News

America’s Military Depends on Minerals That China Controls 3/16/2023

America’s Military Depends on Minerals That China Controls

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Emily H. Holland, and Fellow Joshua Busby write about how rethinking supply chains is vital for U.S. security.  The crucial role of supply chains and logistics in military operations. Simply stated, supply chains win wars and save lives. Materials need to be in the right place at the right time.  March 16, 2023.

The Global Competition for Critical Minerals with Morgan Bazilian 3/16/2023

The Global Competition for Critical Minerals with Morgan Bazilian

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on the Energy Security Cubed podcast discussing the shift to clean energy, and how America must rethink supply chains amid the growing global competition over critical minerals.  March 16, 2023.

How to get the minerals we need in a clean energy future 3/15/2023

How to get the minerals we need in a clean energy future

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how securing the critical minerals we need for a green energy future will require cleaning up mining practices, boosting recycling and innovating to be less dependent on them altogether.  Technological innovation can help improve the environmental footprint of these processes.  March 15, 2023.

Filling the hole Silicon Valley Bank left in the climate tech ecosystem 3/15/2023

Filling the hole Silicon Valley Bank left in the climate tech ecosystem

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about the Silicon Valley Bank playing a critical role in the climate tech industry, particularly for early-stage companies. The bank’s recent collapse will be felt even though its depositors will get their money back, as announced by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Still, one can expect some project investments to be delayed and the financial costs to startups to rise as a new risk appetite emerges.  An important silver lining should be that more banks may eventually get more comfortable with supporting climate tech, which can help grow this funding “ecosystem” considerably and eventually lead to more investment. March 15, 2023.

EPA announces plans to regulate toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” for the first time, dozens of Colorado water systems affected 3/15/2023

EPA announces plans to regulate toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” for the first time, dozens of Colorado water systems affected

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins was interviewed for this article about how for the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency is proposing national legal limits on per- and polyflouroalkyl substances — or PFAS — in public water supplies. The proposed changes could affect dozens of public water utilities across the Centennial State. March 15, 2023

The Regulation of CO2 Pipelines and Ensuring Public Safety 3/15/2023

The Regulation of CO2 Pipelines and Ensuring Public Safety

Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield and student researcher Dwi Nuraini Siregar write that the 45Q tax credit is anticipated to play an important role in accelerating the expansion of the CO2 pipeline network in the United States by providing a financial incentive for businesses to invest in carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies and supporting infrastructure.The Inflation Reduction Act’s amplification of this credit has already increased the number of CCUS projects. This activity, in addition to continuing demand for CO2 for oil and gas operations, will require an expansion of the US CO2 pipeline network. March 15, 2023

EPA’s proposed change on PFAS limits would deem dozens of Colorado water sources unsafe 3/14/2023

EPA’s proposed change on PFAS limits would deem dozens of Colorado water sources unsafe

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins contributes to this article on how water sources across Colorado contain potentially hazardous levels of the toxins under the new standard.  Dozens of water sources across Colorado previously thought to be safe would now violate the federal maximum contaminant level for PFAS, or toxic “forever chemicals,” under a new standard proposed Tuesday. March 14 2023

Christopher Higgins recognized for PFAS research 3/14/2023

Christopher Higgins recognized for PFAS research

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins and PhD candidate Stefanie Shea were co-authors of paper honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers on on poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS.  The winning paper detailed research on the use of bench-scale experiments to measure and evaluate the desorption rate kinetics from a vadose zone soil exposed decades ago to aqueous film-forming foams (AFFFs).  March 14, 2023.

Colorado School of Mines part of multi-university team selected by DoD for social science research 3/13/2023

Colorado School of Mines part of multi-university team selected by DoD for social science research

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Faculty Fellow Mark Deinert will be contributing to research on critical minerals, battery technology, and reducing dependence on hostile suppliers in the clean energy supply chain along with Payne Institute Fellow Professor Joshua Busby, LBJ School of Public Affairs and the Strauss Center for International Security and Law, University of Texas, Austin and Professor Emily Holland, U.S. Naval War College.  March 13, 2023.  

The massive quest for the minerals we need in a clean energy future 3/8/2023

The massive quest for the minerals we need in a clean energy future

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how the rush toward a clean energy future means digging, extracting and processing the Earth’s resources faster and better than ever before.  He says that there is no fundamental medium or even long-term constraint on the resources themselves, but says there is a constraint on investment into mining and then the associated permitting and social license to operate. March 8, 2023. 

Aurora, other communities await first US limits on ‘forever chemicals’ spills at military sites 3/2/2023

Aurora, other communities await first US limits on ‘forever chemicals’ spills at military sites

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins  contributes to this article and states that “It is very clear there is PFOS and PFOA (on Buckley) and they are at orders of magnitude above the health advisory — which is really not a surprise, being that that is very typical for a foam-fire-fighting site.” He went on to add that this is a national-scale issue that is being addressed everywhere in the country. March 2, 2023.

