CO2 emissions over the past two weeks, the period when activity would normally have resumed after the Chinese new-year holiday. Over the same period in 2019, China released around 400m tonnes of CO2 (MtCO2), meaning the virus could have cut global emissions by 100MtCO2 to date. The key question is whether the impacts are sustained, or if they will be offset – or even reversed – by the government response to the crisis...However, the Chinese government’s coming stimulus measures in
response to the disruption could outweigh these shorter-term impacts on energy and emissions...If consumer demand is reduced – for example, due to unpaid wages during the crisis cascading through the rest of the economy – then industrial output and fossil-fuel use might not recover, even though capacity is available to do so."


** "Though the average American may not realize it, the state of America’s energy industry has a powerful — and positive — impact on our day-to-day lives."
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– The Honorable Jason Isaac, Texas Public Policy Foundation ([link removed])

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Climate change surges! All the way to 11...

** Politico ([link removed])
(2/19/20) reports: "Americans have a clear message for President Donald Trump and the Democratic candidates vying to replace him: Lower health care costs. The vast majority of Americans rank cutting health care and prescription drug costs as their top priorities heading into election season, regardless of party affiliation, according to a new POLITICO-Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health survey. Those topics polled as far more important than passing a major health system overhaul like 'Medicare for All' or taking aggressive action to address climate change, suggesting Americans are concerned with immediate problems facing their families and friends rather than sweeping policy changes. 'Even among Democrats, the top issues are pocketbook issues — not the big system reform debates,” said Robert Blendon, a Harvard professor of health policy and political analysis who helped design the poll. 'They’re worried about their own lives, their own payments, and what they can afford.'...Climate
change was 11th, with just 52 percent overall agreeing that it was crucial to drastically increase federal spending and regulation to combat the issue."

** ([link removed])

Meanwhile, Bernie and Co. trust the government to build out the electric vehicle future.

** ABC ([link removed])
(2/12/20) reports: "Metro has spent $3.8 million and taken five years to build two unfinished bike racks - at East Falls Church and Vienna Metro Stations. WMATA originally budgeted $600,000 for each rack, but the price tag has soared to $1.9 million each. The covered bike shelters will house 92 bikes, putting the price tag at more than $20,000 per bike. Future costs to finish the projects could raise that number even higher. Metro says due to 'Numerous construction quality issues, including damage caused by a contractor repeatedly drilling into an underground duct bank, led to lengthy delays.' The transit agency severed ties with the first contractor four years ago. Metro says a second contractor also did not meet its quality control standards. In a statement to ABC7, Metro says 'Quality control issues with contractors can take time to sort out, but Metro determined it was more important to get the project done right rather than get it done quickly.' In January 2020 signs at the fenced-off
construction site said the project would wrap up in late 2018. After ABC7 aired its story in January, the signs were removed. ABC7 has requested all documents related to this project between the transit agency and the contractors involved though a Freedom of Information Act request. We have still not received any documents."

The end of the beginning.

** Reuters ([link removed])
(2/20/20) reports: "Global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is expected to double to 700 million tonnes by 2040 as gas will continue to play an important role in a lower-carbon energy system, Royal Dutch Shell’s annual market outlook said on Thursday. Global LNG demand grew by 12.5% to 359 million tonnes last year. Asia is expected to remain the dominant region in the decades to come, with South and South-East Asia generating more than half of the increased demand, the report said."

Energy Markets


WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $53.83
Natural Gas: ↓ $1.95
Gasoline: ↑ $2.45

Diesel: ~ $2.87
Heating Oil: ↑ $170.71
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $59.46
** US Rig Count ([link removed])
: ↑ 808



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