EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 9/6/23

PIPELINE NEWS

• WSLS: Mountain Valley Pipeline protestors charged after using ‘sleeping dragon’ to attach themselves to equipment

• KELO: Navigator pipeline decisions are set for Wednesday

• WDAY: North Dakota Public Service Commission chairman: more public input will be sought for Summit Carbon’s CO2 pipeline project

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit identified ‘handful’ of populated areas at risk from major pipeline breach

• AgWeek: Summit Carbon Solutions leaves open transporting CO2 for oil wells

• Radio Iowa: Summit COO testifies at Iowa Utilities Board hearing on pipeline permit

• The Center Square: Summit on the hot seat as hearing on proposed CO2 pipeline continues

• WHBF: Port Byron residents worried about proposed pipeline

• Law360: DC Circ. Questions FERC Gulf Export Pipeline Approval

• CBC: Enbridge to purchase three U.S. utilities for $14 billion in cash and debt

• FedScoop: Pipeline safety agency’s proposed pilot for ChatGPT in rulemaking raises questions

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• Houston Chronicle: Gas Industry, Biden Square Off Over Methane Leaks

• E&E News: Offshore Oil Lease Crackdown Won’t Hinder Production – Study 

• Native News Online: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland To Travel To Canada To Discuss Strengthening Indigenous Communities 

STATE UPDATES

• Associated Press: Company Gets $2.6 Million To Relinquish Oil Lease On Montana Land That’s Sacred To Native Americans 

• Alaska Beacon: ConocoPhillips says court case is likely do-or-die for Willow Arctic oil project

• FactSet: Nutrien Pauses Blue Ammonia Plant in Louisiana 

• Texas Monthly: Hundreds of Abandoned Oil Wells Are Rotting Away in Texas Bays

EXTRACTION

• Reuters: EU to seek COP28 deal on phasing out fossil fuels, draft document says

• NPR: Oil company plans to have machines suck carbon from the sky — as it still makes oil

• Agence France Presse: UAE Oil Giant Announces New Carbon Capture Project

• Global Insight Services: Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Market is Projected to Grow Further to over USD 8 Billion by 2032

• GCaptain: Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage Market Faces Shipping Hurdle

• Carbon Pulse: EU’s carbon capture, utilisation, and storage strategy’s release could be delayed -source

• Proactive: US energy companies are likely short-term winners from carbon capture and storage, broker says

• InsideClimate News: Scientists Find Success With New Direct Ocean Carbon Capture Technology

CLIMATE FINANCE

• Reuters: Pickering Energy Partners launches oil and gas investment banking unit

OPINION

• Common Dreams: Will the Mountain Valley Pipeline Safety Order Have Teeth, and Does Biden Care?

• The Hill: Carbon capture is bad climate policy

• Calgary Herald: Defining the decade and beyond for Canada’s oilsands

• Wall Street Journal: The Climate-Change ‘Emergency’ Is Coming for You

• The Hill: Americans are paying the price for our oil addiction — in more ways than one
  

PIPELINE NEWS

WSLS: Mountain Valley Pipeline protestors charged after using ‘sleeping dragon’ to attach themselves to equipment
9/5/23

“Virginia State Police has placed charges on protestors who halted work at the Mountain Valley Pipeline worksite in Montgomery County Tuesday morning,” WSLS reports. “Witnesses told police that around 6 a.m., a vehicle driving in the 3800 block of Bradshaw Road stopped, and two people – 68-year-old Carol Gibbons and 19-year-old Eliza Lox of New Jersey – jumped out. Police said the pair attached themselves to construction vehicles parked about 10 to 15 yards from the roadway using devices known as “sleeping dragons.” “…We’re told there were around 20 other activists who were gathered nearby at the time… “Both Lox and Gibbons are charged with trespassing, obstructing free passage of another, and obstruction of justice, VSP said. Gibbons is also facing an interfering with property rights charge, while Lox faces a conspire to trespass charge. Other people at the scene were also cited for any of the following, according to police: improper stopping on a highway, trespassing, failure to be in possession of a driver’s license, and improper parking.”

KELO: Navigator pipeline decisions are set for Wednesday
Bob Mercer, 9/5/23

“The state Public Utilities Commission faces three big choices on Wednesday about the future of carbon dioxide pipelines in South Dakota,” KELO reports. “The first is whether to grant Navigator a permit to have a branch of its proposed pipeline go through five counties — Lincoln, Turner, Minnehaha, Moody and Brookings — and collect CO2 from ethanol production facilities at Aurora, Chancellor and Hudson. The second is whether the state commission should override pipeline ordinances in Minnehaha and Moody counties. Those counties’ commissions adopted the ordinances this year, after Navigator had proposed its route. Navigator wants the ordinances overruled. The third is what additional conditions, if any, Navigator should face if a permit is granted. What the state commission decides in the Navigator matter, especially regarding pre-emption of county ordinances, could indicate a direction regarding a second company’s application for a CO2 pipeline permit. The hearing on SCS Carbon Transport starts September 11… “Landowner intervenors’ Brian Jorde on why the permit should be denied: “Perhaps there will be a time and a place for hazardous CO2 pipeline made possible by 45Q tax credits and owned by Middle Eastern interests to be located through Brookings, Turner, Moody, Lincoln, and Minnehaha counties, but that time is not now, and the place is not the route Navigator requests. There are simply too many unanswered questions and too many unsatisfactorily answered questions… Ordinances by their nature are restrictive. They establish what can and cannot be located in certain areas. Both Minnehaha and Moody Counties produced reasonable ordinances after thoughtful debate and each have multiple paths for Navigator to get to yes. Navigator has failed to prove how these ordinances are unreasonably restrictive.”

