Subscribe today to the Washington Examiner magazine and get Washington Briefing: politics and policy stories that will keep you up to date with what’s going on in Washington. SUBSCRIBE NOW: Just $1.00 an issue!
COP28 ROUNDUP: As leaders prepare for their second week of COP28, here’s a rundown of some of the biggest announcements so far:
A global renewable energy commitment: The U.S. joined 117 other countries this weekend in pledging to triple the world’s renewable energy capacity by 2030.
The U.S., European Union, and the United Arab Emirates are pushing for the renewables pledge to be included in the final United Nations climate summit pact, which would require approval from all 200 countries in attendance—and it’s unclear if they can get there.
It’s also unclear if the language would be to “phase down” or “phase out” the burning of fossil fuels by the target date, a small detail that could have enormous global consequence.
New nuclear commitments: More than 20 nations also signed a pledge to triple their nuclear capacity by 2050.
U.S. climate envoy John Kerry said Saturday that the world “cannot get to net-zero 2050 without some nuclear, just as you can’t get there without some use of carbon capture, utilization and storage.”
Oil and gas companies announced a joint Global Decarbonization Accelerator plan: Fifty global oil and gas companies committed this weekend to cut operational methane emissions by 80% by the end of the decade and to halt such emissions completely by 2050.
The landmark pledge, backed by Saudi Aramco and ExxonMobil, includes provisions to hold the companies accountable on their methane-slashing targets—including verification by international monitors.
Still, environmental groups criticized the plan, noting it does not account for the emissions caused by the burning of fossil fuels.
“The pledge doesn’t cover a drop of the fuel they sell, which accounts for up to 95% of the oil and gas industry’s contribution to the climate crisis,” the World Resource Institute’s Melanie Robinson told Reuters.
The Biden administration announced a methane rule: The final rule seeks to limit methane emissions from U.S. oil and gas wells by 80% over the next 15 years compared to current projections.
EPA officials said it will prevent an estimated 58 million tons of methane emissions from escaping into the atmosphere between 2024 and 2038—or the equivalent of 1.5 billion metric tons of CO2. It will also apply to roughly 900,000 new and existing wells in the U.S.
Kerry called for a halt to new coal plants everywhere: “There shouldn’t be any more coal fired power plants permitted anywhere in the world,” Kerry said in a speech. “That’s how you can do something for health. And the reality is that we’re not doing it.”
Kerry has traveled to China to pressure the country to move away from coal projects, though his actions have yielded little progress. China permitted some 106 GW of new coal power capacity in 2022, according to an analysis from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, or roughly quadruple the amount of coal capacity it permitted the previous year.
Welcome to Daily on Energy, written by Washington Examiner Energy and Environment Writers Breanne Deppisch (@breanne_dep) and Nancy Vu (@NancyVu99). Email [email protected] or [email protected] for tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email, and we’ll add you to our list.
THREAT OF TROUBLE OVER OIL IN GUYANA: Venezuelans voted overwhelmingly yesterday to claim sovereignty over the 61,600-square-mile, oil-rich region of Essequibo, escalating a long-standing territorial dispute between the countries centered on energy resources and sparking international concerns about annexation.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro touted the election results as a “total success” for the country, and its National Electoral Council claimed 10.5 million voters turned out and passed the five-question ballot with 95% approval, though few voters were reportedly seen at polling sites across the country.
Though international arbiters granted the territory to Guyana in 1899, Venezuela has disputed that decision at times—and especially in the last eight years, when ExxonMobil made a huge offshore oil discovery in its waters. Since then, some 46 additional offshore discoveries have been announced, accounting for more than 11 million barrels of recoverable oil resources.
Fears of conflict: Yesterday’s vote was also held at the express disapproval of the International Court of Justice, which ordered Maduro’s government Friday not to take any action that would alter Guyana’s control over the Essequibo region.
