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MORNING ENERGY NEWS  |  08/04/2020
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An auto-renewing carbon tax handled by unelected bureaucrats. What could go wrong?


Boston Herald (8/1/20) reports: "Conservatives are criticizing a bill that the state House of Representatives passed late Friday, saying it’s a back door to raising gas taxes through an 11-state compact aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. The House voted 142-17 in favor of H. 4912, 'an act creating a 2050 road map to a clean and thriving commonwealth.' 'If the bill is enacted, it will transfer taxing and spending authority to unelected bureaucrats,' Rep. David F. DeCoste, R-Norwell, said, 'and that’s bad policy.' The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance claimed the bill is a blueprint for long-term carbon taxes without the need for further votes by the Legislature. The bill also acts as an endorsement, the alliance claimed, of the Transportation and Climate Initiative, which critics describe as a regressive gasoline and diesel tax. 'This is arguably one of the largest tax increase votes that any of these lawmakers will ever take,' said Paul D. Craney, a spokesman for alliance. 'The impact of this vote will be felt for decades and implement future tax increases on autopilot.' 'The sheer amount of new and higher taxes, along with the increased layers of regulations, will position Massachusetts as the most expensive and highly taxed state in the country,' Craney added. 'There isn’t a single state in the country that has a carbon tax, and today’s vote just permitted carbon taxes to be implemented without an explicit legislative vote in the future.'"

"Russia, Saudi Arabia and their OPEC and other oil-producing countries can only hope for a force that brings U.S. production down. Right now, they must be hoping that a Biden win would do that for them."

 

– Ellen R. Wald,
The Atlantic Council

Let the masses return to the skies.


Reuters (8/2/20) reports: "For a faint moment, energy traders had an inkling that demand for jet fuel, the worst-hit product in fuel markets due to the coronavirus pandemic, might stage a bit of a rebound. The number of flights increased in the United States in early July, making some traders optimistic. That spurred a bevy of shipments of jet fuel to the U.S. West Coast from locales in Asia. But with a resurgence in coronavirus cases, passenger air traffic has pulled back. Commercial aviation was easily the hardest-hit of the major transport sectors when coronavirus hit, given the close proximity of passengers in an air-conditioned space where viruses can spread. International flights remain down more than 80% from year-ago levels, Rystad Energy said. In Europe, traders were hopeful that the summer vacation season would increase demand for jet fuel. But stocks recently hit a record high despite subdued imports to the region and high exports as more countries impose border restrictions to control the new wave of the pandemic."

Does the highest-valued car company of all time really still need taxpayers propping it up?


Real Clear Energy (7/30/20) column: "Over the last week, the media has reported that Elon Musk’s Tesla is making money hand over fist. In reality, however, like Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX, Tesla is using fists – the government’s – to take money from the taxpayers.  To avoid going into the red, Tesla leverages government mandates requiring the production of electric cars to mulct other car companies that don’t make EVs – or enough of them – into buying “credits” from Elon in lieu of doing so. Essentially, other car companies must choose between diverting capital into unprofitable electric cars or diverting money into Elon Musk’s pockets. It’s cheaper and easier to do the latter than to expend the even larger sums it would take to design, tool, and manufacture their own electric cars, which they’d then have to try to sell without losing money again. Their dealers don't want cars they can't get enough people to buy to make it worthwhile – even with the incentive of thousands of dollars of other people's money (tax credits) thrown in as part of the deal. It looks bad to have what amounts to electrified Azteks just sitting there, collecting dust and taking up valuable floor space that could be used to display cars that people want to buy - and do - without being paid off to buy them. No one wants to be the automotive Goodwill store."

Wonder why we can't build anything?


E&E News (8/4/20) reports: "A utility company has canceled a natural gas pipeline in New Hampshire, giving another win to climate activists in their campaign to block new fossil fuel infrastructure. The Granite Bridge pipeline, 16 inches in diameter, would have run about 30 miles between Essex and Manchester, N.H. The project's sponsor, Liberty Utilities Co., announced Friday it was expanding capacity on an existing pipeline and won't need to build the project. The environmental group 350 New Hampshire compared the move to other recent decisions, including Williams Cos.' cancellation of the Constitution gas pipeline in New York and a federal judge's decision to block the Dakota Access oil line in North Dakota. A handful of cities have banned natural gas connections in new homes and businesses. 'Prevent new infrastructure from being built is a win in itself,' Rebecca Beaulieu, a spokeswoman for 350 New Hampshire, said in an interview." 

Energy Markets

 
WTI Crude Oil: ↓ $40.31
Natural Gas: ↓ $2.09
Gasoline: ↓ $2.17
Diesel: ↓ $2.42
Heating Oil: ↓ $122.90
Brent Crude Oil: ↓ $43.38
US Rig Count: ↓ 281

 
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