WDAY: North Dakota Public Service Commission chairman: more public input will be sought for Summit Carbon’s CO2 pipeline project
Tom Tucker, 9/5/23

“The North Dakota Public Service Commission continues to review a re-submitted permit application from a new CO2 Pipeline Project,” WDAY reports. “This isn’t about whether we think a project is a good idea or a bad idea. That’s why I talked about the laws specific for various types of projects. We just hold hearings and determine whether they the standards of the law,” Public Service Commission Chairman Randy Christmann told WDAY, while talking about the commission’s review of the permit application submitted by Summit Carbon Solutions… “Christmann did not say when the commission might reach a decision on the application, but told WDAY additional public input will be requested.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: Summit identified ‘handful’ of populated areas at risk from major pipeline breach
JARED STRONG, 9/5/23

“There are several areas of “high consequence” in Iowa that could be inundated by carbon dioxide if Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed pipeline has a major failure, according to James Powell, the company’s chief operating officer,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “…Many of the landowners subject to eminent domain who testified in the first two weeks of the hearing are concerned about the safety of the pipeline and what would happen if it abruptly released a large amount of carbon dioxide. Under certain conditions, such releases can create a plume of the gas that has the potential to travel long distances and suffocate people and animals… “Powell testified that Summit’s so-called dispersion modeling is much more robust and said the company’s plans and precautions would make its pipeline system “one of the safest ever constructed.” “…The company has declined to publicly disclose it, claiming that someone who wishes to sabotage the pipeline could use the information to inflict the most casualties… “On Tuesday, the board granted a request from the Sierra Club of Iowa, the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation and several counties to force Summit to provide the information to attorneys of those groups… “There are a “handful” of locations along Summit’s proposed route where a pipeline break could be especially detrimental to people, Powell said. A Summit spokesperson declined to provide a specific number of those locations but said they are mostly populated areas near ethanol plants. Powell said two of the locations are not near ethanol plants… “Powell did not specify where the areas are located, but a review of the ethanol producers the company plans to connect to shows that six of them lie within a mile of a city. Five facilities are located near the Iowa cities of  Goldfield, Mason City, Merrill, Shenandoah and Superior. The sixth is near Lyle, Minnesota… “The board had initially expected to have four Summit witnesses testify on Tuesday, but the questioning of Powell took more than six hours. About half of that questioning came from Brian Jorde, who is representing more than 100 landowners who oppose the project in multiple states. Jorde is seeking a delay in the proceedings while the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission conducts its evidentiary hearing, which starts next week. He represents landowners in that state. “To knowingly prevent Jorde Landowners’ lead counsel, who has solely prepared for all remaining witnesses including all Jorde Landowner witnesses, from participating in proceedings held between September 11 and 29 would cause Jorde Landowners extreme hardship and prejudice,” Jorde wrote.

AgWeek: Summit Carbon Solutions leaves open transporting CO2 for oil wells
Jeff Beach, 9/5/23

“The top operations official for the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline left open the possibility that liquid carbon dioxide transported to North Dakota could be used by the oil industry,” AgWeek reports. “Jimmy Powell, Summit’s chief operations officer, said because the Summit pipeline intends to operate as a common carrier, the product could be used for enhanced oil recovery to help wells in North Dakota produce more oil. “If another carrier decided to use, or ask us to transport CO2 for another purpose, like enhanced oil recovery, then that’s a possibility,” Powell said in testimony in front of the Iowa Utilities Board on Tuesday, Sept. 5… “Powell made his statement under questioning from attorney Brian Jorde, who represents landowners who object to allowing the pipeline through their property… “Jorde noted a news story that followed the North Dakota Public Service Commission’s rejection of the Summit permit application on Aug. 4, in which Lynn Helms, director of North Dakota’s Department of Mineral Resources, said the state needs carbon dioxide for enhanced oil recovery “or we will leave billions of barrels of oil in the ground.” “…Jorde also noted that the county commission in North Dakota’s Oliver County, one of the sequestration areas, denied Summit permit request for two injection wells… “Powell said the pipeline would not be built in Iowa without a route permit in North Dakota… “Powell said Summit has obtained about 73% of the easements it needs through voluntary agreements. “So we fully expect that we can reach agreement with the remaining landowners that will be affected,” Powell said. Jorde asked Powell “you would agree that there’s no such thing as a voluntary easement when the threat of eminent domain is hanging over landowners head, correct?”… “Jorde also referenced emails between Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, who appoints the members of the IUB, and Bruce Rastetter, the CEO of Summit Agricultural Group, who has been a donor to Republican candidates… “Jorde asked Powell if that information cast a “certain cloud over these proceedings related to the relationship of Mr. Rastetter with the Reynolds administration.” “Regardless of what’s said in the media or what others may say, I’ve seen no evidence that we’re receiving special treatment from the Iowa Utilities Board,” Powell said.

