Blog

13Jul

European Energy Independence with U.S. Coal

This week, Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency, warned that the global energy crisis is likely to get worse before it gets better, adding the coming winter for Europe, “will be very, very difficult.” His remarks reflect the increasing likelihood that Russia will completely cut off the flow of its natural gas […]
06Jul

Coal Remains Globally Essential

Perhaps The Economist announcing an “end to coal” last year was just a bit premature. As The Wall Street Journal just reported, from Asia to Europe and the U.S., coal is once again having a moment. Energy shortages, rediscovery of the importance of energy security and energy-driven inflation are all driving a new, voracious appetite […]
30Jun

Reining in the EPA

Today, in a majority decision in West Virginia v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court placed important limits on the authority government agencies have to unilaterally issue transformative regulations of vast economic and political significance. The court ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) doesn’t have the authority under the Clean Air Act to force […]
22Jun

Voters Want Action on Grid Reliability

Americans are deeply concerned about the reliability of the nation’s power grid and the affordability of their electricity supply. They’re so concerned, even frustrated, with warnings over the potential for rolling blackouts – or worse – they now want government action to fix the problem. According to national polling from Morning Consult, nearly 8 in […]
15Jun

The Nation Braces for Blackouts

Warnings of blackouts this summer are quickly becoming a dangerous reality for much of the country In the Midwest, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which manages the region’s grid, issued a warning of tight capacity conditions on June 13 as the grid struggles to keep up with soaring demand from a heatwave. Utilities were […]
08Jun

U.S. Coal to Europe

Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency, recently warned that the current global energy crisis is in fact bigger than the oil crises of the 1970s and 80s. “Now we have an oil crisis, a gas crisis and an electricity crisis at the same time,” he said. He also warned it’s likely to last […]
01Jun

Facing Grid Unreliability Reality

Summer heat has arrived and for too many families there’s deep concern over whether they can afford to stay cool or whether the grid is going to hold up when they need it most. With natural gas prices nearly three times what they were last year, electricity prices soaring and startling warnings about eroding grid […]
25May

Soaring Energy Prices are Swallowing Economic Recovery

Contrasting the painful immediacy of an oil price shock to that from electricity prices, Bloomberg columnist Javier Blas wrote, “akin to a rising tide, it is slow but relentless and then, surprise, you are overwhelmed.” Blas penned that description about the crushing electricity costs about to overwhelm Europe, but the metaphor neatly describes the electricity crisis […]
18May

As Natural Gas Prices Soar, a Plea for Energy Pragmatism

In the wake of stunning blackouts in California in August of 2020, California Assemblyman Jim Patterson said, “today we have a grid that is increasingly expensive, unreliable and unavailable when the people of California need it the most.” What Mr. Patterson didn’t know at the time is that his remark would soon describe nearly the […]
11May

The Transition to Crisis

The grid reliability crisis continues to deepen and spread. Warnings about capacity shortfalls and blackouts are so frequent and ubiquitous they are as regular as a utility bill. Just this week, The Wall Street Journal found that, “from California to Texas to Indiana, electric-grid operators are warning that power-generating capacity is struggling to keep up with […]