Energy Policy Now

New research explores ways to measure countries' success in adapting to climate change.--- Experts from the University of Pennsylvania are on the ground at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. In this special series from Energy Policy Now, they share their observations from the global climate conference and insights into key issues under negotiation. Allison Lassiter of the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design discusses the role of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) in the Paris Climate process, and research that seeks to measure the success of national efforts to address climate risk. Allison Lassiter is an assistant professor in city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design. Her research focuses on adapting water systems to climate change and measuring the impacts of sustainability policies. Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Loss and damage finance has made it onto the official COP agenda for the first time at Sharm El-Sheikh. An expert on small island states discusses why the issue has been so contentious. --- Experts from the University of Pennsylvania are on the ground at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. In this special series from Energy Policy Now, they share their observations from the global climate conference and insights into key issues under negotiation. Stacy-ann Robinson, a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House, provides a brief history of loss and damage finance in global climate negotiations, and why the issue has taken so long to become an official part of the COP negotiating agenda. Stacy-ann Robinson is a Lightning Scholar with the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House. Her research focuses on the human, social, and policy dimensions of climate change adaptation in Small Island Developing States. Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.ed Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New research from Resources for the Future quantifies the Inflation Reduction Act's expected impact on clean energy development, energy costs, and emissions. --- The Inflation Reduction Act provides hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of incentives for clean energy, and is a key part of the U.S.’s effort to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. New research from Resources for the Future examines the extent to which the IRA may in fact incentivize the development of wind and solar power, and contribute to the Biden Administration’s goal of achieving 80% clean energy by the end of this decade. Dallas Burtraw, a senior fellow with Resources for the Future, discusses the IRA’s potential to accelerate clean energy development, and its financial costs, or benefits, to consumers. Burtraw also explores the new law’s expected environmental and health impacts, and potential barriers that may limit the IRA’s ability to realize the full scope of expected benefits. Dallas Burtraw is a Darius Gaskins senior fellow at Resources for the Future Related Content Wholesale Electricity Justice https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/wholesale-electricity-justice/    The Economics of Building Electrification https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/the-economics-of-building-electrification/ Impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act on Rare Earth Elements https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/news-insights/impacts-of-the-inflation-reduction-act-on-rare-earth-elements/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

West Virginia’s coal industry has out-sized influence in the state’s politics, and in Washington. But the industry’s power has come at a cost to West Virginians. --- The state of West Virginia has made headlines over the past year on the high profile of its senior senator, Joe Manchin, who has been the swing vote in the Senate on major energy legislation. Most dramatically, Manchin’s last-minute deal with Senate Democratic leadership in July allowed for the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act that provides billions of dollars in tax incentives for wind and solar power. Yet in negotiations Manchin blocked provisions that are central President Biden’s clean energy and climate agenda, while gaining concessions to the fossil fuel industry that holds so much political sway in his home state.   James Van Nostrand, author of Coal Trap: How West Virginia Was Left Behind in the Clean Energy Revolution, examines how the coal industry succeeded in shaping West Virginia politics and, by extension, came to influence national energy policy.  Van Nostrand, a professor of law at West Virginia University, also examines how coal’s political influence has left West Virginia ill prepared to benefit economically from clean energy as the market for coal declines. James Van Nostrand is Director of the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development at West Virginia University College of Law. Related Content Wholesale Electricity Justice https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/wholesale-electricity-justice/ Coal Communities Seek Their Post-Coal Future https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/coal-communities-seek-their-post-coal-future/ Electricity Storage and Renewables: How Investments Change as Technology Improves https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/electricity-storage-and-renewables-how-investments-change-as-technology-improves/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Green