Court blocks Biden Administration's ban on LNG
Tomorow's News Today - the Stories from the ENB Daily Stand Up July 3rd.
These are the stories covered in our Daily Energy News Beat Daily Stand Up for July 3rd, and it is interesting that we have two court cases already coming forward after the Chevron Deference Supreme Court case. The first one is the Biden Administration ban on LNG, and the Second is the Alaskan native court case on the Biden Administration ban on oil and gas in Alaska. Both are just the beginning of the new ability to stop Legislation Through Regulations.
1: Court blocks Biden admin’s ban on new LNG exports – Is this because of the Chevron Deferenence Supreme Court Decision?
This ruling really points out that the Department of Energy was pandering to its base and actually hurt the US economy, our allies, and, to a greater extent, the environment. Plenty of evidence, reports, and numbers show that the more LNG the United States can export, the fewer new coal plants and cleaner energy will be used worldwide. The judge used the Chevron Deference as part of the rulings.
A federal judge issued a ruling Monday that blocks the Biden administration’s ban on new exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) following a challenge by a group of more than a dozen states.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lake Charles Division granted the multi-state coalition’s request for a preliminary injunction that prevents the ban on new LNG export projects from taking effect while the case plays out.
“This is a big win for the country’s energy industry and the millions of jobs it supports against the attacks from the Biden administration to further its radical climate change agenda at the expense of our economy,” West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement.
“This administration’s Energy Department has no such authority to justify this ban – authority on matters like this lies with Congress and Congress alone,” he added.
On January 26, the Biden administration stopped all new approvals of LNG exports to non-Free Trade Agreement countries immediately, although previously-approved projects were unaffected by the move.
The White House and Energy Department explained at the time that the pause would give federal officials an opportunity to conduct a rigorous environmental review to assess the impact of new LNG projects on carbon emissions – a process they said would take over a year to complete.
“The U.S. Department of Energy disagrees with today’s ruling,” a spokesperson told FOX Business in a statement. “The Department continues to review the court’s order and evaluate next steps.”
Opponents of the move argue that the administration’s action comes in contrast to a presumption in favor of exports under the Natural Gas Act, as well as decades of Energy Department policies and the reliance of energy-producing states and private industry on exports.
West Virginia was among 22 states that sent a letter in February to the Biden administration calling for an end to the pause on LNG exports.
The coalition’s motion argued that the ban on new LNG export projects threatened jobs and tax revenue that states like West Virginia receive from natural gas produced in their states.
The court agreed with that argument, saying that states had demonstrated there was “evidence of harm” caused by the ban “specifically to Louisiana, Texas, and West Virginia in the loss of revenues, market share, and deprivation of a procedural right.”
2: Governor Newsom’s unpopularity might have something to do with his extreme mandates that make life unaffordable.
This is an outstanding article by Ronald Stein, author, and friend of the News Beat Podcast. He highlights some critical points about Governor Newsom’s unpopularity and energy policies. If he runs for President and keeps Secretary Granholm, they could be even more stupid than the current administration team.
Not surprisingly, with California having huge costs for electricity and fuels, the recent Public Policy Institute of America survey revealed that California’s “green” Governor Newsom is by far the MOST UNPOPULAR Governor in America !
Published July 1, 2024 at America Out Loud NEWS
Ronald Stein, P.E. is an engineer, senior policy advisor on energy literacy for the Heartland Institute and CFACT, and co-author of the Pulitzer Prize nominated book “Clean Energy Exploitations.”
California’s emission mandates do an excellent job of increasing the cost of electricity, products, and fuels to its citizens.
In California, the economy depends on affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner electricity and fuels. Unfortunately, policymakers are driving up California’s electric and gas prices, and California now has the highest electricity and fuel prices in the nation.
Governor Newsom remains oblivious to the fact that “Mandatory Emissions (just in wealthy countries) To Achieve Net-Zero Is A Fool’s Game”. The Governor also remains reluctant, or incapable, of participating in conversations about Basic Energy Literacy questions.
Simply put, in the healthy and wealthy countries, every person, animal, or anything that causes emissions to rise could vanish off the face of the earth, or even die off, and global emissions will still explode in the coming years and decades ahead over the population and economic growth of China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Egypt, and Tanzania.
China, India, and Indonesia are three of the largest emissions generators, the same countries that do not have the financial wherewithal or technical capabilities to reduce or capture anything!
A careful examination of the global supply chain needs for electricity, products, and fuels for the population trends strongly suggests that “net zero” is a delusion as the end of crude oil that is manufactured into all the products and transportation fuels that built the world to eight billion, would be the end of civilization as “unreliable electricity” from breezes and sunshine cannot manufacture anything.