Carbon capture utilization and storage in review: Sociotechnical implications for a carbon reliant world 3/2/2023

Carbon capture utilization and storage in review: Sociotechnical implications for a carbon reliant world

Payne Institute Fellow Steve Griffiths, Director Morgan Bazilian, CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield, student researchers Hope McLaughlin, Maia Menefee, Austin Kinzer, Tobias Hull, along with Benjamin K.Sovacool, and Jinsoo Kim write about how the decarbonization of industry and industrial systems is a pressing challenge given the relative lack of low-carbon options available for “hard to decarbonize” sectors such as steelmaking, cement manufacturing, and chemical production. Carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) represents a promising and crosscutting solution to this formidable problem. This review takes a systematic and sociotechnical perspective to examine how CCUS can support industrial decarbonization and relevant associated technical, economic, and social factors.  March 2, 2023.

How American energy helped Europe best Putin 2/23/2023

How American energy helped Europe best Putin

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how Moscow bet its energy shipments to Europe would stifle the opposition to its invasion of Ukraine. Instead, it sparked a backlash that has dramatically altered global trade.  Instead, a flow of American energy has given the United States a growing role in the continent’s economy, while pushing Russia to the side. February 23, 2023.

Better methane accounting will mean a faster and cheaper energy transition 2/22/2023

Better methane accounting will mean a faster and cheaper energy transition

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler and Responsible Gas Program Manager Simon Lomax write about how the push for the oil and gas industry to reduce its methane emissions is on.  Methane, the major component of natural gas, is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year timeframe. In the U.S., the oil and gas industry is the second largest contributor of methane emissions after agriculture. According to the International Energy Agency, the energy sector globally was responsible for 135 million metric tons of methane emissions in 2022 2022 — an increase from the year before.  February 22, 2023.

What happens if Suncor’s Colorado refinery closes? Less pollution, loss of jobs and tax revenue — and a big cleanup. 2/21/2023

What happens if Suncor’s Colorado refinery closes? Less pollution, loss of jobs and tax revenue — and a big cleanup. 

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about how Suncor’s Colorado refinery and what would happen if it closes.  There’s no indication it’ll happen anytime soon, but neighbors and environmental advocates continue to press issue.  The suggestion surfaces almost every time Suncor Energy is in the news in Colorado.  Close the refinery. It comes up during permit hearings or when the company is tagged with another air pollution violation or, most recently, with the extended shutdown of its Commerce City operations.  February 21, 2023.

Night-Time Detection of Subpixel Emitters with VIIRS Mid-Wave Infrared Bands M12–M13. 2/21/2023

Night-Time Detection of Subpixel Emitters with VIIRS Mid-Wave Infrared Bands M12–M13

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Research Associate Mikhail Zhizhin, Director Christopher D. Elvidge and Alexey Poyda talk about a new approach to subpixel infrared (IR) emitter detection in VIIRS mid-wave (MWIR) infrared bands M12–M13 at night, based on the presence of a tightly clustered background diagonal present in full granule scattergrams of M12 versus M13 radiances. This diagonal is found universally in night-time VIIRS data collected worldwide. The diagonal feature is absent during the day due to solar reflectance. The existence of the diagonal is attributed to close spacing in the bandpass centers of the VIIRS’ two MWIR bands.  Februay 21, 2023.

Change Gfanz to save it 2/21/2023

Change Gfanz to save it

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler writes about how investor alliance must reconcile push for decarbonisation with responsibility to maximise returns for clients. A widely circulated report in mid-January chastises Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (Gfanz) members for continuing to lend to coal and, oil and gas development. February 21, 2023.

The Global Crux of the Energy Transition: Making Sure Everyone Benefits From the Coming Mining Boom 2/19/2023

The Global Crux of the Energy Transition: Making Sure Everyone Benefits From the Coming Mining Boom

Payne Institute Global Energy Future Initiative Director John Bradford and Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jessica Smith write about how calls to quickly transition from oil and gas to renewable energy sources grow more urgent, a harsh reality is setting in.  The amount of raw materials needed to build out solar panels, wind farms, charging stations, batteries and the like is enormous.  The other, often overlooked requirement of the energy transition is the infrastructure needed to manage carbon capture, utilization, and storage.  Many of the materials needed for these two infrastructure builds are the same, which only amplifies the challenge. February 19, 2023.

Opinion: To regulate methane emissions, Colorado needs clear data 2/15/2023

Opinion: To regulate methane emissions, Colorado needs clear data

Payne Institute Faculty Fellows Jim Crompton and Jennifer Miskimins write about how greenhouse gas reporting from upstream oil and gas production isn’t new; it’s been required in the United States and Canada since 2010. The long-accepted method of understanding these emissions from industrial sources is a well-established process based on estimates.  But recent academic studies have cast doubt on the accuracy of this approach. Now, regulatory agencies are moving towards measuring and moving away from estimating emissions.  Yet simply collecting data on methane is not enough. We need to understand the context of where measurements are taken from production operations, what the limitations of new measurement technologies are, and how to use data to tell an accurate and actionable story.  February 15, 2023.

