WRAP UP

Tamar Hallerman
GHG Monitor
07/27/12

IN CONGRESS

Lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Energy and Power Subcommittee approved a bill this week that would essentially wind down the Department of Energy’s loan guarantee program. The “No More Solyndras Act,” which was reported out of the subcommittee largely on a party-line vote, would bar DOE from approving applications for loan guarantees submitted after Dec. 31, 2011 under the program that helped back up the now-bankrupt solar panel manufacturer Solyndra. The legislation would also enact new restrictions on applications submitted before Jan. 1, 2012. During the markup, members killed an amendment offered by Subcommittee Ranking Member Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) that would have exempted carbon capture and storage projects from the ban on new loan guarantees. The subcommittee also thwarted other attempts from Democrats to save portions of the program. A full committee markup has not yet been scheduled, although the measure is expected to be considered quickly. The legislation is not expected to be considered in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

AT EPA

The Environmental Protection Agency does not maintain complete information on the New Source Review (NSR) permits it has issued to fossil fuel-fired electricity generated units, the Government Accountability Office said in an assessment released this week. The GAO pointed out that despite a 2006 recommendation from the National Research Service, EPA does not maintain centralized or complete information on the permits it has issued. “EPA has the opportunity to review and comment on every draft NSR permit issued by state and local permitting agencies, but it does not compile data on whether the permitting agencies address EPA’s comments in final permits,” the GAO said in the report. “The absence of more complete information on NSR permitting makes it difficult to know which units have obtained NSR permits or to assess how state and local permitting agencies vary from EPA in their interpretations of NSR requirements.” The GAO recommended that EPA consider ways to develop a centralized source of data for all of the NSR permits issued to electricity generating units.

ON THE INTERNATIONAL FRONT

The European Commission this week proposed delaying scheduled auctions of CO2 allowances on the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme in an effort to bolster the price of carbon credits as they continue to drop. The price of allowances is currently hovering around €7 ($8.50) per ton of CO2, not high enough to incentivize companies to limit emissions. The price is also far below the €25-€40 ($31-$49) range that economists say is needed to prompt investment in cleaner forms of energy like renewables and carbon capture and storage. The EC proposed delaying or freezing some auctions between 2013 to 2020 to prop up the price of allowances, a move that is considered relatively minor compared to other changes that were being proposed. Nevertheless, CCS advocates are hoping the delays will boost the price of CO2 credits, which would subsequently earn the EC more money to put towards CCS projects in the second phase of its New Entrants Reserve competition.