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EPA power plant rule upheld // How a banking regulation may impact utility bills // Zambia's plan to increase copper production

Welcome to Grid Brief! Here’s what we’re looking at today: a federal court upholds EPA power plant rule, how a 2008 banking regulation could impact energy bills in 2024, and Zambia plans to boost its copper output.

DC Court Upholds EPA Power Plant Rule

On Friday, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals rejected requests to put the EPA’s latest power plant on hold while Congress determines the rule’s fate. Finalized in April, the rule mandates coal and new gas-fired power plants operating past 2039 meet the equivalent emissions levels of installing a carbon capture system at 90% efficiency. Compliance under this rule begins in 2032.

Groups opposed to the rule—including the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association—plan to appeal to the Supreme Court and stay the rule while legislation is being considered, per Ethan Howland of Utility Dive.

Both the House and Senate have introduced resolutions of disapproval against the rule using the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to undo an agency’s final ruling.

Could Looming Bank Regulations Raise Your Energy Bill?

Restaurant utility meters.

A policy enacted in response to the 2008 financial crisis may have reverberating impacts in 2024, argues Stuart Saulters of the American Public Gas Association.

Developed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), Basel III Endgame (B3E) is a series of robust policy reforms aimed at bolstering the resilience of the global banking system by requiring banks to maintain sufficient capital reserves. The core focus of B3E is to create stricter capital adequacy ratios (the amount of money a bank must have on hand relative to its risk-weighted assets). The greater the amount of risk, the greater the amount of capital the bank must have to protect its depositors.

Public utilities often use financial mechanisms to hedge natural gas prices and protect consumers from market fluctuations. B3E may have the unintended consequence of increasing the cost of hedging, which will result in higher utility bills for consumers.

Read more here.

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