hydrogen hubs are being developed in some of the world’s most remote locations, to serve growing clean energy demand in Asia, Europe and the U.S. --- Alicia Eastman, President of Intercontinental Energy, discusses the nascent global market for green hydrogen and her company’s development of more than 100 gigawatts of hydrogen production hubs along coastal deserts in the Arabian Peninsula and Australia. Eastman explores the economic and policy factors, including the Inflation Reduction Act in the U.S., that are driving the market for green hydrogen, which has the potential to serve as a substitute for fossil fuels in hard-to-decarbonize industries including steel and cement production, aviation and shipping. She also talks about the challenges that the development of green hydrogen infrastructure can present to local communities, and efforts to include these communities in project governance. Alicia Eastman is President of Intercontinental Energy. She is a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.  Related Content Regulating Utility-Scale Solar Projects on Agricultural Land https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/regulating-utility-scale-solar-projects-on-agricultural-land/ Balancing Act: Can Petrochemicals Be Both Emissions Free and Zero-Waste? https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/balancing-act-can-petrochemicals-be-both-emissions-free-and-zero-waste/ Europe Maps Out Its Hydrogen Energy Strategy (Podcast)  https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/europe-maps-out-its-hydrogen-energy-strategy/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A former senior U.S. diplomat to Saudi Arabia explores the kingdom’s effort to end its dependence on oil revenue, and the relationship between Saudi Arabia and global efforts to decarbonize. --- Saudi Arabia is the world’s leading exporter of oil. Yet it is also a country that is in the midst of an ambitious drive to end its dependence on oil revenue as the foundation of its national economy. Saudi Arabia’s effort to economically diversify follows a decade of oil market volatility that has added to a host of economic and political challenges faced by the ruling Al Saud family. Looking ahead, the global effort to move away from fossil fuels, and address climate change, could make Saudi Arabia’s overreliance on oil ever more risky. David Rundell, former Chief of Mission at the American Embassy in Saudi Arabia and author Vision and Mirage, Saudi Arabia at the Crossroads, explores the kingdom’s efforts to diversify away from oil. Rundell also discusses Saudi Arabia’s perspective on the global effort to decarbonize, and America’s tense relationship with its longtime energy ally. Related Content East Meets West: Linking the China and EU ETS’s https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/east-meets-west-linking-the-china-and-eu-etss/ Leveraging Clean Energy to Alleviate Regional Water Stress https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/leveraging-clean-energy-to-alleviate-regional-water-stress/ Have We Reached Peak Carbon Emissions? https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/have-we-reached-peak-carbon-emissions/  Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A prominent advocate for indigenous rights in Canada sees promise in clean energy. --- The Canadian province of Alberta is home to the Oil Sands, a vast subarctic region that is rich in crude oil, and which has been a focus of controversy for decades over the environmental and climate impacts of the fossil fuel mining that takes place there. Melina Laboucan-Massimo, a prominent indigenous rights advocate and member of the Lubicon Cree Nation, discusses her community’s ongoing struggle to overcome the impact of environmental, health and cultural damage from surrounding Oil Sands development, and the potential for clean energy to empower First Nation communities. Melina Laboucan-Massimo has for more than a decade been an activist on behalf of indigenous communities that have been impacted by the development of fossil fuels. Her television program, Power to the People, explores the role that clean energy is playing in building energy independence among First Nation communities. Melina is the co-founder of Indigenous Climate Action, a Climate Fellow at the David Suzuki Foundation, and the founder of Sacred Earth Solar.  Related Content Renewable Energy and Indigenous Communities https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/events/renewable-energy-and-indigenous-communities/ Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United States’ electricity regulator has proposed two major electricity market reforms that could speed the pace of renewable energy development.  --- In recent years there has been a dramatic increase in the number of proposed clean energy projects in the United States. In fact, the amount of clean energy that’s waiting in line to connect to the nation’s electric grid is greater than the total installed generating capacity on the grid today.  The prospect of so much clean energy in waiting is a bright spot in the larger effort to decarbonize and address climate change. Yet proposed clean energy, and actual clean energy, are two very different things, and the fact is that a number of policy barriers stand in the way of turning so many clean energy proposals into reality.  