1. Senator Crapo explains market driven climate solutions

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We may be looking at the missing market signal to solve the climate challenge.

What’s clear: Senate Finance Committee Republican leader Mike Crapo (R-ID) sits down with ClearPath’s Rich Powell to explain his new approach to clean energy incentives, the Energy Sector Innovation Credit (ESIC).

Watch Sen. Crapo explain why we need ESIC:

• “...our tax code today does not adequately incentivize new clean energy technologies…
• “...the market decides the phase down...
• “...there is another important stakeholder, and that’s the taxpayer…”

Plug in: ESIC is bipartisan and takes a technology inclusive approach that adds new taxpayer accountability to energy tax credits. This has also been introduced in the U.S. House. Eligible new sources of power can span the full gamut of tools such as…

• new coal or gas power plant that can capture and store its carbon emissions,
• advanced nuclear reactor,
• or next generation batteries that store excess power from wind, solar and other renewable generation.

2. Energy provisions in the infrastructure bill

 

The bipartisan infrastructure bill contains significant investments in research, development, and demonstration of clean energy technology.

• $27B for grid infrastructure
• $21.5B for demonstrations of advanced clean energy technologies via a new office of clean energy demonstrations, based on authorizations from the bipartisan Energy Act of 2020
• $10.5B for hubs to catalyze hydrogen and direct air capture hubs
• $6B to support the existing civil nuclear fleet.

What’s clear: The combined impact of the clean energy demonstrations, civil nuclear, transmission improvements and a few other climate policies would likely reduce emissions by a total of 160 million metric tons of CO2 per year over the next five years.

• That’s equivalent to all greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. aviation and rail.
• This is why innovation works better than regulation or taxation.

Those false choices cloud potential solutions. The reality is solutions must be technology-inclusive, economically viable, and politically sustainable.

Plug in: ClearPath published a two pager that includes more information on the energy provisions, plus some jobs analysis from Resources for the Future.
 

3. Happy Warriors at COP26

Members of ClearPath were recently at COP26 in Glasgow as part of a Republican Congressional Delegation trip.

Plug in: U.S. Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA).....Dan Crenshaw (R-TX)..... John Curtis (R-UT)...... Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) had a busy agenda including:

• Day 1: Meetings with stakeholders, including representatives from the Japanese delegation and the Chief Environmental Officer at Microsoft Dr. Lucas Joppa.
• Day 2: Roundtable discussions on various topics, including nuclear energy, carbon removal, and global trends in clean energy development.
• Day 3: Site visit to Flexitricity to discuss common sense approaches to large-scale clean energy deployment, residential-to grid energy storage, and demand management. They also met with representatives of the Taiwanese Government to discuss what U.S. policy leadership could look like on climate and clean energy.

Nuclear panel: ClearPath co-hosted a side-event at COP26, De-risking Decarbonization with Advanced Nuclear.

The group of prominent energy and environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs), industry, and trade organizations included Third Way, TerraPraxis, Clean Air Task Force, Nuclear Innovation Alliance, U.S. Nuclear Industry Council, Ultra-Safe Nuclear Corporation, and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.
 

4. Lithium needed to power the future

In 2021, worldwide energy storage deployments are expected to triple compared to last year. Watch this segment featuring an American company — Lithium Americas — on the importance of domestic critical minerals like lithium.

What’s clear: The news segment focuses more on vehicles, but lithium is also being used for grid scale energy storage, strengthening grid reliability and reducing emissions. What are the challenges ahead?

• Energy storage’s explosive growth will dramatically increase demand for critical minerals.
• Supply chains are largely controlled by the Chinese government.
• The U.S. will need to improve it’s permitting process.

Plug in: For the U.S. to build a domestic critical mineral supply chain, we need to get serious about what it takes to finance, permit, and build new projects. It’s time to build a domestic critical minerals supply chain.
 

7. ICYMI
 

Clean steel can boost American manufacturing. Watch more in 3 minutes.

Texas-based Uranium Energy Corp (UEC) announced it is purchasing Uranium One Americas Inc (U1A) to create "hub-and-spoke" operations in Wyoming.

A new plan from GOP Senators intends to reduce global emissions by 40% with U.S. policies alone.