Conflict and Copper 2/13/2023

Conflict and Copper

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Payne Institute Research Associate Aaron Malone write about how the global demand for copper has climbed dramatically in recent years, a trend that is likely to continue apace. Peru is the world’s second largest producer of copper. Yet the clamor for copper is an opportunity that the nation is unable to seize upon at present. Peru is now undergoing severe political upheaval and protests that have brought new attention to the underlying risks in extractive industries and supply chains. Production cuts stemming from protests and blockades could amount to 3 percent of global copper output.  February 13, 2023.

A critical review of natural gas emissions certification in the United States

A critical review of natural gas emissions certification in the United States

Payne Institute Faculty Fellows Jim Crompton and Ben Gilbert, write how concerns about the climate and local air impacts of emissions from the oil and gas supply chain have caused a reevaluation of natural gas’ role in a low carbon future. In response, some producers, large purchasers, and investors have pushed to certify some gas deliveries as ‘responsibly-sourced’ or ‘green’, which could give rise to a differentiated gas market. Third-party oil and gas certifications have been under development for several years, however, their focus has historically been on a broader set of societal impacts and risks, and they have typically focused on the upstream sector. Recent advances have been focused on methane emissions and supply chains into the certification process. In this paper they provide a critical review of several prominent natural gas certification processes.  February 10, 2023.

Towards multi-scale measurement-informed methane inventories: reconciling bottom-up inventories with top-down measurements using continuous monitoring systems 2/10/2023

Towards multi-scale measurement-informed methane inventories: reconciling bottom-up inventories with top-down measurements using continuous monitoring systems

Payne Institute Student Researcher Will Daniels, Fellow Arvind Ravikumar and Faculty Fellow Dorit Hammerling write this article that discusses how government policies and corporate strategies aimed at reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sector increasingly rely on measurement-informed emissions inventories, as conventional bottom-up inventories poorly capture temporal variability and the heavy-tailed nature of methane emissions. This work is based on an 11-month methane measurement campaign at oil and gas production sites. They find that basin and operator-level top-down measurements show lower methane emissions during end-of-project than during baseline 9-months earlier. February 10, 2023.

Company moves to Colorado with asteroid mining in its sights 2/8/2023

Company moves to Colorado with asteroid mining in its sights

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Angel Abbud-Madrid is featured on this podcast to talk about the new era of space exploration. February 8, 2023

Nature-Based Carbon Offset Momentum Defies Critics 2/7/2023

Nature-Based Carbon Offset Momentum Defies Critics

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler writes about how a recent trend towards offset crediting at a jurisdictional level is raising funds at a much larger scale than traditional project-based programmes.  Climate solutions company Anew Climate in January announced it will deploy a $640mn investment to anchor social enterprise Terra Global Capital’s Terra Bella NBS Carbon Pool. The scheme seeks to preserve forests by committing to purchase carbon offset credits. It is part of a recent movement in offset crediting to work at a jurisdictional level (i.e., an entire country or region) and thus is raising funds at a much larger scale than traditional project-based programmes. February 7, 2023.

Colorado School of Mines, American Gem Trade Association unveil strategic relationship 2/7/2023

Colorado School of Mines, American Gem Trade Association unveil strategic relationship

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Nicole Smith will lead the effort in a multiyear project, that will examine supply chain for at least 10 colored gemstones — sapphire, ruby, emerald, tanzanite and more – supply chains in Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, Nigeria and Sri Lanka. Different types of mining and sizes of operations will be examined as well as different environmental and social contexts. In each location, data on the top colored gemstone export will be analyzed — a minimum of 10 different colored stones will be scrutinized.  February 7, 2023.  

A forward looking perspective on the cement and concrete industry: Implications of growth and development in the Global South 2/3/2023

A forward looking perspective on the cement and concrete industry: Implications of growth and development in the Global South

Payne Institute Fellow Steve Griffiths, writes about how the cement and concrete industry serves as the foundation for modern infrastructure. Hence, it has a massive global impact on both energy demand and carbon emissions and so is a key focus of industrial decarbonization efforts. The relationship between cement and concrete production and societal development is made more apparent as a result of the limited degree of international trading of these products. 2/3/2023.

Managing the future of water — in the West and beyond 2/2/2023

Managing the future of water — in the West and beyond

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Adrienne Marshall is among Mines alumni and researchers that are at the forefront of U.S. water management challenges, whether that’s through mitigation, water reuse, new water systems or alternative renewable energy systems. The Colorado River is the lifeblood of the southwestern U.S., with nearly 40 million Americans in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming relying on the Colorado River System for drinking water and to support farming and recreation. However, the Colorado River Basin water supply is dwindling, leading to water management challenges and an uncertain future of water in the West. February 2, 2023.

With EV batteries in demand, some in GOP say ‘no’ to China 1/30/2023

With EV batteries in demand, some in GOP say ‘no’ to China

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about how meeting U.S. goals for electric vehicle adoption may require supplies from China.  As Americans snap up electric cars, some Republicans are adopting a tough-on-China stance even for projects that would create jobs for Americans and perhaps advance U.S. battery-manufacturing prowess.  Experts say the Chinese presence in the electric-vehicle market is already nearly ubiquitous, that corporate partnership between Chinese and foreign automakers, including those in the U.S., is standard and that reaching America’s climate goals without Chinese technology would be exceedingly difficult.  January 30, 2023.

