Welcome to Grid Brief! Here’s what we’re looking at today: PG&E may cut power for fire prevention, Michael Bloomberg plows more money into fight against coal and gas, Sunak weakens the UK’s climate commitments.

PG&E May Cut Power for Fire Safety

As wildfires rage on the West Coast, California’s largest utility has stated it may need to cut power to 4,200 homes and business within the fire watch zone.

“The utility has been preemptively cutting power during times when high winds can knock over its power lines after its equipment was blamed for causing a some of the worst wildfires in California history,” reports Bloomberg.

Currently, 25 fires are burning across the America West, six of which are in California.

Michael Bloomberg’s War On Coal

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg has pledged $500 million to fight fossil fuel generation in America.

Bloomberg wants to close “every last” coal plant in America and cut natural gas capacity in half by 2030.

“Bloomberg already has spent over $500 million to support the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign, which originally aimed to retire 30% of the U.S. coal fleet by 2020,” reports Reuters. “The campaign ended up accelerating the retirement of over 60% of coal plants by that year and putting $85 million toward a similar mission to fight the expansion of petrochemical plants in the U.S.”

Several of America’s grid operators have warned that they expect to see dangerous capacity shortfalls by the end of the decade as they retire more gas and coal power plants. In February, all four Federal Energy Regulatory Commission members told the Senate that America was heading towards a reliability crisis and that the country needs coal to keep the lights on.

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Sunak Pulls Back on Climate Commitments

UK PM Rishi Sunak has watered down the country’s net zero commitments.

“Sunak said in a speech on Wednesday in London that he would push back by five years to 2035 a plan to bar the sale of new petrol and diesel cars, casting the decision as an effort to protect families struggling with bills,” reports Bloomberg. “The vast majority of vehicles sold in the UK would likely be electric by 2030 without government intervention, he said.”

Sunak joins a rising tide of leaders who have begun to soften their respective countries’ climate ambitions in the face of inflation.

Conversation Starters

• Congo seeks investors for its Inga Dam. “Democratic Republic of Congo is still looking for partners for the world’s biggest hydropower project and expects expanded mining investments from the United Arab Emirates as the central African nation prepares for December elections,” reports Bloomberg. “While talks have stalled over development of the 44-gigawatt Grand Inga project with Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest and his company, Fortescue Future Industries Ltd., President Felix Tshisekedi told reporters in New York there is interest in the project from other potential partners.”

• Russia has opened a new export route to the United Arab Emirates. “Russian oil producers supplied their first cargoes of CPC Blend crude to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in August and September, traders told Reuters, opening up a new export route as Moscow looks to find new customers and skirt Western sanctions,” reports Reuters. “Russia has rerouted most of its oil to China, India and Turkey over the past year, and has also sent cargoes to countries including Brazil, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. In August and September two Russian firms - oil major Lukoil and independent producer CenGeo - sold their oil to the UAE.”

• California’s zero emissions rule has kicked off a run on diesel engines. “Logistics and trucking companies in California are rushing to buy diesel-powered rigs ahead of a new state mandate that will require from January 1, 2024 trucks bought after that date and serve Californian ports be zero-emission vehicles,” reports Oilprice.com. “Executives at trucking companies in the U.S. state with the strictest vehicle pollution standards tell The Wall Street Journal that they prefer to buy diesel rigs now to buying electric trucks next year at triple the price of a diesel heavy-duty vehicle and facing possible issues with not enough charging stations.”

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