C16 Biosciences, a company seeking to commercialize a manufactured alternative to palm oil, announced yesterday that it has raised $20 million in Series A funding from backers including the Bill Gates-led Breakthrough Energy Ventures.
Why it matters: Palm oil is used in a massive array of products — from shampoo to foods to biofuels.
Volkswagen shared Tuesday more information and images of a small electric SUV that the automaker announced will be called the ID.4.
Why it matters, via Car and Driver: "The electric crossover will be the first vehicle on VW's MEB electric platform to make its way to the United States and will initially launch in Europe later in 2020."
Several important oil- and gas-producing states vote today, none bigger than Texas, which produces vastly more crude than any other state — and nearly all countries for that matter.
The big picture: It also includes states like Colorado and Utah, which — unlike Texas — have lots of activity on federal lands that would be most affected by more restrictive policies.
Super Tuesday means it's the first primaries in the oil patch, so it's a good time to compare Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, who are battling for frontrunner status in the Democratic primary.
Why it matters: They have important differences on energy and climate policy, although both would restrict development and take a more adversarial posture toward fossil fuel industries than President Trump.
The Senate's debate over energy legislation this week is slated to bring fresh collisions over climate change overall and electric vehicles policy specifically.
Catch up fast: The Senate will consider a grab bag of measures introduced as a catch-all package by Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski and West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, who head the Senate's energy panel.
OPEC and Russia are slated to meet in Vienna this week to decide whether to extend and deepen their production-cutting agreement as the novel coronavirus eats into global oil demand.
Why it matters: The economic slowdown from the spread of the virus has pushed oil prices down to their lowest levels in over a year — creating new tests for the 3-year-old OPEC+ alliance between the cartel, Russia and allied producers.
Don’t hold your breath for big climate policy changes— even if a Democrat wins the White House.
Why it matters: Congress is likely to remain gridlocked on the matter, leading to either more of the same with President Trump’s re-election or a regulatory swing back to the left no matter which Democrat wins — but far short of a legislative overhaul.