Brazil said late last week that it has “intensified defensive actions” along its northern border as it monitors the dispute, and has started directing military resources north ahead of a feared spat.
The referendum “will probably produce the result desired by Maduro,” Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told reporters at the COP28 summit in Dubai. “I hope good sense will prevail,” he added. Read more from Breanne here.
CFTC RELEASES CARBON OFFSET MARKET GUIDANCE: The Commodity Futures Trading Commission released guidance on Monday aimed at regulating voluntary carbon credit derivatives, as Washington tries to impose control over a nascent market that has faced little oversight.
As Nancy outlines, the agency’s standards will require exchanges to verify the quality of voluntary carbon credit derivatives, which base their prices on the methods companies use to offset emissions.
Agency Chairman Rostin Behnam said the move marks “the first time ever” the CFTC would propose regulatory guidance for derivatives exchanges relating to voluntary carbon credits. The guidance outlines that a contract relating to carbon offsets should ensure quality standards that include “transparency, additionality, permanence, accounting for the risk of reversal, and the robust quantification of emissions reductions or removals.”
The CFTC is also trying to minimize “double-counting,” which occurs when multiple carbon credits are backed by the same projects.
The move comes as agencies across the globe try to create frameworks overseeing an emerging market that faces little regulation. The move also comes the day after the International Organization of Securities Commissions, the top agency representing securities watchdogs, launched a consultation on standards for voluntary carbon markets at COP28 in Dubai.
The guidance also comes at the behest of congressional Democrats, who had previously requested for the agency to establish rules governing the carbon market. Senate Democrats had expressed concerns that carbon offset projects could be “frequently illegitimate” because they provide fossil fuel companies a lifeline while continuing to pollute the environment, according to an October 2022 letter sent to Behnam. Read more here.
GLOBAL COAL USE TO PEAK IN 2023, PER RYSTAD: Global power-production from coal will peak this year as increased deployment of renewables displaces the fossil fuel, according to research from Rystad Energy.
As Bloomberg reports, burning coal will produce about 10,373 terawatt hours of electricity worldwide in 2023, and then decrease to 10,332 terawatt-hours next year, according to a Monday report from the energy intelligence company.
Although it’s a small shift, it’s still significant, according to executives from Rystad.
“The drop in total coal generation in 2024 may be small on paper, but it signals the beginning of the renewable energy era in the power market,” Carlos Torres Diaz, Rystad’s senior vice president of renewables and power research, said in a statement. “Coal usage in the power sector is peaking.”
Why it’s important: Coal is the world’s largest source of electricity, and curbing emissions from power plants will be essential as the world looks to combat climate change. Officials and delegates are currently meeting at the world’s largest annual climate summit to hammer out agreements to boost clean energy and limit fossil fuel consumption. More on that here.
UPGRADES TO AFRICAN HYDROPOWER PLANTS: The African Development Bank is planning $1 billion worth of upgrades for a dozen hydropower plants in Africa, bank officials said Monday – a move that will boost capacity that is often unable to meet the continent’s surging needs.
As Reuters reports, upgrades are expected to yield an extra 570 megawatts across 12 projects, with work expected to start by June of next year. Plants in Sudan, Zambia, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of Congo will benefit from the refurbishments.
The significance: Hydropower is a cornerstone of renewable energy and water management in Africa, where climate change is worsening droughts and floods, and where hundreds of millions of residents lack access to electricity. However, a lack of spare parts, obsolete components, and poor maintenance has affected the sector. Some plants that were built in the 1950s, for example, have fallen into disrepair.
An AfDB-commissioned study in August, conducted by the International Hydropower Association, found that out of 87 plants across the continent, 21 needed urgent rehabilitation worth $2 billion. Another 31 would need work in the next decade. Read more on that here.
The Rundown
Financial Times The real impact of the ESG backlash
Politico Labor unions are still giving Democrats climate headaches
E&E News Vineyard Wind developer taps state offshore champion as CEO
