The Americas – Page 2 – Global Power Law & Policy

What a Clean Future Means For Maritime

Mar 05 2021

By: Brody Garland, Cliff L. Rothenstein, Laurie B. Purpuro, Darrell L. Conner, Mark Ruge, and Elle M. Stuart

As the Biden Administration finds its stride in the first 100 days, we are starting to see movement on several of its key priorities. Chief among them: pivoting to a clean energy economy. A campaign that promised investments of up to $2 trillion in alternative energy saw progress this week, as House Democrats, led by Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee Chairman Paul Tonko (D-NY), and Energy Subcommittee Chairman Bobby Rush (D-IL), announced a down payment on those hopes with the introduction of the CLEAN Future Act. In our previous K&L Gates alert from January, our team discussed how the U.S. maritime industry should expect the issues of clean energy investment and climate resiliency to rise to the very top of the White House’s legislative agenda. This week’s rollout of the CLEAN Future Act further confirms the importance of these priorities, and the far-reaching implications of the reforms offered for the transportation and maritime sectors.

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Case Notes: Brazos Electric’s Bankruptcy Filing

Mar 04 2021

By: Michael B. Lubic and Sumner C. Fontaine

On 1 March 2021, Brazos Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (“Brazos”) commenced a chapter 11 bankruptcy case in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Brazos is a Texas-based non-profit electric cooperative corporation that provides wholesale electricity to its members, which, in turn, provide retail electricity to Texas consumers. Due to the freezing of essential electric generation and natural gas pipeline equipment during the historic winter storm that blanketed Texas in mid-February 2021 and the resulting spike in wholesale electricity prices, Brazos received approximately $2.1 billion in settlement charge invoices from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (“ERCOT”). These invoices, promptly issued during and immediately following the storm, required payment within a matter of days. In a declaration accompanying the voluntary bankruptcy petition, Mr. Clifton Karnei, Brazos’ Executive Vice President and General Manager, described Brazos’ position following the sudden, dramatic spike in electricity costs as a “liquidity trap that [Brazos] cannot solve with its current balance sheet.”

Brazos’ first-day pleadings explain that its financial position and need for bankruptcy protection directly result from the effects of February’s winter storm on Texas’ electricity market, specifically on the relationship between Brazos and ERCOT. ERCOT serves a clearinghouse role in one of Texas’ three main energy grids, the Texas Interconnection, which covers 213 of the 254 counties in the state, and is responsible for procuring energy on behalf of its members while also administering the reliable operation of the wholesale electricity market. To buy and sell wholesale electricity, as Brazos does, ERCOT requires market participants to have sufficient available credit (calculated using a metric based on the participant’s credit limit plus a percentage of tangible net worth, among other factors) to support such participant’s total exposure. The effects of February’s winter storm on the Texas power grid caused prices to spike to $9,000 per megawatt-hour. The cut-off cap was set on 16 February by ERCOT as demand soared while the state’s electricity supply declined. For comparison, ERCOT’s monthly prices for wholesale electricity from November 2020 through January 2021 ranged between $21 to $29 per megawatt-hour. On 16 February, and each of the succeeding three days, ERCOT made collateral calls to Brazos for hundreds of millions of dollars each day, for a total of approximately $1.5 billion in collateral calls. Brazos filed a notice of force majeure on 25 February, informing ERCOT that it would not satisfy the invoices due to an event outside of Brazos’ reasonable control. Brazos filed for bankruptcy protection less than one week later.

As of the petition date, Brazos estimates the total principal amount of its funded debt obligations to be approximately $2.04 billion, with $1.81 billion of such debt being secured promissory notes financed through the Federal Financing Bank. Brazos has fully drawn its $500 million unsecured revolving facility with Bank of America, N.A. and other lenders. Mr. Karnei states that Brazos’ goals in commencing the chapter 11 case are to preserve its ongoing business operations and propose a reorganization plan to maximize creditors’ recovery. The first day hearing in front of Judge David Jones is scheduled for 3 March at 2:00 p.m. (EST).

