Welcome to your Friday Rundown for the week ending June 22. Feedback welcome at info@clearpathaction.org. 

NOTES FROM COPENHAGEN 

The recent 9th annual Clean Energy Ministerial, a multilateral meeting in Copenhagen of high-level energy officials spanning the globe, launched two significant efforts to better recognize carbon capture and advanced nuclear as clean energy tools. ClearPath’s policy triumvirate – Jeremy Harrell, Spencer Nelson and Justin Ong – were there and in a new blog map out why the efforts led by the U.S., Canada, Japan and others shouldn’t be overlooked.

But despite a good conversation, less than 10 of the 120 events at last month’s Nordic Clean Energy Week (of which the ministerial was showcased) were focused on either nuclear or carbon capture. As these technologies will be a significant part of the future of the low-carbon energy mix, the ClearPath policy trio note there is still much work to do to elevate those issues on the global stage, including at next year’s ministerial hosted by Canada.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR GLOBAL CLEAN ENERGY?
 

SENATE APPROVES ADVANCED NUCLEAR FUEL SPENDING 

The Senate approved an amendment to a FY19 spending bill from Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) granting $15 million for a demonstration project to ensure domestic supply of high assay low enriched uranium (HA-LEU), which will fuel many advanced nuclear reactors. There is a looming shortage in the domestic supply of HA-LEU, which is commercially produced in countries such as France, Russia and China, but not in the U.S. Former NRC Commissioner Jeffrey Merrifield and Pillsbury Law Firm Senior Associate Anne Leidich laid out 10 recommendations for lawmakers, policymakers and NRC to step up to this supply challenge in a recent white paper sponsored by ClearPath and the U.S. Nuclear Infrastructure Council. A final Senate vote on their broader FY19 energy spending bill is scheduled for Monday.
 

HOUSE ENERGY SUBCOMMITTEE APPROVES ADVANCED NUCLEAR PLANS 

The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Energy Subcommittee approved bills that would spur deployment of scalable microreactors and the domestic supply of HA-LEU. That includes a bipartisan bill led by Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) to require the secretary of energy to report on key components of a pilot program to site, construct and operate “micro reactors” at critical Defense Department or Energy Department national security facilities. House lawmakers have also included that bill in the House-passed 2019 National Defense Authorization Act.

Also approved was a bipartisan bill led by Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) to direct DOE to establish a program supporting domestic availability of HA-LEU via public-private partnerships to address regulatory and market challenges. The subcommittee also approved the bipartisan NUKE ACT (H.R. 1320) from Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) that is a commonsense step to making further improvements at rightsizing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s workforce and budget.
 

STATE, REGIONAL CARBON CAPTURE EFFORTS LAUNCHED 

Two state and regional carbon capture efforts were officially launched at a gathering of leading officials in Wyoming. The bipartisan Governors’ Partnership for Carbon Capture will be co-led by Govs. Matt Mead (R-Wyo.) and Steve Bullock (D-Mont.) and also include Govs. Jeff Colyer (R-Kan.), John Bel Edwards (D-La.), Mary Fallin (R-Okla.) and Gary Herbert (R-Utah). They will make analyses, policy recommendations and other moves to make carbon capture, utilization and storage a national priority. DETAILS

Separately, the new Regional Carbon Capture Deployment Initiative will pull together state and other officials to map opportunities to promote the infrastructure needed for carbon capture, including pipelines that can send the captured carbon for enhanced oil recovery and other purposes, as well as geologic storage. The effort is part of the State Carbon Capture Work Group, also led by Govs. Mead and Bullock. 

Both initiatives were launched at CO2NNECT 2018, a gathering of policymakers, industry and other leaders (including ClearPath Founder Jay Faison and Executive Director Rich Powell) in Jackson Hole this week.
 

POSSIBLE OIL, ETHANOL CARBON CAPTURE PARTNERSHIP BREWING

Occidental Petroleum and White Energy have agreed to evaluate the economic feasibility of a carbon capture, utilization and storage project. The idea would be to capture carbon at two of White Energy’s ethanol facilities in Texas and transport it to the Permian Basin, where Occidental would inject carbon for enhanced oil recovery. Occidental President and CEO Vicki Hollub said the collaboration is a direct result of recent congressional approval of the FUTURE Act, which extended and expanded the Section 45Q carbon capture tax incentive. DETAILS
 

CLEARPATH ACTION FUND PLANS $500K FOR HELLER

ClearPath Action Fund is planning to spend $500,000 to help re-elect Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.).

“We’re investing heavily in Dean because there’s no doubt he has long been a leader among Republicans in expanding clean energy deployment and innovation,” ClearPath Action Fund Founder Jay Faison said. “He knows it’s good for his constituents and that energy innovation is helping Nevada set the pace for the country and the world.”

The Heller effort includes a new set of digital ads that recognize his clean energy leadership in Congress.

“Senator Dean Heller has worked across the aisle in Washington, taking bipartisan action for clean energy technologies that create good jobs in Nevada,” the 30-second ad states. That includes helping lead efforts to streamline clean energy project permitting on public lands and offer tax incentives for both clean energy production and storage.
 

ENDORSES REP. BRIAN MAST

DOE GRANTS $64M FOR ADVANCED NUCLEAR

THE PATH AHEAD