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MORNING ENERGY NEWS | 10/06/2020

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The climate litigation crowd is so radical even 'no new fracking' Harris isn't ready to jump on board.

Climate Litigation Watch (10/6/20) reports: "Back in March 2018, Judge Valerie Caproni of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York declared a 'missing link' between the 'La Jolla” activists and plaintiffs’ lawyers calling for of attorneys general investigations to help their cause, their funders, and the AG investigations that miraculously then began popping up. This was curious even at the time, and ExxonMobil challenged it given a few things that were already known....Just when CLW considered the 'missing link' claim thoroughly disproved, along come more public records from back in the day but now involving the Office of former California State Attorney General Kamala Harris, showing that there was in fact AG involvement in La Jolla...The fact that AG Harris — who has exhibited some confusion about whether or not she actually joined the campaign — then decided that the enterprise was too much even for her — it was more the kind of thing one leaves to the Eric Schneidermans of the world, apparently — is not exonerating. It is instead a 'tell' about just how radical the litigation campaign is, that even someone willing to use Men With Guns over your plastic straw walked away from it."

"The greatest positive environmental contributions that Exxon can make likely involve using its resources and expertise to improve how fossil fuels are extracted and used."

– William English, Real Clear Energy

Rand taking a stand against terrible solutions for non-problems.

E&E News (10/5/20) reports: "Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski is scrambling to salvage her committee's bipartisan energy package, after an eleventh-hour objection from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) derailed her push to bring the bill back to the floor and pass it last week.nThe Alaska Republican told E&E News on Friday that she and ranking member Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) were working with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to secure floor time last Wednesday or Thursday to finish the energy innovation package, S. 2657, in 'literally an afternoon.' However, Murkowski learned Tuesday night that Paul was blocking a unanimous consent to return to the bill, which was sidelined in March after an amendment fight over regulating superpolluting hydrofluorocarbons prompted McConnell to pull the bill. 'We got a heads-up that Senator Paul had an objection and was not in a position to work to remove his hold,' Murkowski said in a phone interview. She confirmed that Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) had also raised concerns with the bill that emerged after Senate leaders had issued a 'hotline' request to obtain unanimous consent to resurrect the package, vote on outstanding amendments and secure final passage. Lee's issues had been resolved and Murkowski was working with Loeffler on her concerns when Paul objected to a second hotline request."

This is what real energy and environmental problems look like.

Energy World (10/6/20) reports: "New Delhi: India is expected to overtake China as the world's largest cooking gas LPG residential sector market by 2030, Wood Mackenzie said on Tuesday. 'Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) demand in the residential sector will continue to see sustainable growth at a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.3 percent, reaching 34 million tonnes (MT) in 2030 as households' dependence on solid biomass diminishes in the long run supported by rising average household incomes and urban population,' it said in a report. Driven by environmental and health concerns, the government has also been implementing schemes to help lower-income families cope with the cost of switching from dirtier biomass to LPG...However, the lack of infrastructure continues to restrain piped natural gas (PNG) penetration in areas outside of top tier cities and retail PNG prices continue to be at a premium to subsidized LPG prices, making PNG a less attractive alternative to LPG before 2030, Wood Mackenzie said. Wood Mackenzie senior analyst Vidur Singhal said: 'Between 2020 and 2030, PNG demand will primarily be from urban households in tier I and tier II cities awarded under CGD bidding rounds. City gas companies will increase PNG connections and its related infrastructure, which typically takes five to eight years to construct and commercialize fully.'"

Preiodic reminder that any **Green New Deal is really a Red New Deal.**

Wall Street Journal (10/5/20) reports: "The U.S. government is ramping up efforts to secure minerals critical to modern technology but whose supply is dominated by China—a stranglehold that miners warn could take years to break. In recent years, the U.S. and other Western nations have invested in projects and approved licenses to mine these resources—essential for the production of electric vehicles, cellphones and wind turbines—an effort these countries are now accelerating given how far they still trail China. Last week President Trump signed an executive order declaring a national emergency and authorizing the use of the Defense Production Act to speed the development of mines. The law was used earlier this year to speed production of medical supplies amid the pandemic...Miners and analysts have welcomed the moves, but caution it takes around 10 years to set up a mine and that the West also needs to develop the capability to process these resources into the materials used in final products. 'To dislodge China’s overwhelming dominance of rare earth, in particular, is a multi, multiyear process,' said TechMet Chief Executive Brian Menell. 'There are no quick fixes.'"

Energy Markets

WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $40.48
Natural Gas: ↑ $2.64
Gasoline: ~ $2.18

Diesel: ~ $2.38
Heating Oil: ↑ $117.21
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $42.49
US Rig Count: ↑ 315

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