Washington State Legislature Considers First of Its Kind State-Level Natural Gas Ban

Feb 04 2021

By: David Benson, Buck Endemann, Elizabeth Thomas, Sandra Safro, and Benjamin Mayer

Fossil-based natural gas may be headed for a reckoning, at least in Washington State. Not long ago, natural gas was seen by many as the key “bridge fuel” necessary to transition our society away from oil and coal. Natural gas has its upsides; most significantly, it burns more efficiently and emits fewer pollutants than coal.¹ Yet burning natural gas still emits greenhouse gases (GHG), including methane, a potent climate pollutant. According to EPA, methane accounts for approximately 10% of the GHG emissions in the United States.² That is a problem for states like Washington that have called for zero carbon emissions in the power sector by 2045 and have also enacted laws aimed at reducing GHG emissions throughout other sectors.

Distinguished Speaker Series with FERC Commissioner Neil Chatterjee

Jan 19 2021

Tuesday
26 January 2021
3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET

Please join K&L Gates for an open conversation with FERC Commissioner Neil Chatterjee, as we discuss energy market trends, infrastructure development, renewables, and the energy transition.

Commissioner Neil Chatterjee was nominated to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by President Donald J. Trump in May 2017 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in August 2017. He served as Chairman from August 2017 to December 2017. He was again named Chairman on October 24, 2018, and served in that role through November 5, 2020.

Since joining the Commission, Chatterjee has championed strategic initiatives reflecting his firm commitment to ensuring that FERC regulations and actions reflect changes in today’s energy landscape. Additionally, Chatterjee has made energy infrastructure a top priority.

Prior to his tenure at the Commission, Chatterjee served as an advisor to Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY), where he played an integral role in the passage of major energy, highway and agriculture legislation. Chatterjee previously worked as a principal in government relations for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and as an aide to House Republican Conference Chairwoman Deborah Pryce (R-OH). He began his career in Washington, D.C., as a staff member on the House Committee on Ways and Means.

A native of Lexington, Kentucky, Chatterjee is a graduate of St. Lawrence University and the University of Cincinnati, College of Law. Chatterjee resides with his wife and three children in Virginia.

The program will be moderated by K&L Gates’ Policy & Regulatory Practice Area Leader, David Wochner, and Power Practice Group Coordinator, Elizabeth Crouse.

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The Service’s CO-Balancing Act: Final Carbon Capture Credit Regulations Target Broad Taxpayer Implementation and Administrability

Jan 08 2021

By: Elizabeth C. Crouse, Aaron C. Meyer, and Mary Burke Baker

Amid the headline-grabbing events of 6 January 2021, the U.S. Department of Treasury released final regulations under Code Section 45Q. Code Section 45Q provides for a U.S. federal income tax credit at varying rates to taxpayers that participate in various aspects of the process of sequestering carbon oxide and disposing of it in secure geologic storage, use it as a tertiary injectant in a qualified enhanced oil or natural gas recovery project, or utilize it in certain processes.

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The Sun Also Rises: Congress Votes to Stimulate the Renewable Energy, Efficiency, Carbon Capture, and Storage Industries

Dec 23 2020

By: Elizabeth C. Crouse, Mary Burke Baker, Laurie B. Purpuro, Elias B. Hinckley, and David P. Hattery

On 21 December 2020, the shortest day of the year in North America, the U.S. Congress passed a historic stimulus package. Among its more than 5000 pages, the bill includes important, if not quite historic, clean energy-related provisions ranging from new and extended tax incentives to government programs for research and development. Assuming the legislation becomes law, a new day for U.S. carbon capture, offshore wind, and many more renewable energy technologies may dawn.

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K&L Gates’ Energy Storage Handbook: Volume 6

Nov 16 2020

Now Available Online!

