POLITICO Energy

Last week, the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office conditionally agreed to provide a $700 million loan to a controversial lithium mining project in Nevada. The site would extract critical minerals crucial to meeting President Joe Biden’s clean energy goals, but has drawn significant environmental concerns. POLITICO’s Kelsey Tamborrino breaks down the debate over the project and why the loan office is expected to be a major oversight focus of the GOP-controlled House. Plus, FERC is expected to vote on a final rule to strengthen utility cybersecurity standards. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Kelsey Tamborrino is a reporter covering clean energy.Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed legislation with strong bipartisan support aimed at preventing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve from being shipped to China. POLITICO’s Josh Siegel and Ben Lefebvre discuss the legislation’s bipartisan appeal, prospects in the Senate, impact on China, and how it fits into the GOP’s energy priorities in the new Congress. Plus, the Biden administration plans to update offshore renewable energy regulations. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Ben Lefebvre is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law, clean energy companies like Q Cells are pouring billions of dollars into investments to build out the sector’s domestic manufacturing. POLITICO’s Kelsey Tamborrino breaks down what’s going on in the sector and why it’s still facing supply constraints. Plus, the chair of the Consumer Product Safety Commission disavowed chatter about a national gas stove ban. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Kelsey Tamborrino is a reporter covering clean energy.Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Tuesday, the Biden administration released a plan to guide the U.S. to eliminate carbon emissions from the transportation sector, the leading emitter of U.S. greenhouse gasses warming the planet, by 2050. That blueprint includes spending billions of public dollars to expand the use of electric vehicles and low-carbon fuels. POLITICO’s Catherine Morehouse breaks down the details of the administration’s plan and its challenges. Plus, President Joe Biden appointed Elizabeth Klein to lead the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which has drawn criticism from Republicans and some Democrats for its lack of oil lease sales. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Catherine Morehouse is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is hardly seen as an advocate for climate change policy, but he’s been more open to addressing the issue than many others in the GOP. And the concessions he made to House conservatives last week to secure his new role are likely to complicate any future party-line energy package. POLITICO’s Kelsey Tamborrino and Josh Siegel discuss what’s in store. Plus, a new study concludes that human-driven climate change contributed to drought in the western United States. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Kelsey Tamborrino is a reporter covering clean energy.Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The EPA has proposed lowering the annual average soot exposure limit, predicting such a move would yield tens of billions of dollars per year in public health benefits. But the proposal, which would overturn a Trump-era decision that left the regulation unchanged, is already drawing criticism from industry, even though it fell short of environmentalists' expectations. POLITICO’s Alex Guillén reports. Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO.Alex Guillén is an energy reporter for POLITICO Pro.Kara Tabor is an audio producer for POLITICO.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Biden administration has named FERC commissioner Willie Phillips as interim chair of the commission, a decision that isn’t without controversy. Environmental justice groups and renewable industry interests have long lobbied for the more progressive FERC commissioner Allison Clements to be named chair. Phillips, the more moderate choice, is viewed by some environmental groups as too accommodating to utilities and gas companies. POLITICO’s Cat Morehouse explains the impact Biden’s decision to elevate Phillips — even temporarily — could have on FERC’s agenda.Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO.Catherine Morehouse is an energy reporter for POLITICO.Kara Tabor is an audio producer for POLITICO.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before 2022 came to a close, the Treasury Department released new rules regarding electric vehicle tax credits offered in the Inflation Reduction Act. The law contained “Made in America” requirements that rankled the European Union and other trading partners, who said the provisions would disadvantage their EV manufacturers and other clean tech industries. The Biden Administration is now showing some flexibility in how it will implement the revised EV tax credits, but it may not be enough to satisfy critics. POLITICO’s Doug Palmer reports.Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO.Doug Palmer is a senior trade reporter for POLITICO.Kara Tabor is an audio producer for POLITICO.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever since Congress passed the Clean Water Act more than fifty years ago, the EPA, the White House and the Supreme Court have wrestled over what legally constitutes “Waters of the United States.” This past Friday, the Biden administration finalized a rule to expand protections from the Clean Water Act nationwide, but the Supreme Court’s decision in an upcoming case could complicate the situation. POLITICO’s Annie Snider reports.Kelsey Tamborrino is a clean energy reporter for POLITICO.Annie Snider is a water issues reporter for POLITICO Pro.Kara Tabor is an audio producer for POLITICO.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Geothermal energy — the technology that harnesses the heat beneath the Earth’s crust — is poised for growth due to an influx of federal funding, advances in technology, state incentives and interest from the Biden administration and the oil and gas sector. POLITICO’s Kelsey Tamborrino breaks down why geothermal energy is drawing fresh interest now and the different regulatory, financial and technological obstacles it still faces. Plus, the Senate passed a $1.7 trillion government funding bill on Thursday, sending the package to the House for approval today ahead of a midnight deadline.  Josh Siegel is an energy reporter for POLITICO. Kelsey Tamborrino is a reporter covering clean energy.Nirmal Mulaikal is a POLITICO audio host-producer.Raghu Manavalan is a senior editor for POLITICO audio.Jenny Ament is the executive producer of POLITICO’s audio department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices