1. Litigation reform can unlock energy project permits
Energy projects are stuck in permitting purgatory and tied up in red tape. Before construction can begin, these projects must undergo permitting at the local, state and often federal levels before they even have to deal with litigation.
So far this year, we’ve seen a number of strong efforts to improve permitting:
- House Republicans passed H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, with bipartisan support,
- and some of the provisions in H.R. 1 were included in the debt ceiling deal codified by the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
- But, after it passed, the Biden Administration’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) released questionable guidance on NEPA implementation.
What's clear: By streamlining the judicial review process for energy infrastructure and removing long delays in sending litigation to court, project financing decisions will progress faster.
Plug in: To learn more about permitting litigation reform, check out the latest blog by Program Manager Matthew Mailloux and Senior Program Director Cheryl Lombard.
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2. Centrus delivers HALEU to DOE
Centrus Energy Corporation announced its first delivery of advanced nuclear fuel known as High Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) to the DOE.
- Centrus is now responsible for a full year of HALEU production at the rate of 900 kilograms per year at its American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio.
- After securing funding, the facility could expand to full-scale HALEU production in 42 months.
What's clear: HALEU fuel is required for most next-generation nuclear reactors. Today, Russia supplies about one quarter of the low-enriched uranium powering America’s reactors and is currently the only source of commercially available HALEU. American innovators are preparing to scale to meet the needs of the growing advanced reactor project pipeline, and the Nuclear Fuel Security Act would enable the U.S. to become secure global suppliers of HALEU fuel.
Plug in: For more on nuclear fuel security in the U.S., check out Policy Fellow Jack Radilla’s blog here.
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3. BlackRock bets on direct air capture
BlackRock, a global investment company based in New York City, announced its intention to invest $550 million into one of Occidental’s Direct Air Capture (DAC) projects.
- BlackRock is supporting the "Stratos" DAC plant Oxy is building in Ector County, Texas.
- The company is forming a joint venture with 1PointFive, an Oxy subsidiary.
- 1PointFive will own the “Stratos” plant, set to capture 500,000 metric tons of CO2 per year.
What's clear: Deploying DAC technologies offers an exciting opportunity to add another tool to the toolbox for lowering CO2 emissions by removing it from the atmosphere. This is the first time that Blackrock has supported a carbon removal project.
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4. North American carbon removal partnership
American startup Equatic is partnering with Canadian developer Deep Sky to test seawater-based carbon removal that also makes hydrogen.
- The pilot will have 365 tons of annual removal capacity,
- With plans for more than 100,000-ton-scale commercial deployments.
- Equatic also has pilots in L.A. and Singapore and a preliminary deal with Boeing.
Equatic's tech passes electrical current obtained from hydropower through seawater. This electrolysis process splits water into hydrogen and oxygen.
What's clear: The ocean covers over 70% of the surface area of the planet, holds about 50 times more carbon than the atmosphere, and can store carbon for millennia at its deepest depths. The future efforts from this partnership set up new ways to bring carbon removal processes closer to commercial use.
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5. ICYMI
- ClearPath’s Chief Strategy Officer Jeremy Harrell speaks on the latest expansion in geothermal energy and technology advancements in a NPR radio segment.
- Texas is leading clean energy innovation while expanding power generating.
- The House passed the Interior-Environment Appropriations bill by a vote of 213-206 on November 3, 2023. The bill funds important items like EPA's Class VI program and the Department of Interior's efforts to develop offshore carbon storage regulations.
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