1. Conservatives heading to COP26

 

A first-of-its-kind House Republican delegation will be attending COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland.

What’s clear: Conservatives have solutions to climate change and are taking a seat at the table to have their ideas heard. Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA) … John Curtis (R-UT) … David McKinley (WV) … Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) and others will attend.

Plug in: In addition to attending the global climate conference, the delegation will convene international climate stakeholders and focus on clean energy innovation solutions.

Josh Siegel with the Washington Examiner has more.
 

2. Time to build a domestic critical minerals supply chain

 ​

Explosive growth of energy storage technology is dramatically increasing demand for critical minerals, whose supply chains are largely controlled by the Chinese government.

What’s clear: Building a domestic critical mineral supply chain will require significant support for financing, permitting, and building new projects. Solutions include:

• Federal innovation investments led by DOE;
• Private sector innovation from companies such as Lithium Americas … Standard Lithium … Piedmont Lithium … Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) … Redwood Materials and Lilac Solutions; and
• Streamlined permitting.

Plug in: In 2021, worldwide energy storage deployments are expected to triple compared to last year, according to a new report from Wood Mackenzie.

Read more from ClearPath’s Alex Fitzsimmons
 

3. Alaska AF Base to get micro reactor

​​​​​​

Micro nuclear reactor technology is getting a big boost as the U.S. Air Force has selected Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks, Alaska to deploy its first micro reactor.

What’s clear: It is an exciting time for nuclear energy in the United States. Nuclear power is clean and reliable, and in recent years there has been a flurry of American innovators designing next generation reactors. 2019 & 2020 brought about numerous milestones, like…

• the launch of the National Reactor Innovation Center;
• initial Nuclear Regulatory Commission action on advanced reactor licensing;
• the passage of the Energy Act of 2020; and
• The launch of the Advance Reactor Demonstration Program.

Plug in: In recent years, the DoD has explored the energy and national security benefits that microreactors could bring to the U.S. Military, which means one of the world’s largest energy consumers, is embracing advanced nuclear power.

4. North Dakota ethanal project gets first-ever
permit to store CO2

North Dakota approved a Class VI permit for Red Trail Energy, an ethanol project, to store captured carbon dioxide deep underground in rock formations.

What’s clear: We can only capture and reduce carbon emissions as fast as we can permit the projects to do so. As carbon capture technology continues to gain momentum, ongoing efforts to effectively sequester the CO2 will become increasingly important.

• North Dakota applied for Class VI primacy in 2013, but wasn’t approved by the EPA until 2018.
• This is the first ever state issued Class VI permit.
• The Red Trail Energy application process only took less than eight months, demonstrating why state primacy is so beneficial to streamlined and efficient permitting.

Plug in: The EPA’s Underground Injection Control Class VI permit allows the injection of carbon dioxide into deep rock formations for long-term geologic sequestration.

• Safety is ensured by injecting well below sources of drinking water, and the carbon is permanently sealed into the reservoir by an impermeable layer of rock.
• Injecting and sequestering carbon is a tried and true technology and has been used for decades to help safely produce oil, a process known as enhanced oil recovery.  

5. Japan, UK & France opt for more nuclear 

​​​​​​

Japan needs to restart 30 nuclear reactors to meet its carbon dioxide emissions reduction goals.

What’s clear: Some of the U.S.’ allies — France, the UK, and Japan — are all embracing more nuclear energy for their clean energy goals.

• Japan is using those 30 reactors as an assumption to reach its goal of reducing carbon emissions by 46% by 2030.
• The UK has said nuclear is “at the heart” of its decarbonization goal.
• While more than 70% of France’s electricity is already produced using nuclear energy, the French are looking at developing small modular reactors to help with their energy mix.

6. Regional CCUS deployment efforts get boost

​​​​​​

Organizations in four U.S. regions are receiving $5 million each to identify and address carbon capture storage and transportation challenges facing the commercial deployment of the technology.

Plug in: Funds are part of DOE’s Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships. The awardees include:

• Battelle Memorial Institute (Columbus, OH);
• New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (Socorro, NM);
• Southern States Energy Board (Peachtree Corners, GA); and
• University of North Dakota Energy & Environmental Research Center (Grand Forks, ND).

7. ClearPath’s Emily Johnson named TFAS fellow

​​​​​​

The Fund for American Studies (TFAS), a DC-based leadership program focused on the principles of limited government, free-market economics and honorable leadership, announced their newest policy professionals to the 2021-2022 Public Policy Fellowship.

Plug in: “It was clear to me [this] is a serious bunch of young professionals dedicated to thinking through the questions of community, government and markets,” Tim Carney, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and TFAS alumnus said.

Congrats, Emily!