Musical chairs: Analyzing the evolution of stakeholders in Peru’s mining sector through dialogue tables 1/30/2023

Musical chairs: Analyzing the evolution of stakeholders in Peru’s mining sector through dialogue tables

Payne Institute Research Associates Alicia Polo y La Borda Cavero and Aaron Malone, Yezelia Caceres Cabana, and Ronaldo Quinta Soto write about how mining is an important but often contentious activity. Despite substantial research on mining dynamics and conflict, there has been less analysis of the stakeholders. This paper centers stakeholders and analyzes the case of Peru, asking: Who are the stakeholders in dialogues and conflicts around Peru’s mining sector? How have stakeholders changed over time, and how do they vary across contexts?  January 30, 2023.

IFC Net Zero Roadmap for Copper and Nickel Value Chains 1/30/2023

IFC Net Zero Roadmap for Copper and Nickel Value Chains

The Payne Institute is a collaborator in the creation of the IFC Net Zero Roadmap for Copper and Nickel Value Chains.  The Roadmap is a net zero transition guide that sets out a science-based decarbonization strategy for copper and nickel mining value chain actors. It highlights how mining sector actors can lower their emissions footprints, including scopes 1 and 2, and a subset of scope 3. It shows how to take advantage of the growth in demand coming from end users such as EVs, solar, wind, and storage. And it demonstrates how a net zero strategy offers opportunities to improve broader ESG impacts and performance, access sustainable finance, and contribute to a just energy transition.  January 30, 2023.  

Pathways to net-zero emissions from aviation 1/30/2023

Pathways to net-zero emissions from aviation

Candelaria Bergero, Payne Institute Fellow Greer Gosnell, Dolf Gielen, Seungwoo Kang, Director Morgan Bazilian and Steven J. Davis write about how international climate goals imply reaching net-zero global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by roughly mid-century (and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the century). Among the most difficult emissions to avoid will be those from aviation given the industry’s need for energy-dense liquid fuels that lack commercially competitive substitutes and the difficult-to-abate non-CO2 radiative forcing. Here we systematically assess pathways to net-zero emissions aviation.  January 30, 2023.

Policy Guidelines for Accelerating the Energy Transition in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from the Mobile Telecoms Sector 1-26-2023

Policy Guidelines for Accelerating the Energy Transition in Sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from the Mobile Telecoms Sector

Payne Institute ESG Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how Sub-Saharan Africa faces immense challenges in its bid to attract capital to develop its energy resources and grow its economy. Relative to the pace of market penetration of cell phone services in the recent past, the growth in the share of the population with access to electricity has been rather dismal. The comparisons between both sectors are not new and have been made repeatedly over the years. This commentary recognizes that there are substantial differences between both sectors that make direct comparisons and a transfer of policy lessons difficult.  January 26, 2023.

Are we about to see a mining boom for EV minerals in the West? 1/26/2023

Are we about to see a mining boom for EV minerals in the West?

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this podcast discussing critical minerals and mining in the West. Lange directs the mineral and energy economics program at the Colorado School of Mines and is an expert in mining economics. He discusses what’s going on in the world of critical minerals—specifically those used in electric vehicle batteries.  These include cobalt, copper, lithium, and nickel and are mostly mined overseas, but we do have some of them here in the U.S. And we could see a big increase in domestic mining for them thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, which included subsidies aimed at stimulating mining at home. January 26, 2023.

Financing Utility Scale RE in Developing Countries 1/25/2023

Financing Utility Scale RE in Developing Countries

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler on a podcast discussing how multilateral development banks (MDBs) like the World Bank are increasingly under pressure to find ways that more capital can move into emerging market renewable energy projects.  Brad walks the listeners through some recent Energy Transition Mechanisms (or ETMs) and Just Energy Transition (or JET) refinancing projects that aim to close coal plants in the developing world long before the end of their expected lifespans, and replace their generation with renewable power.   January 25, 2023.

Batteries Are the Battlefield 1/25/2023

Batteries Are the Battlefield

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Fellow Cullen Hendrix contribute to this article about how the next geopolitical contest may be over green technology, and China, for now, is poised to win control of those supply chains. In the quest for the clean energy revolution, the United States is one of many countries that have ramped up investment in electric vehicles manufacturing and renewable energy sources to power the shift away from fossil fuels.  But that is an industry that has already been staked out by another power: China.  January 25, 2023.

DOE offers loan to Nevada lithium mine 1/19/2023

DOE offers loan to Nevada lithium mine

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributed to this article about how the move by the US Department of Energy (DOE) is an effort to build up US production of minerals needed for batteries.  The DOE is offering the Australian mining company Ioneer a $700 million loan to build a lithium carbonate plant at its proposed lithium mine in Nevada.  The DOE issued guidance in 2020 that encouraged companies developing “critical mineral” projects to apply for loans.  January 19, 2023.