Radio Iowa: Summit COO testifies at Iowa Utilities Board hearing on pipeline permit
O. Kay Henderson, 9/5/23

“The Iowa Utilities Board hearing for the proposed Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline has entered its third week,” Radio Iowa reports. “Summit’s chief operating officer was first to take the witness stand today. James Powell is in charge of design, construction and operation of the pipeline. He said Summit’s project is about ensuring ethanol plants that connect to the pipeline make a profit… “Brian Jorde, a lawyer for pipeline opponents, suggested the Utilities Board is being asked to pick pipeline investors as winners and property owners who don’t want the pipeline on their land will be the losers. Powell responded. “We’ve reached agreement with 73% of the landowners in this state, so we fully expect that we can reach agreement with the remaining landowners that’ll e affected,” Powell said. Jorde said: “There’s no such thing as when the threat of eminent domain is hanging over landowners head.” “…Summit Carbon Solutions is seeking eminent domain authority so unwilling landowners would be forced to grant the company permanent access to more than 900 parcels, or sections of property. Landowners opposed to the project testified during the first two weeks of the Utilities Board hearing, which is being held in Fort Dodge.”

The Center Square: Summit on the hot seat as hearing on proposed CO2 pipeline continues
Kim Jarrett, 9/5/23

“Lawyers grilled officials from Summit Carbon Solutions on Tuesday as the third week of an Iowa Utilities Board hearing on a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline began,” The Center Square reports. “…In Iowa, hundreds of residents said they were concerned about the pipeline in written and public testimony… “Wallace Taylor, an attorney for the Sierra Club, questioned Summit CEO Jimmy Powell about possible risks. “There are 230,000 miles of hazardous liquid pipelines in this country,” Powell said. “There are 47,000 miles of pipeline in this state. Many of those run right through cities, major cities. They can co-exist. It comes down to how you manage risks.” The hearings continue through Friday. The utilities board did not say when it would make a decision but that it would be in a “timely manner.”

WHBF: Port Byron residents worried about proposed pipeline
Brian Weckerly, 9/5/23

“Port Byron residents raised concerns about a proposed carbon capture pipeline to the Village Board,” WHBF reports. “The pipeline would go through parts of Scott and Clinton Counties in Iowa and parts of Rock Island and Henry Counties in Illinois, carrying highly-pressurized carbon dioxide from Iowa to be deposited a mile below ground in central Illinois. Village officials have taken no action regarding the pipeline, but board members indicated they could consider a resolution to address the matter in the future.”

Law360: DC Circ. Questions FERC Gulf Export Pipeline Approval
Peter McGuire, 9/5/23

“D.C. Circuit judges pressed federal energy regulators Tuesday as to why they didn’t determine the significance of greenhouse gas emissions in a pipeline upgrade to service a Gulf of Mexico export terminal, and suggested project approval could be suspended until regulators decided a way to assess climate impacts,” Law360 reports. 

CBC: Enbridge to purchase three U.S. utilities for $14 billion in cash and debt
9/5/23

“Enbridge Inc. has signed a $14 billion US cash-and-debt deal that represents a major vote of confidence by the Canadian company in the future of natural gas,” CBC reports. “The Calgary-based energy infrastructure giant said Tuesday it will purchase three U.S.-based utility companies — the East Ohio Gas Company, Questar Gas Company and its related Wexpro companies, and the Public Service Company of North Carolina — all of which are owned by Virginia-based Dominion Energy Inc. Enbridge, which plans to finance the deal through a combination of $9.4 billion US cash and $4.6 billion US of assumed debt, said the deal will double the scale of its gas utility business and will serve to balance its asset mix evenly between natural gas and renewables, and liquids. In a presentation for investors Tuesday afternoon, Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel said the company’s earnings mix is currently about 60 per cent weighted toward crude oil and liquids, and 40 per cent weighted toward natural gas and renewable energy. (Enbridge is currently the only major pipeline company in North America that owns a regulated utility. Enbridge Gas Inc. currently serves about 75 per cent of Ontario residents.) Following the Dominion deal, which remains subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in 2024, that balance will be closer to 50-50, Ebel said. The deal will give Enbridge gas utility operations in Ohio, North Carolina, Utah, Idaho and Wyoming, representing a significant presence in the U.S. utility sector.”

