Under President Obama’s second term, energy industry officials and analysts are keen on the Administration’s priorities for the energy sector, envisioning regulatory reforms and policies to advance the nation’s energy and economic security. Key areas to watch include Keystone XL Pipeline talks, recognizing the primacy of states in regulating oil and natural gas development, and…
Sequestration refers to a package of automatic $1.2 trillion across-the-board spending cuts that is a part of the 2011 Budget Control Act (BCA), passed in August 2011. The spending cuts would affect some 1200 government programs, including those that fund energy research and development initiatives. The cuts are scheduled to begin on January 2, 2013…
A new report from Brattle Group released on October 1, 2012 projects that as much as 77 GW of coal power could retire in the next five years, driven mainly by lower natural gas prices, despite a less restrictive regulatory atmosphere than previously envisioned. The report, which is an update on Brattle Group’s 2010 study,…
On September 21, the House approved H.R. 3409, the Coal Miner Employment and Domestic Energy Infrastructure Protection Act by a 233-175 vote. The “Stop the War on Coal Act,” sponsored by Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH), is a package of five proposals that had either already been approved by the Republican-controlled House or reported out of…
The Department of Energy (DOE) has announced funding for 14 new projects to widen its research in methane hydrates, a potential source of natural gas. The announcement, which came on August 31, 2012, aims at advancing the study of methane hydrates in deepwater and arctic formations and develop production technologies that are economically viable and…
According to a report released by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on August 27, 2012, applying a carbon tax at the rate of $20 per ton in 2013 and increasing it by four percent per year can raise $1.5 trillion over a span of 10 years. The report, which comes at a time when Congress…