Battle at the bottom of the sea 1/12/2023

Battle at the bottom of the sea

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributed to this article about how the treasures of a deep ocean floor pit green energy proponents against environmentalists.  Companies are interested in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) where potato-sized manganese rocks line the ocean floor and play host to innumerable sea creatures. Also known as polymetallic nodules, the rocks contain manganese, cobalt, nickel, ­copper, zinc, and rare earth metals, all vital for making the rechargeable batteries that undergird the global push toward green energy.  January 12, 2023.  

$50M partnership with UT Austin, CSU to tackle oil & gas greenhouse gas emissions accounting. 1/10/2023

COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES ALONG WITH UT AUSTIN, CSU TO TACKLE OIL & GAS GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS ACCOUNTING IN A $50 MILLION PARTNERSHIP

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Dorit Hammerling and Fellow Arvind Ravikumar and the Payne Institute has partnered with the University of Texas at Austin and Colorado State University to stand up a new $50 million multidisciplinary research and education initiative that will address the growing need for accurate, timely and clear accounting of greenhouse gas emissions across global oil and natural gas supply chains.  Data and analysis from this major new endeavor will help both public and private institutions develop climate strategies and actions informed by accurate data, identifying both opportunities for emissions reductions and verification. The Energy Emissions Modeling and Data Lab (EEMDL) will be hosted at UT Austin. January 10, 2023

Space mining startups see a rich future on asteroids and the moon 1/7/2023

Space mining startups see a rich future on asteroids and the moon

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Angel Abbud-Madrid is featured in the article about how nobody wants to think about a future in which humans don’t thrive. So it’s time for us to go into space. Space mining has matured to the point where there are dozens of startup companies, even larger firms, addressing aspects of what’s called the “space resources value chain.”  January 7, 2023. 

Comparison of the Gaussian plume and puff atmospheric dispersion models on oil and gas facilities 1/6/2023

Comparison of the Gaussian plume and puff atmospheric dispersion models on oil and gas facilities

Payne Institute Student Researchers Meng Jia and Will Daniels, and Faculty Fellow Dorit Hammerling write about how characterizing methane emissions on oil and gas facilities often relies on a forward model to describe the atmospheric transport of methane. Here we compare two forward models: the Gaussian plume, a commonly used steady-state dispersion model, and the Gaussian puff, a time varying dispersion model that approximates a continuous release as a sum over many small “puffs”. We compare model predictions to observations from a network of point-in-space continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS) collected during a series of controlled releases.  January 6, 2023.

The Missing Minerals 1/6/2023

The Missing Minerals

Gregory Brew and Director and Morgan Bazilian write about how as America shifts to clean energy, America must rethink supply chains.  After decades of foot-dragging in the United States, there is now momentum to tackle climate change. In August 2022, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act, a landmark piece of legislation that directs more than $1 trillion in subsidies and incentives toward clean energy production.  January 6, 2023. 

CRITICAL MINERALS & ENERGY TRANSITION A LOOK AT AFRICA & WESTERN & CENTRAL ASIA 1/5/2023

CRITICAL MINERALS & ENERGY TRANSITION – A LOOK AT AFRICA & WESTERN & CENTRAL ASIA

The Payne Institute and the Future Minerals Forum collaborate on this paper about how as energy systems evolve on a global scale, the shift to a clean energy economy will depend on fulfilling critical mineral supply needs. Demand for raw materials such as Lithium, Nickel, Cobalt, Copper, Graphite, Silicon, Platinum Group Metals, and Rare Earth Elements are expected to increase fivefold over the next two decades. To meet the level of demand set forth in the Paris Agreement, the world looks to mineral-rich countries for reliable sourcing of inputs along the value chain. In the short to medium term, economies across Africa and Western and Central Asia can aim to play an important role in critical minerals supply chains. January 5, 2023.  

We must change how we think to solve the plastic waste crisis 12/28/2022

We must change how we think to solve the plastic waste crisis

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Michael McGuirk writes this opinion piece on how the world has a plastic waste problem. Most single-use plastics, which represent about 50 percent of all plastic production and include everyday items like straws and shampoo bottles, wind up in landfills, incinerated, or leaked into the environment. In the U.S. alone, we discard 40 million tons of single-use plastics every single year — the visual equivalent of throwing away 100 Empire State buildings. By 2050, we are estimated to have more plastic in our oceans than fish.  Yet despite this grim situation, we now have more reason to fundamentally change the way we think about plastic waste — not just as a burden, but as an opportunity to harvest valuable resources and energy.  December 28, 2022.

Methane emission detection, localization, and quantification using continuous point-sensors on oil and gas facilities 12/27/2022

Methane emission detection, localization, and quantification using continuous point-sensors on oil and gas facilities

Payne Institute Student Researchers William Daniels and Meng Jia, with Faculty Fellow Dorit Hammerling write about how they propose a generic, modular framework for emission event detection, localization, and quantification on oil and gas facilities that uses concentration data collected by point-in-space continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS). The framework uses a gradient-based spike detection algorithm to estimate emission start and end times (event detection) and pattern matches simulated and observed concentrations to estimate emission source location (localization) and rate (quantification).  Potential uses for the proposed framework include near real-time alerting for rapid emissions mitigation and emission quantification for data-driven inventory estimation on production-like facilities. December 27, 2022.