FedScoop: Pipeline safety agency’s proposed pilot for ChatGPT in rulemaking raises questions
REBECCA HEILWEIL, 9/5/23

“The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is exploring using ChatGPT in the rulemaking process, according to a disclosure by its parent agency, the Department of Transportation,” FedScoop reports. “According to a posting on the agency’s public AI inventory, PHMSA is weighing an “artificial intelligence support for rulemaking use case.” The project, according to the posting, involves using ChatGPT to support the rulemaking “processes to provide significant efficiencies, reduction of effort, or the ability to scale efforts for unusual levels of public scrutiny or interest.” The agency told FedScoop that, right now, it has no official plans to implement such technology… “Still, PHMSA’s concept for a technology pilot that would use ChatGPT to analyze comments submitted to the agency about regulations it’s considering raises concerns about what role, if any, the technology should play in the regulatory process, according to an expert on AI and civil liberties. “The idea that agencies will use a tool notorious for factual inaccuracies for development of rules that forbid arbitrary and capricious rule-making processes is concerning,” Ben Winters, an attorney and the leader of the AI and Human Rights project at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, said in an email to FedScoop. “Especially, the PHMSA, whose rules often concern potentially life-altering exposure to hazardous materials.” The Transportation Department’s AI inventory states that the OpenAI chatbot would be used to conduct sentiment analysis on comments sent to the agency about proposed rules. The tool could be used for analyzing the “relevance” of the comments, providing a “synopsis” for comments, “cataloging of comments,” and identifying duplicates.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

Houston Chronicle: Gas Industry, Biden Square Off Over Methane Leaks
James Osborne, 9/4/23

“Millions of tons of methane leaks into the atmosphere every year from the vast network of pipelines and equipment that move natural gas from oil and gas fields to American homes, commercial buildings and industrial and power plants,” the Houston Chronicle reports. “After decades of writing off those leaks as the cost of doing business, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, under President Joe Biden, is now moving to rein in those fugitive molecules of methane, the primary component of natural gas, setting up another fight with the oil and gas industry centered in Houston. Under a proposed rule expected to be put into place next year, oil and gas companies would have to conduct monthly surveys of their systems with advanced leak detection equipment and quickly repair any problems they find, with the target of reducing pipeline emissions by more than 50%.”

E&E News: Offshore Oil Lease Crackdown Won’t Hinder Production – Study 
Heather Richards, 9/5/23

“Ending oil sales off the nation’s coasts likely wouldn’t change national production levels substantially for decades because drillers from other parts of the U.S. — and imports — would fill the supply gap, according to a new study commissioned by the Natural Resources Defense Council,” E&E News reports. “Instead, the analysis, which was shared first with E&E News, finds that clean vehicle policies from the Inflation Reduction Act and EPA would be the more prominent drivers in determining how much U.S. oil is produced between now and 2050. “We’re going to see demand going down, production staying robust,” Rebecca Loomis, an attorney for NRDC, told E&E. “The [offshore] oil and gas is not needed.” The NRDC research being released Tuesday offers a counterpoint to analyses from the oil and gas sector, and often championed by Republicans, that continued leasing in the Gulf of Mexico is critical to meeting domestic energy demands in the coming decades. The dueling arguments underscore the significance of a long-delayed five-year offshore oil and gas program that the Biden administration is expected to release later this month.

Native News Online: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland To Travel To Canada To Discuss Strengthening Indigenous Communities 
9/2/23

“On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) will travel to Ottawa, the capital of Canada, to engage in discussions with Canadian leadership focusing on the mutual commitment of our two nations to empower Indigenous communities,” Native News Online reports. “Traveling with Secretary Haaland will be Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs Carmen G. Cantor and Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland (Bay Mills Indian Community. The Interior Department officials will be hosted by the U.S. Ambassador to Canada David L. Cohen. Secretary Haaland will also represent the U.S. government during the fifth meeting of the Trilateral Working Group (TWG) on Violence Against Indigenous Women and Girls. This collaborative effort, initiated by leaders from the United States, Canada, and Mexico, aims to address the troubling rates of violence experienced by women and girls from Indigenous communities as a pressing regional concern.”

STATE UPDATES

Associated Press: Company Gets $2.6 Million To Relinquish Oil Lease On Montana Land That’s Sacred To Native Americans 
Matthew Brown, 9/1/23

“A Louisiana company will receive $2.6 million to relinquish the last remaining oil and gas lease on U.S. forest land near Montana’s Glacier National Park that’s sacred to Native Americans, government officials and attorneys involved in the deal said Friday,” the Associated Press reports. “The deal would resolve a decades-long dispute over the 10-square-mile (25-square-kilometer) oil and gas lease in the mountainous Badger-Two Medicine area of northwestern Montana. The lease was issued in 1982 but has not been developed. It’s on the site of the creation story for the Blackfoot tribes of southern Canada and Montana’s Blackfeet Nation. Tribal members bitterly opposed drilling. In exchange for giving up the lease, Solenex LLC will receive $2.6 million, said David McDonald with the Mountain States Legal Foundation, which represented the company. The government will pay $2 million and the Wyss Foundation, a charitable group founded by Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, will provide the remaining $625,000, according to McDonald and Wyss spokesperson Marnee Banks. The Solenex lease had been cancelled in 2016 under then-U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell at the request of the Blackfoot tribes and conservation groups.”