Shelley Welton, a Presidential Distinguished Professor of Law and Energy Policy with the Kleinman Center, discusses proposed policy reforms from the nation’s electricity regulator, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, that aim to remove these barriers to the greening of the electric grid. Welton looks at rules that seek to speed the process for connecting clean energy to the grid, and ensure that the grid is ready to handle all that new clean power. She also discusses the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that narrows the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to limit greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, and implications the ruling might have for the FERC’s ability to regulate on issues relating to climate change.    Shelley Welton is a Presidential Distinguished Professor of Law and Energy Policy with the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Penn Carey Law School. Related Content A Dangerous, Even if Expected, Opinion on Climate  https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/news-insights/a-dangerous-even-if-expected-opinion-on-climate/ The Economics of Building Electrification  https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/the-economics-of-building-electrification/ Massive Shift toward Solar Power Begins in Largest U.S. Electricity Market. https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/massive-shift-toward-solar-power-begins-in-largest-u-s-electricity-market/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fossil fuel industry is investing billions of dollars into projects that will use carbon dioxide captured from the air to produce more oil. What will be the climate impact? --- In April the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change identified carbon dioxide removal as an essential tool in the global effort to achieve net zero carbon emissions. One technology-based type of carbon dioxide removal known as direct air capture (DAC) has the potential to reduce net carbon dioxide emission by billions of tons per year. Yet DAC’s high cost raises concern around if and when the technology might be scaled to meaningfully address climate change. Recently, the fossil fuel industry has committed more than $1 billion to support controversial projects that will use captured CO2 to increase production from oil wells, through a process known as enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Pete Psarras, a research assistant professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, dives into the controversy over the use of captured CO2 as a tool for low-carbon oil production. He discusses research that examines whether the combination of DAC + EOR might lead to net climate benefits or damages, and explores frameworks for effective governance of the technology. Pete Psarras is a research assistant professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. His work focuses on carbon dioxide removal and carbon capture. Related Content How Will Energy Dollars in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Be Spent? https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/how-will-energy-dollars-in-the-bipartisan-infrastructure-law-be-spent/ Achieving Net-Zero Emissions in The State of Michigan. https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/research-projects/achieving-net-zero-emissions-in-the-state-of-michigan/ A Primer on Carbon Dioxide Removal https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/a-primer-on-carbon-dioxide-removal/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An expert in international trade policy discusses the Biden Administration’s use of the Defense Production Act, and tariff restrictions, to build a competitive US solar supply chain. --- In early June the Biden Administration invoked the Defense Production Act in an effort to rebuild America’s domestic solar energy manufacturing supply. Simultaneously, the Administration announced that it will prohibit for two years new tariffs on imports of solar cells from four Southeast Asian countries that are under investigation for illegal trade practices involving their solar industries. Through these complementary policies, the Administration aims to accelerate solar power development in the US in the near term, and ultimately to displace solar imports and strengthen US energy security. The policies are controversial, and have implications for domestic industry and the pace of decarbonization, and the rule of law. Robert Scott, Senior Economist and Director of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Research at the Economic Policy Institute, offers a closer look at the Defense Production Act and its potential to spur the development of a robust solar supply chain in the US. Scott examines the policies and trade dynamics that led to China’s dominance in the global solar supply chain, and how the DPA and related trade and industrial policies might create the foundation for a competitive domestic solar manufacturing industry. Robert Scott is Senior Economist and Director of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Research at the Economic Policy Institute. Related Content East Meets West: Linking the China and EU ETS’s https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/east-meets-west-linking-the-china-and-eu-etss/ The Not-So-Rare Earth Elements: A Question of Supply and Demand https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/the-not-so-rare-earth-elements-a-question-of-supply-and-demand/ China’s Energy and Climate Balancing Act https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/chinas-energy-and-climate-balancing-act/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.