New rule for electric car tax incentive delayed 12/20/2022

New rule for electric car tax incentive delayed

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about how the Joe Biden administration wants half of all new vehicles sold by 2030 to be zero-emission. It’s pouring billions into the industry to incentivize car companies to make electric vehicles and get customers to buy them.  However, this week, the administration delayed announcing the details of a new rule requiring that a certain percentage of battery components be sourced in the U.S. or countries that have free-trade agreements with the U.S.  December 20, 2022.  

Markets for Critical Minerals Are Too Prone to Failure 12/17/2022

Markets for Critical Minerals Are Too Prone to Failure

Payne Institute Fellow Cullen Hendrix and Director Morgan Bazilian write this commentary on how in March, the London Metals Exchange suspended nickel trading after prices spiked over 250% in two days. Much of the spike occurred in an 18-minute window.  The nickel debacle highlights one of the underappreciated financial challenges that green-energy transitions will bring: Markets for many critical minerals are small, thin, and opaque. Markets with these structures are prone to failures such as cornering, natural disaster- and geopolitically-induced supply disruptions, and murky, inefficient price discovery processes.  December 17, 2022.

Statistical Moments of VIIRS Nighttime Lights 12/16/2023

Statistical Moments of VIIRS Nighttime Lights

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Director Christopher D. Elvidge, Feng Chi Hsu, Mikhail Zhizhin, Tilottama Ghosh, and Tamara Sparks write about how they generated VIIRS day/night band multiyear and annual statistical moments for a widely dispersed set of test areas. The moments were calculated from 15 arc second nightly temporal profiles spanning 2012-2020, filtered to exclude cloudy and sunlit data, with radiance adjustments to reduce view angle and lunar illuminance effects. The moment data were examined in two ways: 1) Geospatial grids-which reveal zonation and temporal changes present in urban areas, and 2) Scattergrams of moment pairs.  December 16, 2022.

How to Avoid Gas Shortages in the European Union in 2023 12/13/22

How to Avoid Gas Shortages in the European Union in 2023

The Payne Institute contributed data and insights to this IEA report on the latest analysis of the extent of the EU’s potential gas supply-demand gap in 2023 and sets out the practical actions that can close that gap while avoiding excessive strains for European consumers and for international markets. The analysis includes real-world examples of measures that could be implemented and quantifies their impacts. The measures offer a pathway to a more secure and balanced EU gas market in 2023 and are consistent with the EU’s climate goals.  December 13, 2022.

Company starting to recover oil from Kansas pipeline spill 12/13/2022

Company starting to recover oil from Kansas pipeline spill

Payne Institute Fellow Jennifer Miskimins contributed to this article about how Canada-based TC Energy operating a pipeline that spilled about 14,000 bathtubs’ worth of oil into a Kansas creek during a test for potential problems is recovering at least a small portion of the crude.  Canada-based TC Energy has recovered 2,598 barrels of oil mixed with water from the 14,000-barrel spill on a creek running through rural pastureland in Washington County, Kansas, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) northwest of Kansas City. Last week’s rupture in Kansas forced the company to shut down the Keystone system, and it hasn’t said when it will come back online.  December 13, 2022.

Fusion energy breakthrough could be an ‘inflection point’ for clean fuel technology 12/12/2022

Fusion Energy Breakthrough Could be an Inflection Point for Clean Fuel Technology

Payne Institute Fellow Alex Gilbert is featured on this news show about a fusion energy breakthrough that could be an inflection point for clean fuel technology.  The Department of Energy is expected to announce a major development regarding fusion energy on Tuesday December 13th, and Alex Gilbert, discusses the significance of this potential discovery.  He further explains how scientists have produced net energy gain using fusion and how nuclear fusion power could be the key to clean energy.  December 12, 2022.

DEVELOPING HYDROGEN AND CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE PROJECTS IN THE STATE OF COLORADO 12/9/2022

Developing Hydrogen and Carbon Capture and Storage Projects in the State of Colorado

Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield and student researcher Chiang Cheng Siew write about how over the past two years, both the hydrogen and carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) industries have gained momentum in the US. Project development in these industries has been rapidly accelerating with the growing financial incentives from policymakers for the commercial deployment of these projects. The signing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in November of 2021 marked the US Department of Energy’s largest single investment in carbon management, along with significant investments funding clean hydrogen development.  December 9, 2022.

Critical Minerals of the Energy Transition 12/9/2022

Critical Minerals of the Energy Transition

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on this El Financiero|Bloomberg television show discussing the critical minerals of the energy transition.  December 9, 2022.

By 2025, coal will no longer be the main way to generate the world’s electricity 12/8/2022

By 2025, coal will no longer be the main way to generate the world’s electricity

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this podcast on how the International Energy Agency released a report this week saying renewables would overtake coal and become the world’s biggest source of electricity generation by 2025.  The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act includes billions in subsidies and tax credits to encourage development of technologies like advanced nuclear power and hydrogen generation in the U.S.  December 8, 2022.