Alaska Beacon: ConocoPhillips says court case is likely do-or-die for Willow Arctic oil project
JAMES BROOKS, 9/1/23

“In documents filed Tuesday in Anchorage, international oil company ConocoPhillips said an ongoing federal court case is likely to make or break Alaska’s largest planned oil development in decades,” the Alaska Beacon reports. “If Alaska District Court Judge Sharon Gleason cancels required federal approvals, “the Willow project is highly unlikely to proceed at all,” said Connor Dunn, vice president of Willow for ConocoPhillips. Dunn’s statement came as ConocoPhillips filed a legal reply to several environmental groups who sued the federal government earlier this year and asked Gleason to overturn existing federal approvals as inadequate. The plaintiffs include the Alaska Wilderness League, Sierra Club and Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic. A similar lawsuit, filed in 2020, overturned a previous federal approval and forced regulators to restart their process, and new approval was granted this spring. The federal government is opposing the environmental groups’ lawsuit and is backed by ConocoPhillips, the state of Alaska, the North Slope Borough, and a variety of companies and industry groups who hope to see the project developed… “The environmental groups are scheduled to reply to ConocoPhillips and other defendants by mid-September, allowing Gleason to decide the case before the start of the winter construction season. If the case isn’t resolved by then and ConocoPhillips can’t work this winter, there is a risk that the company could fail to meet the requirements of its land lease with the federal government.”

FactSet: Nutrien Pauses Blue Ammonia Plant in Louisiana 
Nick Jones, 9/5/23

“In recent years, ammonia producers have proposed dozens of new CCUS projects, with many concentrated along the U.S. Gulf Coast,” FactSet reports. “Some of these operators aim to earn a premium for “blue ammonia” products, which have a lower carbon intensity than traditional ammonia produced without CCUS. However, one prominent project was placed on hold in August due to rising CapEx estimates and uncertainty around the business case for blue ammonia. This CCUS Update highlights similar projects in development and how they may be risked by the same factors.”

Texas Monthly: Hundreds of Abandoned Oil Wells Are Rotting Away in Texas Bays
Russell Gold, 9/5/23

“Under overcast skies, a four-seat propeller plane took off from an airstrip south of Houston for a routine patrol of the area’s waterways,” the Texas Monthly reports. “…There they spotted a rainbow sheen—about thirty feet wide and a couple of hundred feet long—stretching across the murky water, a telltale sign of a leaking oil well. They had seen and reported it before. Now the well appeared to be releasing petroleum into the bay at a faster rate. So the Coast Guard again notified the state’s General Land Office, which contacted the Railroad Commission of Texas, a preposterously named institution that has nothing to do with railroads and everything to do with the oil business. A week later, last February, inspectors from both state agencies took a boat out to check on the leak. The metal grating around the well, from which it should have been accessible, had severely corroded, making it too dangerous to stand on… “There was no point in trying to get the well’s owner to fix it, because the company no longer existed. The oil spewing into the bay was the state’s problem now. An emergency $100,000 expenditure was approved, and the leak was stopped… “Trinity Bay is full of oil-and-gas equipment that’s falling apart because of the salty air and turbulent weather. The longer the state waits to clean up this mess, the more leaks will occur and the more expensive it will be to plug the wells and salvage, shutter, and strip what remains of this abandoned oil field. It’s a situation that’s playing out all along the Texas coast, and many who care about protecting such valuable estuaries say the state is doing far too little and moving far too slowly.” 

EXTRACTION

Reuters: EU to seek COP28 deal on phasing out fossil fuels, draft document says
Kate Abnett, 9/1/23

“European Union countries are preparing to push for a global deal on phasing out fossil fuels at the United Nations COP28 climate summit which begins in November, a draft of the EU’s negotiating position showed,” Reuters reports. “Diplomats from the bloc’s 27 member states are drafting their position for the summit in Dubai, where nearly 200 countries will try to strengthen efforts to rein in climate change. “The shift towards a climate neutral economy will require the global phase-out of [unabated] fossil fuels and a peak in their consumption already in the near term,” a draft of the EU’s negotiating stance, seen by Reuters, said. Countries have never before agreed in UN climate negotiations to gradually stop burning all CO2-emitting fossil fuels, despite this being the main cause of climate change. “Unabated” refers to fossil fuels burned without using technologies to capture the resulting CO2 emissions. The word was in brackets in the draft EU text, indicating that countries have not yet agreed on whether to include it.

NPR: Oil company plans to have machines suck carbon from the sky — as it still makes oil
Camila Domonoske, 9/5/23

“The American oil company Occidental Petroleum is building machines to suck carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and inject it underground. Is the technology meant to save the planet or the oil industry?,” NPR reports. 

