The nonprofit group Carbon180, which advocates for deployment of emerging carbon removal technologies and methods, has brought on The Coefficient Group to lobby, a new filing shows.
Why it matters: Technologies like direct air capture and bioenergy with carbon capture are getting increased attention from policymakers, and the filing signals that the group sees an opening.
Two new court actions — one by the Supreme Court and another by a federal judge — together highlight and raise the energy stakes of November's election.
Why it matters: The legal actions mean the results of the 2020 election could very well decide the fate of Keystone XL and Dakota Access, two projects at the heart of battles over fossil fuel infrastructure.
Crude oil is languishing in the "friend zone," and that's not enough for substantial swaths of the ailing sector.
The state of play: U.S. prices have hung out in the roughly $40-per-barrel range (and sometimes lower) for the last month after sharply recovering from the depths of April's price and demand collapse.
Sunrun, the largest U.S. home solar provider, is buying rival Vivint Solar in a $3.2 billion all-stock transaction, the companies announced Monday.
Why it matters: The deal between major players brings new consolidation to the U.S. solar sector, a growing market that has been hindered by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Supreme Court 0n Monday rejected a request by the Trump administration to allow TC Energy to build parts of the Keystone XL pipeline in Montana while the appeals process moves forward on a federal court order that blocked construction, the New York Times reports.
Yes, but: The court's decision on Monday also "temporarily revived a permit program that would let other oil and gas pipelines cross waterways after only modest scrutiny from regulators," per the Times.
A federal judge ordered Monday the shutdown of the Dakota Access Pipeline — a project at the heart of battles over oil-and-gas infrastructure — while the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conducts a new environmental analysis.
Why it matters: The latest twist in the years-long fight over the pipeline is a defeat for the White House agenda of advancing fossil fuel projects and a win for Native Americans and environmentalists who oppose the project
Duke Energy and Dominion Energy threw in the towel Sunday on the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a proposed 600-mile natural gas line from West Virginia to North Carolina.
Why it matters: It ends one of the highest profile battles over fossil fuel infrastructure in recent years, and its demise is a win for the environmental groups that spent years fighting it.
In early January, I laid out 10 energy and climate change issues to watch this year. Spoiler alert: A pandemic was not on that list.
The big picture: The coronavirus has left no part of our world untouched, energy and climate change included. Let’s check in on my 2020 predictions at the halfway mark of this tumultuous year.
