Jennifer Granholm's Senate testimony today produced many revelations, including the possibility that the Energy Department may give its first loan to a mine, Jael and Nick write.

Why it matters: The Biden administration is sensitive to criticism from the mining industry and its allies in Congress — and that could translate to direct investments in mines.

Granholm also offered newsy nuggets on LNG, geothermal and energy financing to the ENR panel:

1. All gas no breaks: Granholm expects the department's study on LNG export permits to be completed "around the end of the year" — putting an election-year clock on the pause.

• She insisted that the move is "a scientific pause" and not a political decision.
• Granholm told Bill Cassidy that it will account for countries pivoting to coal from natural gas as a result of any halt in U.S. LNG export growth.

2. Mining moment: Granholm told Lisa Murkowski that "there may be a mine that's coming through the system" in the Loan Programs Office, without describing specifics.

• When the Alaskan claimed that the infrastructure law made it "very, very clear" that DOE could lend to actual mining, as opposed to processing and recycling, Granholm offered an olive branch.
• "I would like to sit with you and [LPO director] Jigar Shah in your office to talk about this," she said.

3. Penny for thoughts: Speaking of LPO, Granholm said it has sent loans and given conditional commitments to 18 decarbonization projects, while 205 are "in the pipeline."

• When Ranking Member John Barrasso pressed for more transparency on DOE financing and lending, Granholm said these figures showed the department is doing "a terrific job of being open for business" while using "internal controls."

4. Hot for geothermal: Granholm called for Congress to pass new legislation to help offset the big upfront cost of geothermal projects.

• "We're encouraging geothermal companies to go to the Loan Programs Office, but some of it could be addressed through additional upfront capital help, support from Congress," she said.
• The Hill conversation about geothermal has to date focused on permitting, with House Republicans working on a slate of anti-red tape geothermal bills in the Natural Resources Committee today.

5. Hawley's heat: Josh Hawley called on Granholm to resign in light of her revelation last year that she "mistakenly" told Congress she did not own individual stocks.

• "It is outrageous that you are continuing to mislead us … and frankly, you should go," Hawley said.
• Granholm denied any impropriety and said her personal finances are all "publicly available."

The LNG export permits pause is a big question mark for the House GOP's foreign aid proposal, Nick writes.

Why it matters: The latest chaos gripping the GOP conference might mean it loses an opportunity to roll back the pause, or make a political point.

A quick rundown of where we are:

• Speaker Mike Johnson floated tying language on the LNG pause to a Ukraine supplemental package weeks ago.
• As Republicans came out of conference meetings last night and this morning, they told us that it was still under discussion but wasn't explicitly mentioned as part of Johnson's latest foreign aid gambit.
• Now, at least two Republicans are threatening Johnson's speakership, and there's uncertainty about whether they'll be able to pass a rule to get the proposal to the floor.

Zoom in: Rep. Buddy Carter told Nick he expects that at the very least, a Republican would offer an amendment on the LNG pause if the bills make it to the floor.

Our thought bubble: Much depends on how this potential provision is written.

• Just nine Democrats supported the GOP's stand-alone bill to rescind DOE's export approval power, and this issue would be a poison pill for many progressives.
• "This is a rare opportunity for us to exercise leverage," Rep. Garret Graves told reporters. "This is the second time where we're going to be squandering the opportunity to get some of our wins."

A new notice for comment on the hydrogen tax credit could be an industry lifeline, Jael writes.

Why it matters: Hydrogen producers may be able to use the IRA more easily if they generate power on-site instead of relying on regional co-located energy sources.

Driving the news: The Treasury Department last week put out a request for comment on the 45V application process for hydrogen producers generating energy on-site.

• This is a different process from the one that's become divisive in hydrogen land because of its constraints around "additionality" and time-matching.
• Instead, this proposal seeks more info on "provisional emissions rates" companies can obtain to qualify for 45V if they're generating their own power for hydrogen production.

Between the lines: This separate pathway to 45V is "actually pretty clean and straightforward" compared with the other method, said Scott Stogsdill, an expert on renewable energy incentives at Ryan, the global tax law firm.

• "If I were building a plant, I would be looking at a way to take advantage of this and stay away from three pillars as far as I could," he told Jael. "It's going to be so much easier in the long term to generate electricity on-site."

✈️ 1. We have liftoff: DOE is out with a new "liftoff" report on transmission that explains how to increase existing grid capacity to support up to 20-100 GW peak demand growth.

💧 2. Dems' water bill: Natural Resources Dems have a new bill to renew an Interior Department program boosting Western water recycling projects.

⛏️ 3. Cleanup time: The Senate yesterday passed Mark Kelly's Legacy Mine Cleanup Act by voice vote. It's bipartisan, but there's no House companion yet.