Saudi Arabia’s Future Minerals Forum partners with global think tanks ahead of January conference 12/5/2022

Saudi Arabia’s Future Minerals Forum partners with global think tanks ahead of January conference

Saudi Arabia’s global conference Future Mineral Forum has partnered a host of major think tanks to drive innovation and thought leadership, according to a statement.  Launched in 2022 by the Kingdom’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, the FMF has now joined forces with the Development Partner Institute, the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, Clareo, and the Payne Institute at the Colorado School of Mines.  Through these partnerships with the think tanks and research institutions, the FMF is targeting to provide dynamic insights that propel the development of the industry in line with strict environmental, social and governance principles. December 5, 2022. 

How to Avoid a New Cold War Over Critical Minerals 10.22.2022

How to Avoid a New Cold War Over Critical Minerals

Payne Institute Fellow Cullen Hendrix writes how to prevent a return to the zero-sum logic of Cold War resource politics, critical mineral supply chains must be widened at every step. Will the 21st century be the century of the green great game? In the early 20th century, then-First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill oversaw the conversion of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy from coal- to oil-powered ships. Oil was comparatively more energy-dense, easier to transport, and allowed ships to travel farther faster. But the transition to oil-fueled navies in the 20th century meant that, for the first time, projecting military might would require most major powers to rely on energy sources over which they were not sovereign. November 22, 2022.

Mines graduate student named one of 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining 11/22/2022

Mines graduate student named one of 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining

Payne Institute student researcher Juliet Akamboe has been recognized as one of the 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining in 2022 by Women in Mining UK.  Akamboe currently lives in Colorado, where she is pursuing a master’s degree in mineral and energy economics at Mines. While in school, she has been involved in research around sustainable finance, building ESG frameworks, securing critical minerals and shaping policy for a more sustainable future. November 22, 2022.

Geopolitics of Green Energy 11/18/2022

Geopolitics of Green Energy

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this report on how the postwar, U.S.-dominated geopolitical order shaped by oil is yielding to a new system built on carbon-free renewable energy and electric vehicles. In the emerging international scramble for so-called green energy, China is leading, with its control over many supplies of minerals essential for batteries, wind turbines and other technologies.  To counter China, the United States is rallying allies and friendly mineral-rich countries to forge alternative supply chains that can enable green energy industries to scale up.  November 18, 2022.  

Retiring Coal? The Prospects Are Brighter Than They Appear 11/17/2022

Retiring Coal? The Prospects Are Brighter Than They Appear

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how as COP27 draws to a close, the conference is proving to be a disappointment for environmental advocates focused on eliminating the planet’s number one emitter: coal-fired power. In the tumult of international uncertainty, governments have looked to coal as a security blanket of sorts. Coal’s ability to deliver power 24/7 compares favorably to some renewable energy, like solar and wind, that is variable and, at least to some degree, unpredictable.  November 17, 2022.

A New Paradigm for Managing Mineral Trade Routes in Africa 11/16/2022

A New Paradigm for Managing Mineral Trade Routes in Africa

Payne Institute ESG Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how the African Copper belt is a major supplier of key minerals such as Copper, Nickel, and Cobalt to the world economy. Extracting and transporting these minerals to market will be essential to the success of the energy transition as demand for solar and wind energy, and battery metals soar exponentially over the next three decades. In contrast, the dismal state of road infrastructure for transporting the minerals from mine to port creates a major impediment to the commercial competitiveness of miners in the region and threatens economic rents accruable to host countries and communities. This commentary describes a new paradigm that could radically transform the design of solutions to ease logistics problems in the region.  November 16, 2022.

MOVING BEYOND ‘ALL OR NOTHING’: FINDING THE PRAGMATIC MIDDLE GROUND ON GAS IN AFRICA 11/15/2022

MOVING BEYOND ‘ALL OR NOTHING’: FINDING THE PRAGMATIC MIDDLE GROUND ON GAS IN AFRICA

Payne Institute and Mines/NREL Advanced Energy Systems student researcher Bonnie Powell, Program Manager Brad Handler, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how Europe’s energy crisis is aggravating a decades-old tension between the developed and the developing world. As wealthy countries increase natural gas imports (including from Africa), many of them are maintaining policies that restrict development finance for gas-fired infrastructure projects in poorer nations. This hypocrisy is not lost on African leaders.  November 15, 2022.

Highest heating bills in years, U.S. Energy agency predicts 11/15/2022

Highest heating bills in years, U.S. Energy agency predicts

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article discussing the how the Energy Information Administration is predicting the average U.S. household will spend $900 on natural gas or $1,366 on electricity between Oct. 2022-March 2023.  The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is forecasting a spike in this winter’s heating costs, across the board. EIA’s forecast shows the average household will pay roughly $900 between October and March when using a gas heater, or roughly $1300 for electricity. That’s higher than at least the last seven winters, EIA data shows.  November 15, 2022. 