Agence France Presse: UAE Oil Giant Announces New Carbon Capture Project
9/6/23

“The United Arab Emirates’ state oil company ADNOC announced a major new carbon capture project on Wednesday, less than three months before it hosts UN climate talks in Dubai,” Agence France Presse reports. “The new initiative will siphon planet-heating carbon dioxide emissions from the Habshan gas processing plant in Abu Dhabi and store them permanently underground, a statement said. The project, described as one of the biggest in the Middle East and North Africa, will be able to capture up to 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 a year, tripling ADNOC’s carbon capture capacity, it said… “No cost or timeline was announced for the venture, which will be built and operated by ADNOC subsidiary ADNOC Gas and include carbon capture units, pipelines and a network of wells for CO2 injection… “The UAE, one of the world’s biggest oil producers, is a supporter of carbon capture technologies which hold out the possibility of reducing greenhouse gas emissions while still pumping fossil fuels.”

Global Insight Services: Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Market is Projected to Grow Further to over USD 8 Billion by 2032
9/5/23

“The carbon capture, utilization and storage market size was approximately $3 billion in 2022 and is projected to further grow to more than $8 billion by 2032, at a CAGR of more than 10% over the forecast period,” according to Global Insight Services. “…CCUS is still in the early stages of development and has a number of issues that need to be addressed before widespread deployment. For example, the cost of capturing and storing CO2 is currently quite high and better technologies are needed to safely store CO2 in the long term. CCUS also requires significant investments in infrastructure such as pipelines and storage facilities. The major trends in carbon capture utilization and storage technologies are increasing capture efficiency, improving storage options, reducing capture and storage costs, and increasing the use of carbon dioxide for other purposes… “The need to find new ways to store carbon dioxide is another driving force for the carbon capture utilization and storage market. Carbon dioxide can be stored underground in depleted oil and gas fields, saline aquifers, or other geological structures. Carbon capture utilization and storage can help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and slow climate change. The carbon capture utilization and storage market report includes players such as C-Capture (UK), Halliburton (US), Siemens Energy, Hitachi, Ltd (Japan), Honeywell International Inc (US), Mirreco (US), SeeO2 Energy Inc. included. (Canada), Neustark AG (Switzerland), CarbonFree (USA), Cemvita Factory Inc. (USA)”

GCaptain: Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage Market Faces Shipping Hurdle
Mike Schuler, 9/5/23

“A lack of available transportation and storage networks will be a significant hurdle in the value chain of the expanding global carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) market,” GCaptain reports. “According to Rystad Energy research, more than 90 million tonnes per annum of CO2 will be shipped by the end of the decade, requiring a fleet of 55 carriers and 48 terminals to handle the import and export of the gas. While onshore pipelines are the most common mode of transportation, offshore pipelines and CO2 shipping will play a vital role in the supply chain. However, the shipping industry’s reliance on conventional fuels raises concerns about its environmental impact, with GHG emissions multiplying over longer journeys. Research shows that switching to LNG, blue-methanol, or blue-ammonia as shipping fuels could cut emissions by 18%, 20%, and up to 80%, respectively, according to Rystad. High costs and uncertainties in the CCUS value chain can discourage carbon capture opportunities, but emerging initiatives such as open-source CO2 storage infrastructure and expanded transportation networks may reduce complexity and ease restraints, according to Rystad.”

Carbon Pulse: EU’s carbon capture, utilisation, and storage strategy’s release could be delayed -source
Rebecca Gualandi, 9/5/23

“The European Commission’s strategy to capture, utilise and store carbon is at risk of being published later than the originally anticipated fourth quarter release, an EU source told Carbon Pulse on Tuesday, as the EU’s executive grapples with new appointments and approaches the end of its current term,” Carbon Pulse reports. 

Proactive: US energy companies are likely short-term winners from carbon capture and storage, broker says
9/5/23

“US energy companies are the best placed to accelerate carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in the short-term, according to analysts at RBC, though they note that funding in Europe and the UK is proving much slower to come through,” Proactive reports. “Analysts from RBC Capital Markets compared the outlook for CO2 storage in the US and Europe, and highlighted the differences in permitting, availability, and incentives for CCS projects. There have been more US applications for class 6 wells made in July 2023 than the whole of 2022, they noted, “which we think reflects a significant backlog which could take much more than the targeted 18-24months per well to approve”. “…We think this puts energy companies at the forefront of CCS storage with the capabilities and licences to accelerate CO2 storage,” the analysts said, particularly those that have pipelines or pipeline agreements in place… “In contrast, they observed that Europe and the UK are lagging behind in CCS development due to limited funding and storage options, although they expect some improvement by 2024 with the operation of the Northern Lights Project in Norway and the rise of carbon prices.”

