Welcome to your Friday Rundown for the week ending Feb. 2. Feedback is always welcome at info@clearpathaction.org.
BIPARTISAN HOUSE PUSH FOR CARBON CAPTURE INCENTIVE
A bipartisan coalition of 44 House lawmakers is pushing for forthcoming tax extenders legislation to include Rep. Mike Conaway’s bill (H.R. 3761) to extend and expand the Section 45Q tax incentive for projects (such as NetPower) that capture and store carbon from fossil fuel power plants and other facilities.
Carbon capture technologies “are a testament to America’s strong innovative spirit, inventiveness, and, with our proposed modifications, will continue to play a vital role in our nation’s energy portfolio,” the lawmakers wrote House caucus and Ways and Means Committee leaders.
DOE MAKING STRIDES ON BATTERY STORAGE
Energy Department Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar told House Science Chairman Lamar Smith at a Jan. 30 hearing that major aspects of Smith’s House-approved bill (H.R. 589), such as prioritizing advanced nuclear instructure and making national lab facilities more accessible to the private sector, could be enacted by the Energy Department regardless of whether it becomes law. “We certainly support the points that are raised [and] we actually have quite a bit of flexibility” to enact them, Dabbar said at the Jan. 30 hearing.
Dabbar also stressed that his office was working directly with more than 85 companies – including United Technologies, Dow, General Motors and Johnson Controls – to develop battery storage technologies. “These are real companies who want to make real money, who are taking our technologies and are moving them forward,” Dabbar said. “It is a high priority of the department.”
There is “only upside” to the future of battery storage technology, added Under Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes. There are a variety of different options, both those nearing the market and those subject to basic research at the department. These technologies have a “bright future but we do see a bit of urgency,” Menezes said.
NREL TAKES BIG STEP ON PEROVSKITE SOLAR
National Renewable Energy Laboratory researchers have created an “environmentally stable, high-efficiency” perovskite solar cell, a significant step toward bringing that technology toward commercial deployment. While perovskite technologies can currently convert about 23 percent of sunlight into electricity, work is still needed to increase long-term durability of the devices. DETAILS
Perovskite are thin solar panels that you can print like newspapers. Having announced success early last year on their 2020 SunShot cost target, DOE is now focusing on a 2030 vision for three-cent solar with next-generation technology such as Perovskites.
NEWS NUGGETS
A new study funded by the Department of Energy recommends that federal agencies be allowed to enter into 30-year power purchase agreements with utility operators of small modular reactors. These nuclear reactors, which generally have a capacity smaller than 300MW, are a good fit for sites such as the 17 national laboratories, the study said. DETAILS
The Senate energy committee by voice vote approved Melissa Burnison’s nomination to be assistant secretary of Energy for congressional and intergovernmental affairs. Burnison is currently director of federal affairs at the Nuclear Energy Institute.
New fuel cell technology runs on solid carbon PHYS.ORG
THE PATH AHEAD
TUESDAYHouse Energy Subcommittee hearing on “DOE Modernization: Advancing the Economic and National Security Benefits of America’s Nuclear Infrastructure.” DETAILS
THURSDAYSenate Energy panel hearing on history and future opportunities for energy infrastructure DETAILS
