Posts Tagged ‘politics’
Matthew Stepp: Clean tech headed for stagnation
>> The Energy Collective
In the short-term, the very government support that is buoying uncompetitive clean tech deployment is set to decline drastically. But even if much of this funding continues, the nascent clean tech industry is on a potential path of stagnation.
When oil and gas industries talk, Obama team listens more closely
>> EnergyWire
The Obama administration is listening more attentively to the oil and gas industry in the past few months, the top White House official on energy said yesterday, after neglecting the relationship early in the president’s term.
David Roberts: Clean energy as culture war
>> Grist
Remember, unlike wonks, average folk don’t think in terms of discrete political “issues.” They think in terms of broad cultural associations and identities.
Ex-EPA official, of ‘crucify’ fame, to testify before Congress
>> The Hill
The hearing will provide a high-profile forum for GOP criticism of an agency that’s already in the crosshairs of Republicans, who called the remarks a sign that EPA unfairly targets companies.
Energy sector donations fuel Obama, Romney campaigns
>> Politico
Energy industry bigwigs have spent the past three-plus years talking trash about President Barack Obama’s policies, but that’s not stopping their executives and employees from filling his campaign war chest.
Study finds Americans willing to pay more for renewable energy
>> New York Times
The perception that the American public is adamantly opposed to higher energy costs is at the root of most political opposition to renewable energy. But a new study of public opinion finds that people are in fact willing to pay to move to cleaner energy.
Minnesota glassmaker says DOE loan delay didn’t prompt sale
>> Minneapolis Star Tribune
The founder of high-tech window factory in Minnesota is denying a suggestion that two years of government foot-dragging over a promised loan guarantee triggered the company’s sale to a French firm.
Obama’s nod to ‘clean coal,’ and a tale of three plants
Today, following pressure from Republicans upset by the omission of coal from President Obama’s “all of the above” energy plan, the Obama campaign has added a section for “clean coal” to its website, The Hill reports.
But in the Midwest, as elsewhere, low-emissions coal projects are having trouble getting off the ground, in large part because of plunging natural gas prices.
In Illinois, Tenaska has been working for five years to gain legislative approval for a power plant that would convert coal to synthetic natural gas and use it to generate electricity. The developer is now offering to build only the natural gas portion of the plant, adding the coal gasification facilities later when market conditions warrant. Jeffrey Tomich of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has an overview.
The situation is remarkably similar to that of the Mesaba Energy Project in Minnesota, which Midwest Energy News reporter Dan Haugen profiled last year. Mesaba, which has been in development for 10 years and has received $41 million in public money, recently won approval from the state legislature to proceed with a natural gas plant while keeping state funding intended for advanced energy projects.
And yesterday, reporter Kari Lydersen wrote about a proposed coal gasification plant in Indiana that would sell the synthetic gas to consumers via a state agency rather than use it to generate electricity. Under a current proposal, the plant would sell gas at a rate more than double the current market price for natural gas, drawing opposition from environmentalists, consumer advocates and free-market conservatives.
As Lydersen reported last month, natural gas prices (along with pollution rules and other factors) are raising serious questions about the economic viability of existing conventional coal plants, meaning far more expensive “clean coal” projects may be impossible without considerable public subsidies.
And since that dependence on public support is a frequent point of criticism about renewable power, it will be interesting to see where the president’s endorsement of coal will take the subsidy debate.
David Roberts: James Inhofe’s latest plan to cripple the EPA
>> Grist
Sen. James Inhofe, champion of climate denial in the world’s most dysfunctional legislative body, has a lot of terrible ideas. But this one may be the worst ever: He wants to require Senate confirmation for all of EPA’s 10 regional administrators.
Air rule to be scrapped as Obama seeks to eliminate ‘burdens’
>> Greenwire
In what the White House calls a milestone in its effort to cut red tape, the Obama administration today said it was overhauling or eliminating five regulations – including a Clinton-era air-pollution rule – in an effort to save $6 billion in unnecessary costs over the next five years.