Today, California imports more electricity than any other US state, more than twice the amount of Virginia, the second largest importer of electricity. California typically receives between one-fifth to one-third of its electricity supply from outside of the state.
Over the last two decades, the state retired 11 coal-fired power plants that were providing continuous uninterruptible electricity.
The San Onfre Nuclear Generating Station closed in 2013, that was also providing continuous uninterruptible electricity.
Electricity prices have increased more than 98% over the last 15 years.
Texas and California have historically consumed the most gasoline in the United States. In 2021:
Texas consumed 38.55 million gallons of gasoline per day, which was 11% of the country’s total.
California consumed 33.31 million gallons per day, which was 9% of the country’s total.
Governor Newsom continues to support reductions in the supply of California’s special blend of fuel that is not manufactured in other states, while in-state demand continues to increase.
Refinery owners do not control the market price of crude oil, natural gas, gasoline and diesel fuel.
The price of a barrel of oil is set on the global market and subject to the fundamentals of supply and demand.
Other factors in the price of gas include the competitive conditions in the marketplace; costs associated with fuel distribution; and local, state and federal taxes.
In California, drivers pay over $1 per gallon in state taxes, fees, and greenhouse gas emission reduction program costs. Other states average just $0.32 per gallon.
Most of the branded stations across the U.S. are owned and operated by businesspeople who independently decide what to charge for a gallon of gasoline.
Today, CA fuel is about $2 MORE expensive per gallon than that in Mississippi.
More people, fewer fuel producers, and anti-oil policies have contributed to fuel producers leaving California. When in-state oil production was at its peak, there were 45 refineries in the state. Today: there are 16 open refineries and 29 closed refineries.
The state has one-third of the refineries it had in 1982. Meanwhile, California’s population has grown by over 60%, leaving the state susceptible to higher prices when the special fuel supplied by the state’s refineries is insufficient to meet demand.
California consumes 1.8 million barrels of oil per day, while only producing 463,000 barrels per day. Thus, the State relies on foreign crude oil imports to run much of the States’ economy. That dependence, via maritime transportation, from foreign nations for the state’s crude oil energy demands, has increased imported crude oil from 5 percent in 1992 to more than 60 percent today of total consumption. Last year, California spent more than$26 billion for foreign oil.
Newsom, by continually decreasing in-state oil production, continues to force California, the 4th largest economy in the world, to be the only state in contiguous America that imports most of its crude oil feedstock to refineries from foreign countries.
California’s growing dependency on other nations for crude oil is a serious national security risk for America since the State is home to 9 International airports, 41 Military airports, and 3 of the largest shipping ports in America.
Years after the governor’s order, California is finally set to ban oil and gas fracking. The state’s most recent move was a decisionby California’s Geologic Energy Management Division to deny new hydraulic fracturing permits on oil and gas wells. Then, in September 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation to ban new oil and gas wells within 3,200 feet of any occupied structure—a restriction so likely to kill the industry.
Determined to save the world from climate change, California, with 0.5% of the world’s population, continues to shut down its oil and gas industry, to set an example for the 99.5% of the world’s 8 billion that do NOT live in California, the State remains focused on MANDATING the world’s strictest emissions controls on vehicles, including a regulation that phases out new sales of gasoline-powered cars by 2035 regardless of cost to its residents.
The California assault on oil and gas has been unrelenting. In September 2023, California attorney general Rob Bonta sued Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and BP for allegedly causing climate change-related damages and deceiving the public.
Suing the ONLY supply chain source for the products and fuels DEMANDED by California’s 40 million residents is financial stupidity!
The California Attorney General is oblivious to reality: Never bite the hand that feeds you, without a replacement to support the products demanded by our materialistic society.
All the above “accomplishments” by Governor Newsom have resulted in raising the cost of electricity, fuels, and products made from fossil fuels. Not surprisingly, the recent Public Policy Institute of America (PPIC) survey revealed that Gavin Newsom is by far the MOST UNPOPULAR Governor in America.
California’s climate warriors may succeed in their quest to eliminate fossil fuels in the state, but it will come at a grievous cost to their fellow residents, and it’s an example that the world cannot possibly emulate, especially for the 80% of humanity in Africa, Asia and Latin America who still live on less than $10 a day – and the billions who still have little to no access to electricity.
Please share this information with teachers, students, and friends to encourage Energy Literacy conversations at the family dinner table.
Click this Link to Sign up for Energy Literacy from Ronald Stein
3: China unites oil giants to boost domestic production under Xi’s directive
As countries prepare for war, they store energy and supplies and help the supply lines for potential weak spots. Michael and I talked about their coal and LNG huge storage gains earlier in the week.
