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MORNING ENERGY NEWS  | 04/27/2021
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Easy to fall off the cliff, harder to build back better...


Reuters (4/26/21) reports: "The White House hopes to capitalize on growing support from U.S. utilities, unions and green groups for a national clean energy mandate by backing efforts to require the U.S. grid to get 80% of its power from emissions-free sources by 2030, according to a senior administration official. A 2030 target would be a milestone on the way to achieving President Joe Biden’s stated ambition of net zero carbon emissions in the grid by 2035. It could also potentially be passed without Republican support through a process called budget reconciliation. 'Our goal is to enact this into law,' deputy White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi told Reuters, speaking of the administration’s push for a so-called clean energy standard (CES) to decarbonize the power sector. The latter would require reductions in emissions by adopting renewables like wind and solar, using nuclear energy or finding ways to suck up and sequester greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel plants."

"If wind and solar can provide so little power during times of peak demand – and especially during moments when the electric grid is on the verge of collapse – why are we spending so much money on it?" 

 

– Robert Bryce,
Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity

Not a good idea to shut off the gas in Jersey...  


Wall Street Journal (4/26/21) column: "The Biden Administration is no fan of fossil fuels. But even it disagrees with New Jersey’s slick argument in a case the Supreme Court will hear Wednesday that the Constitution gives states a veto over interstate gas pipelines that trumps federal regulatory and judicial review. At issue in PennEast Pipeline Co. v. New Jersey is a 116-mile pipeline between Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the pipeline after a two-year review that involved more than 200 meetings with public officials. Some 70 variations were made to the route during the review. New Jersey sought to block the pipeline by invoking its sovereign immunity under the Eleventh Amendment to block the condemnation of 42 state parcels of land needed to build the pipeline. Once FERC certifies a pipeline, the Natural Gas Act delegates the federal government’s eminent domain power to the pipeline company. Other federal laws delegate federal eminent domain power to private parties to build railroads and transmission lines, though many explicitly carve out state property. The Natural Gas Act has no such carve-out."

If you want to go without natural gas, go for it. Just don't come crying to me when you freeze your a#$ off. 


CPR News (4/26/21) reports: "Without a well-timed bit of eavesdropping, Hannah Blake and Gabi Abello may have never built a home in Fraser, Colo., a mountain town just a few miles from the Winter Park Ski Area...The plan also put the students at the center of a debate about the future of housing. As global warming heats up, many environmental advocates have pushed builders to abandon natural gas hookups in new construction. The idea is electric alternatives will help decrease greenhouse gas emissions over time. As more renewables are added to the grid, electric stoves, furnaces and water heaters only become more climate-friendly. That’s why many cities, including Denver and Boulder, have pursued new building codes that favor electrical appliances in new construction. Some California communities have gone one step further by even banning natural gas hookups in new construction. The strategy gets trickier in frigid mountain towns. Fraser, elevation 8,575 feet, has long competed for the title of “icebox of the nation” due to its cold temperatures. Winter temperatures often dip below negative 20 degrees Fahrenheit, so residents need lots of energy to keep warm. Since natural gas is far cheaper than electricity per unit of energy, it’s a tempting option for home heat, especially since building costs are far higher in mountain towns. Blake said her team’s design attempts to show all those conditions don’t rule out all-electric homes."

It's almost like political mandates and affordable prices are mutually exclusive.


Utility Dive (4/26/21) reports: "California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) President Marybel Batjer says the state will not let skyrocketing electricity rates threaten reliability or the state's policy goals. But affordability is a growing concern as California works toward a 'future grid' and a dynamic new power system to meet the climate crisis and related extreme weather events, stakeholders and CPUC Staff maintain. Rates rising far faster than inflation are straining the budgets of vulnerable customers and new approaches that protect policy goals and customer bills are urgently needed, they agree. Protecting ratepayers as California transitions to distributed energy resources (DER) and economy-wide electrification 'will require aggressive actions,' according to a report released by CPUC Staff in February. At a day-long CPUC hearing, California utilities proposed cutting wildfire costs and raising revenues outside rates. Stakeholders proposed shifting the costs of supporting DER and electric vehicles (EV) out of rates to other sources of revenues. Others proposed breakthrough rate designs that could make managing costs more equitable."

Energy Markets

 
WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $62.49
Natural Gas: ↑ $2.84
Gasoline: ~ $2.88
Diesel: ↓ $3.07
Heating Oil: ↑ $190.25
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $66.14
US Rig Count: ↓ 526

 
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