InsideClimate News: Scientists Find Success With New Direct Ocean Carbon Capture Technology
Ananya Chetia, 9/2/23

“As human activity and climate change increase the amount of carbon dioxide in the ocean, harming coral reefs and marine life, researchers have designed a new technology using aqueous sodium hydroxide and sodium carbonate to remove carbon dioxide from ocean water, helping reverse acidification and reduce global warming,” InsideClimate News reports. “…There are two models, one using microencapsulated solvents made of sodium carbonate and another using hollow fiber membrane contactors containing sodium hydroxide… “The sodium capsules can be regenerated by steaming it to 100 to 120 degrees Celsius which would allow the captured carbon dioxide to be removed and placed in storage, the paper says. Regeneration also allows for the capsules to be reused again to capture more carbon dioxide in future cycles… “Direct ocean capture, the paper says, “could also potentially be performed offshore” on an abandoned oil platform, for example, to avoid using land space, and be co-located with offshore wind and/or offshore storage” of captured CO2 gas… “Hornbostel’s team’s research found that its technology is promising but will require building capsules in large batches and investigating how the technology can be combined to work with existing infrastructure, like desalination facilities. Their paper calls for more research into seawater carbon dioxide capture technology, which is imperative given the rapid warming and acidification of the oceans.”

CLIMATE FINANCE

Reuters: Pickering Energy Partners launches oil and gas investment banking unit
David French, 9/1/23

“Pickering Energy Partners (PEP) is launching a financial advisory unit for oil and gas dealmaking, the investment firm said on Friday, doubling down on traditional fossil fuels as some banks are becoming wary about the industry and ramping up their bets on clean energy,” Reuters reports. “…Some banks in recent years have attempted to transition away from oil and gas, and place greater focus on dealmaking in the renewables industry, responding to the growth of green energy but also pressure from shareholders and regulators wary of fossil fuels and their role in causing climate change. Banks including BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) and Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) have pulled back from oil and gas dealmaking over the past few years. More recently, Credit Suisse, once among the most active banks in the energy sector, shuttered its Houston office after being taken over by UBS Group AG (UBSG.S)… “This is a great time to be pushing more chips onto the table in the energy market, and that’s what we’re doing,” Pickering told Reuters, adding his firm’s investment banking arm plans to double headcount over the next two to four years.”

OPINION

Common Dreams: Will the Mountain Valley Pipeline Safety Order Have Teeth, and Does Biden Care?
Bill Kitchen is an activist living in upstate New York, 9/5/23

“President Joe Biden has been busy lately in Hawaii and Florida dealing with after-the-fact disasters linked to fossil fuels, but there’s a fossil fuel disaster-in-waiting that he also needs to pay attention to and so far he hasn’t. Two thirds of the way through his term, he still has not bothered to nominate an administrator to lead the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA,” Bill Kitchen writes for Common Dreams. “This is a big problem because the builders of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) are currently burying defective, unsafe, and illegal pipe as fast as they can, which should be of particular interest to the president because when he signed the Dirty Debt Deal, MVP effectively became his pipeline. From a climate perspective MVP is, as Bill McKibben politely called it, dunderheaded. But if it’s going to get built, Biden has a personal responsibility to at least make sure it gets built safely. Right now that is not happening. In August, PHMSA sent MVP a Notice of Proposed Safety Order (NOPSO) regarding safety problems the agency had identified. The details of the NOPSO are being worked out in consultation with MVP. No doubt pressure is being applied on PHMSA by MVP, the industry in general, and politicians like Joe Manchin to water down any safety measures that might cause a delay in getting MVP built. Whether or not career officials at PHMSA will cave under that pressure we do not yet know. But there is a lot we do know, and our knowledge will make any sort of half-baked safety order unacceptable. Unless and until MVP can produce some legitimate test results that show otherwise, everyone should assume that MVP’s pipe coating is no different than the KXL pipe coating, meaning that it is “no longer fit for purpose.” “…If Donald Trump was still President, PHMSA’s safety order would probably never have even seen the light of day. But if the safety order that gets finalized on Joe Biden’s watch ends up being toothless, then the end result will amount to a distinction without a difference. The ball is in President Biden’s and PHMSA’s court.”

The Hill: Carbon capture is bad climate policy
Wenonah Hauter is the founder and executive director of the national advocacy group Food & Water Watch, 9/1/23

“White House officials and Democratic lawmakers spent weeks celebrating the one-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act, a legislative package that has been dubbed the most ambitious climate legislation of all time. While that is technically correct — it’s a low bar to meet — the political and practical benefits of the law are hard to spot. In addition, there will be more trouble ahead due to an over-reliance on so-called ‘carbon capture’ technologies,” Wenonah Hauter writes for The Hill. “…So how will the Inflation Reduction Act aim to live up to the climate hype? Some of its impact rests on major corporate tax giveaways for capturing carbon emissions from power plants and other industrial facilities. On its face, this sounds ingenuous; who wouldn’t want to eliminate pollution before it enters the atmosphere? In reality, though, carbon capture has proven to be a massive failure. The vision of equipping coal and fracked gas power plants with capture technology has more or less disappeared after billions of dollars and precious years were wasted. There are a small handful of projects which re-use the carbon to extract more oil from existing wells — hardly a climate solution… “There is precious little public information about how existing carbon capture tax credits work; the federal government will not publicly identify the recipients, and there appears to be little accountability for actually demonstrating the effectiveness of storing the carbon waste… “ If the White House wants to show it means what it says about the climate crisis — and attract young, highly motivated voters willing to fight to protect a livable future — then it must do more than rely on market mechanisms and failed techno fixes.”

