US and Global Energy Security: Where We Are Falling Short
If it wasn't for my editor Echo Carthright, I would have titled this article the Energy Transition: All the Wrong Stuff. That said, I really believe the efficiency and capacity factors of current power technologies are insufficient to achieve net zero carbon emissions in most countries. Besides, a fossilize National Environmental Policy Act in the US and similar laws in other countries, NEPA will stifle construction of needed projects even if they are renewable energy and clean electric transmission.
Business as usual will not do. What's needed is serious basic and applied net zero energy research (similar to what was used to develop mRNA Covid-19 vaccines) that revolutionizes power technologies and environmental impact assessment. The latter includes standardized mitigation for most energy infrastructure projects rather than a bespoke process that makes believe this is the first time a federl agency is evaluating a given project, whether it be hydropwer, wind, solar, electric transmission, natual gas pipeline, LNG or nuclar power project. Download the full article in the Climate and Energy Jourmal. Read more
Is It Time to Rethink Gas Storage and Pipelines?
The following post was co-authored by Russo on Energy Partner, Tom Russo.
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LNG Peak Shaving Plants costing between $12 million and $200 million are a proven alternative to gas pipelines and large underground storage facilities. They can also ensure deliverability to gas-fired power plants for short periods during extreme weather conditions when natural gas prices peak or where pipeline capacity is constrained. Read more
'People Think if They Can Stop Pipelines They Can Stop Fracking,' says Tom Russo
Tom Russo, who founded energy consultancy Russo on Energy after spending 30 years at FERC, spoke to Bloomberg's Christopher Long about the state of pipeline build-out in the U.S, and the future of the U.S. natural gas market. The interview also appears in Bloomberg Brief- Power & Gas. Read more
I Think I Figured Out How to Make Sense of the Clean Power Plan
As an energy expert, it’s difficult to escape news and commentary about EPA’s Final Clean Power Plan. However, I’m not a lawyer, but someone interested in how to make sense of the plan when it comes to cybersecurity and energy markets. More important, I’ve asked myself if the Clean Power Plan is just a speed bump or really a rule that is masking a megatrend. I’m leaning toward the latter when it comes to the energy sector, but have specific ideas when it comes to cybersecurity and ensuring reliable secure supplies and reasonable prices of electricity, natural gas, crude oil and refined petroleum products. Read more
