Energy Exchange

Industry momentum builds for nationwide methane regulation

By Ben Ratner / Published: March 15, 2019

Oil and gas companies in the United States are the latest to add their voices to the broad set of stakeholders supporting federal regulation of methane emissions from the oil and natural gas sector. These companies have a major responsibility to reduce methane emissions, a key step in the energy transition. This week in Houston, at CERAWeek, Shell, ExxonMobil and BP took important steps to support nationwide direct methane regulation, with Shell urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to not deregulate methane emissions and to even tighten standards.

There is more opportunity than ever before to regulate and reduce emissions in ways that work for industry and the environment. As ExxonMobil wrote, federal methane regulation “helps build stakeholder confidence, and provides long-term certainty for industry planning and investment while achieving climate related goals.”

Posted in Fourth Wave, Methane, Methane regulatons / Comments are closed

EDF and ExxonMobil discuss technology and regulation to reduce methane emissions

By Ben Ratner / Published: March 13, 2019

Since 2017, ExxonMobil has expanded its U.S. methane leak detection program, committed to its first global methane target, supported methane monitoring technology innovation and encouraged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate methane emissions at new and existing sources. Although Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and ExxonMobil are not always aligned on certain important issues, the organizations are working together to understand and reduce methane emissions. Ben Ratner, senior director with EDF+Business, sat down with Matt Kolesar, regulatory manager at ExxonMobil’s XTO Energy affiliate, to discuss the company’s perspective on why methane is such a key issue for the industry and how technology and regulation can accelerate industry’s progress.

Posted in Methane, Methane regulatons / Comments are closed

NYC’s small businesses want congestion pricing

By Andy Darrell / Published: March 12, 2019

Most people following New York City’s traffic and transit problems understand that more traffic and congestion is bad for air quality and commute times. And they know that the city’s buses and subway system need significant improvements to get people from here to there faster.

The impact of New York City’s traffic and transit woes on small businesses, however, is often overlooked. New York City is teeming with small businesses that depend on quick, smooth and reliable transit for their employees and customers. The harder the commute, the more likely an employee will be late, or the easier it is for a customer to say “not today.”

That’s why small business owners are some of the most enthusiastic supporters of congestion pricing.

Posted in Air Quality, Congestion pricing, New York / Comments are closed

Challenge, opportunity as China begins to tackle fossil fuel methane emissions

By EDF Blogs / Published: March 8, 2019

By Hanling Yang and Stefan Schwietzke

Even as China races to reduce heat-trapping carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and conventional air pollutants from across its growing economy, new concerns are arising over methane, an extremely potent greenhouse gas. The latest United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (UN IPCC) Special Report confirms that deep reductions in emissions of non-CO2 pollutants, particularly methane, are also essential to limiting warming to 1.5 degrees.

Among China’s top sources of methane emissions are coal, gas and oil operations, which also offer the quickest and most effective opportunities for reduction of this pollution. China has a huge opportunity to tackle methane from these sectors, but better accounting of these emissions is needed if government and industry are going to solve the problem.

Posted in Methane, Methane regulatons / Tagged China, oil and gas | Read 3 Responses

Texas Public Utility Commission defends competitive markets, customer interests

By John Hall / Published: March 7, 2019

The Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) might not be a household name, but electricity customers across Texas have plenty of reason to be thankful for its latest actions.

Over the past month, the PUC has made some key decisions to protect Texas’ competitive electricity markets and make sure all Texans have access to affordable and clean electric energy.

As we move toward the hot summer months and ERCOT projects record demand and potential grid alerts, these policy moves will hopefully be paired with further support of tools like distributed energy resources to ensure a reliable and resilient grid.

Posted in Clean Energy, Demand Response, Texas / Comments are closed

Fixing regulatory pitfalls could reduce methane emissions

By Aileen Nowlan / Published: March 5, 2019

A version of this piece originally ran in Scientific American.

Methane has long been recognized as a potent greenhouse gas, but preventing its escape from industrial facilities has only recently become a prominent goal. The oil and gas industry, for example, is a large emitter, and research (including some by scientists at the Environmental Defense Fund) has documented that far more methane seeps out of wells, pipelines, valves and other points in the supply chain than energy companies and official emissions inventories report.

This revelation has people worried—people like me, who are concerned about the health and future of humanity. And people like the CEOs of global oil and gas companies, including BP and ExxonMobil, who have voluntarily pledged to reduce methane emissions. Increasingly, investors, public officials and neighbors living near oil and gas infrastructure have become worried, too.

Posted in Fourth Wave, Methane, Methane regulatons / Tagged oil and gas | Read 1 Response