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DAILY ENERGY NEWS | 03/01/2024

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Mike and Tom discuss the fragile Democratic coalition, sausage making, the end of the iCar, and the state of the Middle East with special guest Yaron Brook on Episode 171 of The Unregulated Podcast. Now streaming on our website, or wherever you listen.

"It is time for Congress to step up and ensure that our energy policies are in the best interests of the country, not those of foreign oligarchs. The time for action is now. Let us demand the truth and hold our leaders accountable for their actions."

– Larry Behrens,
Power The Future

Energy security is national security

Daily Caller (2/29/24) reports: "Out of the many compelling arguments free market activists marshalled to torpedo efforts by environmental activists to lock down large swaths of land, it was the national security concerns that carried the day, according to energy policy analysts. The State Financial Officers Foundation, which advocates for free markets and 'pro-growth policies,' was among the key players calling attention to the potential points of vulnerability associated with the creation of 'Natural Asset Companies' (NACs) as new entities on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). In a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the financial officers explained how NACs could 'serve as unique instruments for those looking to harm our country.'...Dan Kish, a senior fellow at the Institute for Energy Research, a Washington-based nonprofit that favors free market policies, sees 'an all-out assault on private property' at work not just with the NAC proposal, but with a range of policies. He highlights President Biden’s 30×30 plan built around a pledge to preserve 30% of the nation’s air and water by 2030 as a prime example of 'government land grab schemes' operating under the guise of conservation. 'There’s an attempt here on the part of the Biden administration, progressive environmental activists, and other actors who favor more government control over the private sector to burrow underground and chip away at our constitutional order with initiatives that might sound benign on the surface. But at least this time around, there was enough exposure from some very articulate sources, and I think the points raised about national security, and the opening a proposal like this could give to a country like China to undermine our energy production came through loud and clear.'"

America doesn't need to be reliant on China for lithium, but you guessed it -- Big Green, Inc. is standing in the way.

Las Vegas Review Journal (2/29/24) reports: "Navigating the winding dirt path that may soon be paved for autonomous cars at Rhyolite Ridge is an easy feat for Bernard Rowe. He knows the prehistoric landscape well — and envisions its imminent, dramatic change better than anyone. Rowe, a geologist and managing director of Australian mining company Ioneer, is one leader at the helm of Nevada’s lithium revolution. Since 2016, he and his company have invested more than $172 million in permitting a project in central Nevada’s Esmeralda County, about 65 miles southwest of Tonopah...The lithium at Rhyolite Ridge is high-grade, too: Company leaders say it could produce 22,000 tons of lithium per year, which translates to the amount needed for roughly 370,000 electric cars. In its permitted area, it has enough lithium for 50 million electric cars, said Chad Yeftich, Ioneer’s vice president of corporate development and external affairs. Mining companies like Ioneer hope to create a domestic supply chain of lithium in the U.S. The country produces less than a mere 2 percent of the world’s lithium, despite having more than 3 percent of the world’s reserves, according to the Institute for Energy Research. Even though there has been interest in developing mines in Nevada over the past few decades, only one mine has made it through the extensive permitting process — Albemarle’s Silver Peak, of which operations lie on the other side of the mountain range."

There aren’t enough subsidies to keep these darlings of Wall Street in business.

Bloomberg (2/29/24) reports: "Fisker Inc. plans to cut 15% of its workforce as the electric-vehicle maker faces “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue operating if it can’t secure new financing. The company’s chief executive officer, Henrik Fisker, said Thursday he’s in talks with another automaker for an investment lifeline. 'It’s narrowed down to one large carmaker and I hope we can close this deal soon,' the CEO said in an interview, declining to name the other party involved. The headcount reduction largely impacts sales staff and comes as Fisker said in a statement that its current capital may not be enough to sustain it over the next 12 months without additional funds. It reported cash and equivalents of $325.5 million as of Dec. 31, well below a $502.3 million average analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Fisker estimates it has about $500 million split between its vehicle and parts inventories, with current sales generating more cash, the CEO said. The disclosures are the latest setback for a company that has struggled with production issues, technical glitches and criticism from short sellers. EV makers of all sizes are also grappling with an industrywide slowdown in sales growth as consumer demand wanes."

If you oppose carbon taxes dressed up as tariffs, take a stand and contact us.

Tom Pyle, American Energy Alliance

Myron Ebell, Competitive Enterprise Institute

Phil Kerpen, American Commitment

Andrew Quinlan, Center for Freedom and Prosperity

Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform

George Landrith, Frontiers of Freedom

Thomas Schatz, Citizens Against Government Waste

Richard Manning, Americans for Limited Government

Adam Brandon, FreedomWorks

Craig Richardson, E&E Legal

Benjamin Zycher, American Enterprise Institute
Jason Hayes, Mackinac Center
David Williams, Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Paul Gessing, Rio Grande Foundation
Seton Motley, Less Government
Annette Meeks, Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
Isaac Orr, Center of the American Experiment
David T. Stevenson, Caesar Rodney Institute
John Droz, Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions
Jim Karahalios, Axe the Carbon Tax
Mark Mathis, Clear Energy Alliance
Jack Ekstrom, PolicyWorks America
Jon Sanders, John Locke Foundation

Energy Markets

WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $80.64
Natural Gas: ↓ $1.83
Gasoline: ↑ $3.33

Diesel: ↓ $4.06
Heating Oil: ↑ $271.94
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $84.11
US Rig Count: ↑ 656

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