1. A clear bipartisan path for climate change
Climate change is not partisan, and the challenge it poses to society merits significant action at every level of government and the private sector.
- Climate solutions shouldn’t be partisan either.
What’s clear: If we are to truly tackle the global climate challenge, we will need some common ground and a dose of technological, economic, and political realism.
Plug in: Rich Powell explains why bipartisan solutions to climate change make the most sense.
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2. Unlocking a new wave of CCS projects
Tucked away in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was a small but mighty provision that has the potential to unlock a whole new wave of carbon storage projects: offshore carbon capture.
- The offshore environment has largely been untapped as a resource for the permanent storage of CO2, despite the vast storage potential.
What’s clear: Offshore carbon storage offers an attractive complement to onshore storage for a variety of reasons:
- It avoids heavily populated onshore areas.
- There is reduced risk to underground sources of drinking water.
Plug in: ClearPath program manager Jena Lococo dives into the momentum building to sequester CO2 in the offshore environment.
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3. Barrasso, Manchin introduce advanced nuclear bill
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Ranking Member John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced legislation last month that would help fund the siting and construction of advanced nuclear reactors.
Plug in: The Fission for the Future Act would create a program for DOE to fund eligible entities to support their deployment of advanced nuclear power.
- Priority would be given to applications that consider work at or near a retired/retiring power plant.
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4. Clean hydrogen company could expand with DOE loan
DOE’s Loan Program Office (LPO) has offered a conditional commitment to guarantee a loan of approximately $1 billion to Monolith Nebraska, LLC to expand its facility in Hallam, Nebraska.
- The expansion is expected to create more than 1,000 Nebraska jobs.
This project is the first-ever commercial-scale project to deploy methane pyrolysis technology, which converts natural gas into carbon black and hydrogen — two products that are often used in difficult to decarbonize industrial sectors. Hydrogen produced from the facility will be used to make fertilizer that supports America’s agricultural sector.
What’s clear: This conditional commitment demonstrates how DOE’s LPO can accelerate the deployment of clean energy technologies.
- The Monolith project can potentially catalyze a new and cleaner way of producing materials that are in products we use daily, including plastics, fertilizers, and tires.
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