The nuclear option

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DAILY ENERGY NEWS | 12/11/2024

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NEPA = Nuke Every Project in America

Wall Street Journal (12//9/24) reports: "Litigation over federal permitting can waylay worthy projects by years and kill some altogether. The Supreme Court has the opportunity to help ease the logjam when it hears a potentially landmark permitting case Tuesday (Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado). Seven rural counties in Utah want to build an 88-mile rail line to support oil development and mineral mining. The federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) approved the line in 2021 after issuing a 3,600-page environmental impact statement to comply with the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). That’s the law that requires federal agencies to consider the environmental impact of their decisions, including adverse effects that cannot be avoided. The STB analyzed the railway’s potential effects on local water resources, air quality, protected species, recreation, local economies, the Ute Indian tribe and much more. This didn’t stop a flurry of lawsuits...Cases like the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and Utah railway abound. A judge struck down a Montana coal-mine permit because a federal agency didn’t consider the climate effects of coal combustion in Asia. A 225-mile electric transmission line in Nebraska has been stuck in permitting for 10 years because a lower court invalidated a U.S. Fish and Wildlife permit. Congress continues to debate ways to ease permitting snarls. But that needn’t stop Justices from emphatically telling lower courts they can’t go off the rails and write into NEPA their own requirements—full stop."

"While $1 billion is merely a drop in the wasteful spending bucket, it is unacceptable nonetheless. As the incoming Trump administration and Congress set their agenda, they should abolish everything and target all reckless government spending, no matter the size."

– Jeff Luse, Reason

Only forty days left in the wilderness.

Politico (12/10/24) reports: "President Joe Biden is supporting an effort to restrict international funding for oil and natural gas projects — a move the incoming Trump administration could find difficult to unwind. It’s a notable shift for the president, whose term ends in little more than a month. And if successful, it could free up billions of dollars for clean energy projects and cement Biden’s climate legacy, writes Sara Schonhardt. Biden joined a group of wealthy nations in 2021 to restrict financing for foreign coal-fired power plants. But earlier this year, when the European Union proposed extending that prohibition to most oil and natural gas projects, the U.S. declined to voice its support. Now, Biden is hopping on board by proposing a slightly different plan to achieve a similar end. The United States, along with a handful of other rich countries, is expected to back a so-called emissions threshold that would prevent the U.S. Export-Import Bank, as well as other countries’ export credit agencies, from financing carbon-intensive projects. The countries planned to make the proposal at today’s virtual meeting of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development — a group of 38 nations that collaborate on trade and finance issues — according to three people Sara spoke with who are familiar with the administration’s plans...Biden’s support comes amid pressure from climate activists to make good on his 2021 promise to end overseas financing of all heavy-polluting fossil fuel projects. And this is likely the president’s last chance."

Higher prices is the point.

E&E News (12/11/24) reports: "Washington state will release data Wednesday that’s likely to show the rising cost of its ambitious program to cut carbon emissions — and Brian Heywood says he warned this would happen. The Republican megadonor spent $7 million to put a question on the state’s November ballot asking voters to kill the program, which Heywood said increases gasoline and other consumer prices. Voters rejected the ballot measure by a large margin. The new state data is expected to show that the costs to regulated businesses of complying with emissions cuts has roughly doubled since September and is close to the record-high level in 2023."

Renewables aren't going to cut it. New nuclear is decades out. Natural gas can solve Big Tech's power problems yesterday.

Bloomberg (12/10/24) reports: "A few years ago, Bitcoin miners were the flashy newcomers in the electricity world, buying up megawatts for data centers and raising fears of an overwhelmed power grid. Now, they’re being pushed aside by an even bigger dog: artificial intelligence. The tech giants pursuing AI need as much electricity for their facilities as they can find, and they’re willing to spend heavily on it. Crypto is struggling to compete. 'The AI guys can afford to pay a much higher amount for energy,' said Fred Thiel, chief executive officer of miner MARA Holdings Inc. His company just bought a Texas wind farm to supply its operations, even though power isn’t always available. 'Bitcoin miners are being forced to go look at marginal generation,” he said in an interview last month.' Companies like his have a hard time paying more than $40 per megawatt, Thiel said, while big tech firms will spend three times that much. For power producers and utilities looking to sell electrons, the choice is easy."

Energy Markets

WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $69.42
Natural Gas: ↑ $3.35
Gasoline: ↑ $3.02

Diesel: ↑ $3.51
Heating Oil: ↑ $221.25
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $72.90
US Rig Count: ↓ 604

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