Giants CNPC, Sinopec, and seven other state-owned Chinese oil companies are set to collaborate under a new state body tasked with increasing oil and gas production in China. This move follows a directive from the country’s leader, Xi Jinping.
According to Reuters, China, as the world’s largest crude oil importer, meets nearly three-quarters of its energy needs through imports. However, to maintain domestic crude oil production levels exceeding 4 million barrels per day, which is essential for powering manufacturing activities and military services, they are investing billions of dollars.
In response, China has decided to establish a new state entity. Its main task will be bringing domestic oil producers and other state-owned companies together.
New drills
The state-owned energy group CNPC stated on Monday that this newly established unit will be responsible for exploring very deep oil and gas deposits and extracting more difficult-to-exploit unconventional resources.
Reuters reminds us that this decision is a response to President Xi Jinping’s call for the energy sector to create “new productive forces” that will contribute to increasing the country’s energy security.
Joining forces
The state oil companies, which will play a crucial role in this process, will be tasked with exploiting deep onshore drills and accelerating the development of offshore oil fields. These efforts aim to increase oil production, which has grown by 2% annually since 2018.
China is expanding its gas capacities. Oil and gas giant CNOOC is accelerating work in the South China Sea region. It plans to develop the deposits there, where resources are estimated to be as much as 991 billion cubic metres (35 trillion cubic feet). Gas production is expected to be ready as early as 2025.
China has also been working on increasing shale gas production for years. It is the country with the most significant such deposits globally, estimated to be around 36,800 billion cubic metres (1,300 trillion cubic feet).
Among the companies that will play a crucial role in this process are the country’s two dominant oil and gas producers—CNPC and Sinopec. However, the newly created entity will include seven other state groups, including China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, steel group Baowu, equipment manufacturer Sinomach, Dongfang Electric Group, and Minmetals.
4: Native American Group Sues Biden Admin For Restricting Alaskan Oil And Gas Production
This is another example of the overreach of an activist government using Legislation through Regulations and it will only help the native Alaskans.
A coalition of 23 Native American orgs is suing the Biden admin for restricting oil and gas development in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve.
A Native American group is suing the Biden administration over one of its most aggressive moves against Alaskan oil and gas development. [emphasis, links added]
Voice of the Arctic Iñupiat (VOICE), an organization representing 23 Native American organizations in Alaska, filed suit against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) on Friday over the agencies’ decision to massively restrict oil and gas development in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A).
VOICE is alleging that the Biden administration ignored Congress’ intent for the NPR-A and walked over the concerns and interests of Native Americans who stand to gain from NPR-A development.
The NPR-A is a 23-million-acre area in Alaska’s North Slope region that former President Warren Harding first designated as an emergency fuel reserve for the U.S. Navy before being transferred to BLM’s control in 1976, according to BLM.
While the reserve has massive amounts of oil and gas to offer, DOI moved into September 2023 to limit future oil and gas leasing on 13 million acres of the NPR-A by designating that acreage as “special areas,” and also to fully ban future leasing on nearly 11 million NPR-A acres.
“The Final NPR-A Rule is directly contrary to Congress’s stated purpose in creating the NPR-A, which was to increase domestic supplies of oil, and Congress’s mandate that BLM conduct ‘an expeditious program of competitive leasing of oil and gas’ in the NPR-A,” the lawsuit states.
“For over 40 years BLM managed the NPR-A consistent with these Congressional directives, in regular consultation with local stakeholders, and successfully balanced the NPR-A’s primary purpose of furthering oil and gas exploration and development with appropriate conservation and protection measures. Not anymore.
“The Final NPR-A Rule is a complete departure from this long-standing management practice that will unilaterally impede economic development on the North Slope without Congressional authorization.”
The NPR-A provides crucial revenue to local Native American communities to pay for things like education, healthcare, and sewage systems, according to VOICE, which credits wealth created by oil and gas development with significantly increasing the life expectancy for Native Americans living in the region.
“Our complaint speaks for the North Slope Iñupiat’s voices whom the federal government has chosen to silence, stonewall, and scorn since it blindsided us with its unilateral mandates in September 2023,” Nagruk Harcharek, president of VOICE, said in a statement about the lawsuit.
“It is unfortunate that we have been forced to turn to the courts for resolution on this seriously flawed rule and the process that produced it. If the administration would have meaningfully engaged with the North Slope Iñupiat, we would likely not be in this position today.”
Meanwhile, the Biden administration has characterized its NPR-A actions as beneficial to Native American communities.
DOI said that “Tribal Nations have occupied lands now within the NPR-A since time immemorial” and that numerous communities “continue to rely on subsistence activities in the reserve” in its September 2023 press release accompanying its proposal.
Top image via AP YouTube/screencap