As a courtesy to our clients and friends, the K&L Gates Power practice has updated the Energy Storage Handbook.

This Energy Storage Handbook is designed to be a basic primer on what energy storage is, how federal and state governments regulate it, and what sorts of issues are encountered when such projects are financed and developed. While this Handbook is not meant to be a definitive catalog of every energy storage law and issue existing in today’s marketplace, we have endeavored to highlight the most common development and regulatory matters our clients face and the industries we serve. We will continue to update this Handbook periodically as additional states and stakeholders continue to address the implementation of energy storage resources in the marketplace.

We hope you find it useful and welcome your feedback.

New in Volume 6:

Completely refreshed FERC and ISO/RTO sections, including FERC Order 2222.
Hydrogen storage? It’s getting close.
Avoiding disputes in battery supply agreements.
New states, including Virginia and South Carolina.
The latest with PJM’s capacity rules.

To view the full Handbook, please follow the link below:

ENERGY STORAGE HANDBOOK: VOLUME 6

Eye on the Election: Potential Impact on Tax Incentives for Power and Related Industries

Oct 20 2020

Authors: Elizabeth C. Crouse, Mary Burke Baker, Jared D. Mobley, Joel D. Almquist, and Lauren M. Flynn

There is little doubt that the outcome of the 3 November federal election will be consequential for much of America, and that the consequences are likely to be very different depending on who sits in the Oval Office and the Senate after the inauguration. Of all the industries that employ Americans, the power and related industries such as oil and gas, carbon capture, and electric vehicles may experience the starkest consequences.

CLICK HERE to read the full alert.

Renewables on Tribal Land: Addressing Environmental and Economic Equity on the Path to a Clean Energy Economy

Oct 01 2020

Authors: Bart J. Freedman, Teresa A. Hill, and Benjamin A. Mayer

Demand for renewable energy projects has never been greater. The newest, latest trend is the push for renewable energy projects with positive social impacts and benefits to marginalized communities. Indeed, some of the most significant consumers and supporters of renewable and carbon-free power are now making environmental and economic justice a central focus and condition of their use of and investments in clean energy projects.¹ Utility leaders have identified racial justice as a top concern in the transition to a clean energy economy.² Key stakeholders and influential civil rights organizations, including the NAACP, have created toolkits and are advocating for just energy policies and practices.³ The Rocky Mountain Institute announced this summer that it will be launching a residential solar program to expand the use of solar in communities of color.⁴ At the same time, clean energy transition legislation throughout the country is accelerating the need for carbon-free resources, including wind, solar, and storage projects, to replace traditional fossil fuel resources, such as coal, oil, and natural gas, to power the grid.⁵

U.S. House of Representatives Demonstrates Support for Fusion Energy

Sep 30 2020

Authors: Tim L. Peckinpaugh, Michael L. O’Neill, and Abraham Johns

Fusion energy continues to build support among U.S. policymakers. On 24 September 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a program for fusion energy research and commercialization as part of a legislative package covering a wide range of energy topics.¹ On fusion energy, Reps. Conor Lamb (D-PA) and Lori Trahan (D-MA) authored an amendment authorizing the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to pursue a range of programmatic goals, including a public-private partnership where federal funds will be available for private companies developing fusion energy solutions.²

Now attention turns towards the U.S. Senate, which has not set a date for considering a similar energy package. With scheduling constraints imposed by the upcoming 2020 election, it is not clear when the Senate might consider energy legislation and when, or if, this legislation will eventually be presented to the President for his approval to become federal law. But approval of these fusion provisions by the House of Representatives, especially the public-private partnership, signals that support for the commercial fusion energy industry is increasing in the U.S. Congress.

This article will outline the scope of the fusion energy provisions of the legislation, briefly analyze the provisions standing up the public-private partnership program, and outline next steps for codifying this fusion energy legislation as federal law.

Catagory:The Americas