Energy Exchange

Methane momentum builds, time for Canada to follow through with strong action

By Drew Nelson / Published: October 27, 2017

The call to reduce oil and gas methane emissions landed a one-two punch this week that should provide Canada all the motivation it needs to get ahead of this global trend and prepare its energy industry for the future.

First, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) World Energy Outlook analysis stated the future of the natural gas industry will depend on “industry demonstrating credibly that methane emissions from oil and gas operations are being minimised.” IEA reports as much as 76 million metric tons of methane is emitted around the world each year from both oil and gas facilities. For customers and companies, that’s $34 billion dollars of lost product and profit. There are also significant health and air quality benefits to reducing these emissions as hazardous air pollutants and smog-inducing toxins are removed when companies control methane pollution.

IEA also highlighted that a 75 percent reduction of those emissions is possible today using existing technologies. To put that in context, a reduction on that order would have the same short term climate impact as removing all the vehicles in the world from the road. For all of us, it’s one of the quickest and most affordable opportunities to slow climate change. Read More »

Posted in General, Methane, Natural Gas / Tagged , , | Comments are closed

Oil & gas CEOs up their methane pledge: Here’s what to watch for as promises turn to action

By Ben Ratner / Published: October 27, 2017

This post was co-authored by Drew Nelson. 

The CEOs of ten leading oil and gas companies today announced intentions to move toward “near-zero” methane emissions, pledging to set a quantitative reduction target by this time next year. At first blush, it might sound like a modest step – a promise to make a promise. In fact, the CEOs announcement constitutes an important and welcome recognition that oil and gas methane emissions impact the climate, are too high, and must be reduced. The new pledge comes just days after the International Energy Agency previewed its analysis showing that methane is a “critical issue for the long term natural gas outlook” and steep emission reductions are possible with today’s technology, and enormously cost effective.

From Social Issue to Business Issue

The 10 companies, which together are responsible for 20 percent of global production, joined forces three years ago to form the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative. Last year, they invested $1 billion to accelerate commercial deployment of low carbon energy technologies. The new pledge is the next important step on the road to decarbonizing their operations, with methane playing a central role. Read More »

Posted in Climate, Methane, Natural Gas / Tagged | Comments are closed

Three reasons Westerners are fighting to defend federal methane waste standards

By Jon Goldstein / Published: October 24, 2017

Westerners are a hardy bunch. They are used to working through adverse conditions and making the best of what the land provides. That includes fighting to defend requirements from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management that are designed to cut wasted natural gas and maximize revenue for community projects. This is despite repeated attempts from the Trump Administration to undercut these regulations and sell taxpayers short.

Here are three reasons communities and individuals from across the Mountain West are fighting to defend methane waste rules:

  1. Westerners hate waste: $1.8 billion and counting. That’s the value of taxpayer-owned natural gas that has been wasted since 2013 when the BLM began developing a new set of standards to address this problem. The rules finalized last November would help cut that waste and recover millions more in tax and royalty revenues for the western communities faced with impacts from oil and gas development that need it most.

Read More »

Posted in BLM Methane, General, Methane, Natural Gas / Comments are closed

Department of Energy’s proposal to FERC: Too many costs, no actual benefits

By EDF Blogs / Published: October 23, 2017

By Natalie Karas, Michael Panfil, and Rama Zakaria

Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Rick Perry recently proposed that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) provide new revenues and guaranteed profits to the owners of inefficient and aging coal and nuclear power plants at the expense of American homeowners and businesses. These aging units are losing out to more efficient and innovative ways to generate power, reduce peak demand, and foster participation and competitive in the markets. EDF filed comments – separately and with a coalition of environmental organizations – today opposing DOE’s proposal to diminish, if not destroy, the integrity of competitive wholesale electricity markets.

The proposal is plagued by both procedural and substantive infirmities. It prevents informed outcomes by shortening FERC’s generally lengthy rulemaking process to a mere 60 days – offering little time for key stakeholders to participate. And it directs an independent, fuel-neutral federal agency to bankroll favored companies and energy sources under the guise of “resiliency,” a term the proposal does not define, applied to a problem that does not exist. In fact, a study released today shows “no clear relationship” between increased reliability and more coal and nuclear power. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Electricity Pricing, Grid Modernization / Comments are closed

These Ohio customers pay for their smart meters, and they should have access to the benefits

By John Finnigan / Published: October 23, 2017

Studies show that customers with access to energy-use data can save up to 18 percent on their energy bills every month. Based on a typical monthly bill of $120, households could save nearly $360 every year – a substantial chunk of change.

This type of energy data is gathered by advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), specifically smart meters. Yet collecting the data isn’t enough to see those savings – customers need access to the information and new products and services, like cell phone apps, to help understand it.

That’s why Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), along with our partners Ohio Environmental Council and Mission:data, recommend that the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio require Duke Energy to release customers’ energy-use information, specifically through the implementation of the Green Button Connect My Data program.

Duke is currently asking Ohio for $143 million to replace its smart meters. The utility wants its Ohio customers to foot the bill for the new meters without giving them access to their meter data. Sharing the data would give customers a chance to enjoy significant potential savings from their investment in AMI. Sharing anonymized electricity data with third-parties would enable businesses to develop new products and services, too. Read More »

Posted in Data Access, Ohio / Comments are closed

Why better energy data equals better lives – now more than ever

By Andy Bilich / Published: October 19, 2017

Better Data, Better Lives.

That was the theme of the second World Statistics Day celebrated two years ago on October 20th, 2015. The holiday was designed for celebration every five years, but in light of recent attacks on climate science, it is critical to showcase the value of clean energy data now, more than ever.

So, why is clean energy data important? Why do we need it? As a data analyst, I expect to answer or debate questions about the significance, trends, and use of data. But I don’t usually expect questioning why data should exist in the first place.

Upon reflection, however, I’d say the simplest response is this: We need clean energy data to progress economically, socially, and technologically.

From a family trying to save money on their electricity bill to the global community collaborating on a cleaner, more renewable future, energy data can unlock an unending list of benefits by facilitating the design of effective policies, empowering people and businesses with information, and spurring energy innovation. Here are a just a few of those benefits. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Data Access, Energy Innovation, Grid Modernization / Read 2 Responses