The Bi-Partisan Push for Nuclear

A bipartisan group of US senators has introduced the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act, signaling a significant shift away from anti-nuclearism in America.

The legislation aims at cutting regulatory costs for advanced nuclear reactor licensing, inducing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to permit the licensing of nuclear facilities at brownfields, and encouraging other pathways to speed up nuclear power expansion.

“Preserving and expanding our nation’s use of clean and reliable nuclear energy is essential to advancing America’s energy and national security interests and achieving our environmental goals,” the lawmakers said in a statement.

The proposed legislation would also update rules restricting international investment and form a joint initiative between the US Departments of Commerce and Energy for outreach to nations seeking to develop advanced nuclear energy programs. The bill also offers funding to help clean up abandoned uranium mining sites on Tribal lands.

“The legislation is supported by the Nature Conservancy, United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry and other industry players such as Xcel Energy, TerraPower and X-Energy,” reports Utility Dive.

The White House’s New Coal Country Aid

The White House is backing up the Brinks truck to coal communities.

The federal government plans to spend $450 million on clean energy projects in former coal mining areas. “The Department of Energy will also provide $16 million to the University of North Dakota and West Virginia University to complete design studies for a domestic refinery that will extract rare earth and other critical minerals from coal ash, acid mine drainage and other mine waste,” reports Reuters.

In a recent statement, the White House said that the project “will help strengthen American supply chains, revitalize energy communities, and reduce reliance on competitors like China.”

The plan is to coordinate with eleven federal agencies to provide new resources to energy communities. The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service will release guidance for clean energy developers to access the billions of dollars in bonuses and tax credits.

The Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will provide the funding for this project.

EU and US Pledge to Fight Energy Market Disruption

The US and the European Union have pledged to coordinate on ensuring stable global energy markets and supporting the energy transition.

“The EU and the United States intend to continue to coordinate bilateral and multilateral responses to keep the global energy markets stable and support the energy transition required to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement,” the parties said. “The two sides reiterated their strong commitment to directly confront, with adequate measures, all efforts to further destabilise the global energy situation and to circumvent sanctions.”

The agreement might mean that Europe’s dependence on American LNG will replace Russia’s pipeline gas. Europe has been the main customer of US liquefied natural gas since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the EU has slashed its imports of Russian pipeline natural gas over the past year. If the EU deepens its commitment to intermittent electricity from wind and solar, they will need still more LNG from across the pond.

The dynamic seems likely to continue—the European Commission is now calling for reduced imports of Russian LNG.

“Last month, EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson urged all EU member states and all companies not to sign new LNG import contracts with Russia,” reports Oilprice.com. “The European Union has managed to significantly cut its imports of Russian pipeline natural gas over the past year, but now it should stop all LNG imports from Russia, Simson said.”

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Conversation Starters

1. Mexico is nationalizing Spanish power plants. “Iberdrola, Spain’s leading power utility, on Tuesday said it had signed a draft deal worth $6 billion to sell more than 8,400 megawatts of combined cycle gas capacity in Mexico to asset manager Mexico Infrastructure Partners (MIP),” reports Reuters. “The Spanish company has been openly criticized by Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador for benefiting from past Mexican governments. The leftist president has accused Iberdrola of trying to mount a media campaign against his government in collaboration with his conservative adversaries.”

2. Russia offers Shell an out for Sakhalin-2. “NOVATEK received Vladimir Putin's consent for Shell to receive the entire amount of 94.8 billion rubles for its share in the Sakhalin-2 project and was able to withdraw this money from Russia,” reports Russian daily Kommersant. “NOVATEK is going to acquire a share of Shell and has already submitted an application to the government.” (translated with Google Translate)

3. Security has over taken carbon emissions in the minds of shareholders. “Shell Plc investors are showing more interest in energy security in the wake of the crisis triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Chief Financial Officer Sinead Gorman,” reports Bloomberg. “New Chief Executive Officer Wael Sawan is preparing to lay out Shell’s strategy at a capital markets day event in June, which could see the company underscoring the role of oil and gas as Europe’s energy crunch spotlights concerns over security of supply. That message may play well with shareholders who benefited from soaring prices last year.”

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