Truss and Macron Agree on Sizewell C // House Republicans Try to Clear Way for SMRs // US Shale's Workforce Problem

Truss and Macron Agree on Sizewell C

France and Britain have agreed to collaborate on building a new nuclear power plant, Sizewell C, off the Suffolk coast. 

"The Prime Minister and the President discussed advancing bilateral cooperation in particular on energy. They reaffirmed their belief that both renewable and nuclear energies are part of consistent strategies to achieve energy transition and strategic autonomy," reads a joint statement from Truss and Macron. "They confirmed the full support of the UK and French Governments for the new nuclear power station at Sizewell and expect the relevant bodies to finalise arrangements in the coming month."

Detractors argue that Sizewell C will be too expensive and too slowly built to be seen as a climate solution. "If they see Sizewell C as the answer, then they are asking the wrong question," the group Together Against Sizewell C said. 

Mark Nelson, president of the Radiant Energy Fund, told Grid Brief, "Sizewell C is a vital project, not least because it gives all parties necessary incentives for a successful completion to Hinkley Point C, its earlier sister project with the same reactors across the country. Brutal experience has shown that 'final' nuclear projects have awful delays, as consultants and workers quite reasonably avoid the end of their employment by avoiding the end of construction."

"Starting a new project of nearly identical design in Suffolk will be a big help to the existing project in Somerset," Nelson concluded.

The collaboration's official announcement arrives as France pursues energy austerity in the face of the energy crisis. 

The British government approved the construction of the plant in July. Sizewell C is expected to produce 7% of the UK's electricity needs when it reaches completion in the 2030s. 

Next Year's 250,000 Acre O&G Auction

The federal government plans to move ahead on plans to auction off acreage for drilling in the West--Wyoming, New Mexico, and Kansas.

"The Department of Interior announced Thursday, Oct. 6, that it will take steps to lease oil and gas rights to about 261,210 acres of public land primarily in Wyoming," reports Wyoming Public Media. "This is in response to Congress’ newly passed Inflation Reduction Act, which mandates some oil and gas leasing."

Environmentalists see this as a betrayal of the climate policy aspirations of the IRA. But people within the oil and gas industry appear cautiously optimistic. Ryan McConnaughey, the vice president and director of communications for the Petroleum Association of Wyoming, told WPM, "While the amount of acreage listed in the sale would be good for a quarterly lease sale, in general, you have to take into consideration that it may be one of only one or two lease sales in 2023."

The sale should begin in March of next year. 

US Shale's Workforce Problem

America's oil and gas industry is facing supply problems--inventories and workers. 

"U.S. shale companies could have a harder time finding workers, the new data suggests, which showed that the number of workers employed in U.S. oil and gas jobs fell to 133,800 in September—a 4.8% decrease from July, which was this year’s high," reports Oilprice.com. 

The data comes from a recent report from the Labor Department. It also shows that "the unemployment rate fell to 2.5% in September, from 2.6% in August. To compare, the unemployment rate last September was 7.3%."

In the wake of OPEC+'s decision to cut production by 2 million barrels per day, America desperately needs to ramp up its own production and refining. But investors are gunshy about expanding production after losing their shirts for so many years in a row. The Biden administration has both demanded the industry produce more and done everything in its power to frustrate production. That the oil and gas industry now has a human capital problem adds yet another difficult barrier to overcome.

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Conversation Starters

1. Hungary and Uzbekistan have launched a nuclear energy cooperation program. Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, said it is "'highly likely' that Hungary will provide cooling technology for Uzbekistan’s new nuclear plant and also training for future nuclear experts, as part of the Stipendium Hungaricum grants scheme for students," according to NEI Magazine. "Uzbekistan and Hungary are also going to launch a research and development project on nuclear fuel."

2. Firewood demand in Europe is surging. "As much as 70% of European heating comes from natural gas and electricity, and with Russian deliveries drastically reduced, wood — already used by some 40 million people for heating — has become a sought-after commodity," reports Bloomberg. "Prices for wood pellets have nearly doubled to 600 euros a ton in France, and there are signs of panic buying of the world’s most basic fuel. Hungary even went so far as to ban exports of pellets, and Romania capped firewood prices for six months. Meanwhile, wood stoves can now take months to deliver."

3. Russia's seaborne crude exports have slipped to a 12-month low in anticipation of Europe's bans and price caps. "Russian crude exports averaged 2.99 million b/d in the month, down 290,000 b/d on the August levels and lowest since September 2021 when global oil demand was still recovering from pandemic lockdowns," reports S&P Global. "Russian flows to the Netherlands -- home to Europe's biggest refining hub -- fell by more than half on the month to 165,000 b/d in September, down from 390,000 b/d in August and from pre-war levels of about 525,000 b/d, the Commodities at Sea data shows."

Crom's Blessing