Please stay safe and healthy, wherever you’re reading this week.
Senators, Industry & NGOs Push for NELA to be Included in NDAA
On Thursday, June 25, a bipartisan group of 20 senators led by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) sent a letter to Senate Armed Services Committee Leadership, urging the inclusion of the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (NELA) (S. 903) in the FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). ClearPath Action – along with 43 other organizations – sent a similar letter to the Senate Armed Services Committee requesting that NELA be in the NDAA. Read more
RICH’S TAKE
“This amendment on nuclear energy would add several important national security-related provisions from NELA to the NDAA, including strengthening our foreign policy relationships and preventing an increase in nuclear weapons around the world. This is also another great example of the bipartisan support on Capitol Hill for forging ahead with the next generation of clean and reliable nuclear technologies that China and Russia are trying to corner the global market on.”
A New Tool in the CO2 Reduction Toolkit: Direct Air Capture (DAC)
In his latest whiteboard video, ClearPath Executive Director Rich Powell outlines a technology ClearPath is following called direct air capture (“DAC”). DAC technology uses machines to literally pull carbon dioxide molecules back out of the air. To learn more about the potential of this technology, watch our video here.
Walden Fox News Op-Ed: Green New Deal Would Cripple the Economy – Republicans Have a Better Way to Fight Climate Change
House Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Greg Walden (R-OR) penned an op-ed for Fox News on how Republicans have a better way to fight climate change: through American innovation. Read the full op-ed.
Clean Energy Innovation Priorities Filed As
Amendments to House Highway Bill
The House will take up an infrastructure package next week that combines the highway bill with some clean energy provisions. Amendments to the bill include the BEST Act , the Enhancing Geothermal Production on Federal Lands Act, a ten-year extension of the 45Q carbon capture incentive, and an acceleration of carbon capture, utilization, and storage RD&D, including a Direct Air Capture X-prize.
Quidnet Energy Announces $10 Million in Series B Financing and New York State-backed Contract for Demonstration Project
On Tuesday, Quidnet Energy announced the closing of its $10 million Series B funding and the execution of a contract with the New York State Energy Development Authority (NYSERDA) for commercial demonstration of its Geomechanical Pumped Storage (GPS) technology. With this Series B financing and the execution of the NYSERDA contract, Quidnet will begin deployment of commercial-scale facilities across priority markets. Last year, ClearPath Executive Director Rich Powell published a video explaining how storage technologies benefit each portion of the grid – from generation to transmission over long distances to distribution to homes and businesses.
“Quidnet is one of the most exciting and promising companies in the grid scale energy storage space. By using GPS technology, Quidnet is able to take advantage of an existing supply chain and well-developed workforce.”
Amazon Launches Venture Capital Fund to Invest in Clean Energy
On Tuesday, Amazon announced it is launching a $2 billion internal venture capital fund focused on technology investments to reduce the impact of climate change. The new fund, called The Climate Pledge Fund, will invest in companies across multiple industries, including transportation, energy generation, battery storage, manufacturing, and food and agriculture, according to Amazon. The fund is intended to support companies that can help Amazon reach its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. Read more
Growing Support For Carbon Capture Tax Incentive
On Tuesday, Pew Research Center published a new report on Americans’ views of the impacts of climate change. According to the poll, 84 percent of those surveyed (or 78 percent of Republicans surveyed) support giving tax credits to businesses for developing ways to capture and store carbon.
The New York Times published an article this week, “Projects to Stash Carbon Dioxide Underground Get a Boost” that talks about the recent Internal Revenue Service’ (IRS) proposed regulations on how companies can qualify for carbon capture tax credits, known as 45Q, by securely storing or utilizing carbon captured from power plants, industrial facilities and the atmosphere. On Tuesday, Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), EPW Chair John Barrasso (R-WY) and Energy Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the SAVE Jobs Act, which would extend the commence-construction window for the 45Q tax credit by one year. U.S. Reps. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) and David Schweikert (R-AZ) –
along with leadership from GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) – also have a long-term extension bill.
RICH’S TAKE
“There is growing consensus that we can reduce carbon emissions and maintain a healthy economy. The 45Q tax incentive for carbon capture happens to be one of the most tangible solutions to achieving both.”
IN THE HEARING ROOM
On June 24, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on “The Impact of COVID-19 on Mineral Supply Chains.” The hearing examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mineral supply chains, the role of those supply chains in economic and national security, and the challenges America faces in rebuilding them. Notably, this is the Committee’s ninth hearing on the importance of minerals to supply chains during Murkowski’s time as Chairman and Ranking Member. ClearPath Policy Fellow Cameron
Tarry recently wrote a ClearPath Energy 101: Supply Chain for Lithium and Critical Minerals Is … Critical on the supply chain challenges for the clean energy industry.
Rich Powell Testified Before House E&C Committee on
COVID-19’s Impact on the Energy Sector
On Tuesday, June 16, Rich Powell, ClearPath Executive Director, was the Republican witness at The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy hearing entitled, “Reviving our Economy: COVID-19’s Impact on the Energy Sector.”See more about the hearing
Rich emphasized the impacts of the pandemic, their likely evolution, possible policy responses, and detailed a four step policy solution.
“First, we must innovate. Second, unnecessary regulatory hurdles needlessly slow down projects. Third, we must deploy technology to prove it at scale and bring down costs. And fourth, we must export the proven technology to new clean energy markets.”
NRC Accepts Centrus Energy Application for License Expansion
Centrus Energy on Wednesday announced the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) accepted the company’s application to produce High-Assay Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU) at its Piketon, Ohio, facility. The NRC now will start the formal review. Read more
THE PATH AHEAD
June 29: Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES) Forum is hosting a virtual event from 12:00pm – 1:00pm ET, “Reigniting the Clean Energy Economy: Policy options and opportunities.” More details and register here.
June 30: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is hosting a Facebook live broadcast at 3:30pm ET featuring EERE Assistant Secretary Daniel R. Simmons to discuss how EERE is addressing water security, hydropower energy, ocean health, water resource recovery, and affordable access to clean water. More details here.
June 30: The Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs Center on Global Energy Policy is hosting an online event from 11:30am – 1:00pm ET on, “IEA World Energy Outlook: Special Report on Sustainable Recovery.” Register here
July 7: The Virginia Nuclear Energy Consortium (VNEC) invites you to attend “Virginia is Nuclear: Expanding the Nuclear Energy Industry in the Commonwealth” at 11:30am ET which will feature Dr. Rita Baranwal, Assistant Secretary for the Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy, Rich Powell, Executive Director, ClearPath, and others. More details and registration to come.
July 7: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Energy Initiative is hosting a webinar as part of its energy innovation series from 10:00am – 11:30am ET on, “Scaling up low-carbon energy: Economics, geopolitical, and environmental impacts.”More details and register here
Senators, Industry & NGOs Push for NELA to be Included in NDAA 
Clean Energy Innovation Priorities Filed As
Growing Support For Carbon Capture Tax Incentive
Rich Powell Testified Before House E&C Committee on