Calgary Herald: Defining the decade and beyond for Canada’s oilsands
Kendall Dilling, president of Pathways Alliance, 9/5/23

“Alberta’s oilsands play a critical role in providing secure and affordable energy while contributing $60 billion to Alberta and Canada’s economy annually. At the same time, the sector contributes about 11 per cent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions, making emissions reduction in the oilsands essential for Canada to meet its climate goals,” Kendall Dilling writes for the Calgary Herald. “To ensure long-term and sustainable prosperity for decades to come, Pathways Alliance is spearheading a proposed carbon capture and storage (CCS) project that holds immense promise for Alberta’s oilsands industry and Canada’s climate future. The Alliance, comprising Canada’s six largest oilsands companies, intends to implement an ambitious GHG reduction plan to significantly reduce emissions from oilsands operations by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. CCS forms the cornerstone of Pathways Alliance’s emissions reduction plan… “To get this project off the ground, close collaboration between industry and governments is vital. Canada needs to establish appropriate policy that will incentivize the development and deployment of all manners of clean technology, including CCS. Successful CCS projects in other countries are receiving significant government support. Norway, for example, has investment incentives that cover two-thirds of the upfront cost and 100 per cent of the operating costs for 10 years. Similarly, the United States has recently created generous tax incentives to build major CCS projects through the Inflation Reduction Act. For Canada to be a world leader in CCS, the investment environment here must be competitive… “The Pathways Alliance’s CCS project has the potential to define the decade for Alberta’s oilsands industry. With the right policy support and collaboration between government, industry and communities, Alberta can position itself as a leader in low-carbon energy and ensure a sustainable future for generations to come.”

Wall Street Journal: The Climate-Change ‘Emergency’ Is Coming for You
Andy Kessler, 9/3/23

“Two years ago during Covid lockdowns, I wrote about climate control freaks, facetiously anticipating a future headline: “Bad CO2 Day, Lockdowns Enforced.” A joke that would never happen, right? Well . . . Last month President Biden was asked on the Weather Channel if he was ready to declare a national climate emergency and responded, “We’ve already done that.” Asked again if he declared a climate emergency, he said, “Practically speaking, yes.” There is no official emergency, but the president certainly thinks we need one,” Andy Kessler writes for the Wall Street Journal. “…Emergencies are an excuse to do whatever you want… “No matter, we’re living as if we’re already under emergency conditions. As of Aug. 1, the Biden administration has halted the sale of lightbulbs with less than 45 lumens of brightness per watt… “Will electricity be rationed next?… “When you declare an emergency, anything goes. The Biden administration pushes electronic vehicles, and this summer we had a glut of them—inventories were 92 days, double what is typical. As of midyear, Ford had 116 days of unsold Mustang Mach-Es. Maybe because saner Americans are becoming preppers and loading up on good old gasoline-fired cars before California’s Advanced Clean Cars II Regulations, which other states follow, outlaws them in 2035… “Saner minds should prevail—the Climate Emergency Act of 2021 evidently died in committee—but we need constant diligence to stand guard against the climate-excuse assaults on our liberties. To show how adolescent this has become, last year Swiss Environmental Minister Simonetta Sommaruga suggested that residents “shower together” to save energy. OK, now we’re getting somewhere.”

The Hill: Americans are paying the price for our oil addiction — in more ways than one
William S. Becker, executive director of the Presidential Climate Action Project, 9/1/23

“Since 1793, when the Industrial Revolution began in the United States, Americans have paid very steep prices for coal, oil and natural gas. We haven’t been aware of it, though. If we had, carbon-free renewable energy would have outcompeted carbon fuels in the marketplace long ago. Instead, market forces are distorted in favor of carbon-rich energy. Consumers should pay what fossil fuels really cost,” William S. Becker writes for The Hill. “How much of the cost is hidden? The usual answer is about $20 billion annually in government tax breaks. But a new report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates fossil fuels cost Americans $757 billion annually when we count environmental, health and economic damages. That’s $2,243 for every man, woman and child in the nation… “The rising costs of weather disasters are a significant part of what society pays. Climate change makes them stronger and more frequent. A dozen large climate disasters cost nearly $33 billion in the first half of this year, the second-highest amount on record. The IMF reports that indirect environmental and social costs account for $754 billion of the $757 billion in the United States’ annual subsidies. None of it shows up at the pump or on the meter… “Oil and gas companies spent more than $124 million to lobby the federal government in 2022 and more than $30 million in contributions to political candidates for Congress. Republicans received three dollars for every dollar to Democrats… “Today, we’re getting the world we deserve by helping the carbon cartel hide its true costs.”