GLOBAL RESILIENCE INDEX INITIATIVE LAUNCHES NEW DEMONSTRATOR; CALLS FOR CLIMATE DATA COLLABORATION 11/12/2022

GLOBAL RESILIENCE INDEX INITIATIVE LAUNCHES NEW DEMONSTRATOR; CALLS FOR CLIMATE DATA COLLABORATION

Payne Institute Fellow Ben Caldecott comments on how the UN launched their new Global Resilience Index Initiative at COP 27.  The new GRII initiative calls for worldwide climate data collaboration.  The GRII is a global public-private partnership to address the climate data emergency with consistent, accessible and reliable risk information for use by governments, the financial sector and wider communities to create a new climate risk data architecture to provide globally consistent, open baseline datasets on climate risk and resilience metrics as a public good. November 12, 2022.

7 Keys to the Future Oil and Gas Production Facility: The Colorado Story 11/11/2022

7 Keys to the Future Oil and Gas Production Facility: The Colorado Story

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton, and Mines Student Researchers Wyatt Lindsey and Chiang Cheng Siew write about how seven facilities design and public engagement principles are identified as key elements for the future oil and natural gas production facilities for the DJ Basin, and maybe even as a guide for other North American onshore shale basins. With growing concern about climate change, the need for a diversified energy portfolio for energy security and the expectation for an energy transition away from fossil fuels to noncarbon energy solutions, such as renewables, all suggest that the energy transition has already begun. November 11, 2022

Oil and Gas Industry Being a Good Neighbor: Getting a License To Operate Through Proactive Community Engagement 11/10/20022

Oil and Gas Industry Being a Good Neighbor: Getting a License To Operate Through Proactive Community Engagement

Mines Student Researcher Wyatt Lindsey and Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton, write about how operators have increased stakeholder engagement by participating in proactive and continued communication with relevant stakeholders, which has led to positive unintended outcomes for operators, communities, and regulators.  In the DJ Basin in Colorado, there has been a collision of industry activities and community development due to the “mini-boom” of oil and gas development, stemming from hydraulic fracturing of the Niobrara Formation and the growing population along the Front Range. November 10, 2022.

Climate bill boosts Biden’s credibility at COP27 as countries look to US to deliver 11/10/2022

Climate bill boosts Biden’s credibility at COP27 as countries look to US to deliver

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how this year, President Biden heads to the United Nations climate summit with major legislation to tackle the issue he can trumpet.  The passage of the inflation Reduction Act gives Biden something concrete to point to, a sharp contrast to former President Trump’s climate denial.  Biden will give a special COP27 address on American efforts to reduce emissions and help the vulnerable build resilience to climate change.  November 10, 2022.

The Mining Gap: Critical Minerals and Geopolitical Competition 11/7/2022

The Mining Gap: Critical Minerals and Geopolitical Competition

Gregory Brew and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about how this year’s COP-27 conference carries with it the weight of the climate challenge, an enormous threat facing humanity, but also comes at a time of growing volatility in global energy markets, rising energy prices, a food security crisis, and war. As a result, countries both rich and poor will be focused on immediate security and economic threats.  November 7, 2022. 

As EV sales accelerate, battery makers face a new shortage of a crucial mineral: graphite 11/3/2022

As EV sales accelerate, battery makers face a new shortage of a crucial mineral: graphite

Payne Institute Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about how Ford Motor Co. reports that it sold twice as many electric vehicles in the month that just ended as it did in October of last year. But as demand for electrics is surging, manufacturers are facing yet another shortage of yet another crucial material — not lithium this time, but graphite.  November 3, 2022.

Africa’s Energy Transition & Critical Minerals 11/3/2022

Africa’s Energy Transition & Critical Minerals

Payne Institute Critical Minerals Research Associate Caitlin McKennie and student researchers Al Hassan Hassan, and Mama Nissi Abanga Abugnaba write about how as the energy crisis perseveres and governments around the world attempt to meet net zero emission timelines, there are many eyes on Africa’s natural resource supply. Africa is resource rich. The continent is endowed with significant hydrocarbon reserves and critical minerals required for low-carbon technologies. As political and environmental developments around the world seek to decarbonize supply chains, pivoting investments over time towards critical minerals in Africa can help and bridge the gap between emerging/developing economies and energy security.  November 3, 2022.  

How Critical Minerals Became So Critical 10/31/2022

How Critical Minerals Became So Critical

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee writes about how critical minerals are minerals and metals that are designated by governments as being “essential to economic or national security” – but also have supply chains vulnerable to interruption and play important roles in manufacturing everything from jet engines to fiber-optic cables. In short, they are the raw ingredients for dozens of engineering miracles that, while often unfamiliar to non-specialists, are vital to modern technologies.  October 31, 2022.

Oil & Gas Industry being a Good Neighbor: Getting a License to Operate Through Proactive Community Engagement 10/27/2022

Oil & Gas Industry being a Good Neighbor: Getting a License to Operate Through Proactive Community Engagement

Payne Institute student researcher Wyatt Lindsey and Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton write about how in the DJ Basin in Colorado, there has been a collision of industry activities and community development due to the “mini-boom” of O&G development, stemming from hydraulic fracking of the Niobrara Formation and the growing population along the Front Range. After the O&G industry was challenged by regulatory agencies and environmental activists that many traditional practices were no longer going to be accepted, operators had to make a greater effort towards new forms of proactive community and local government engagement to prevent permit delays and operational downtime.  October 27, 2022.

On Equal Footing: The Impact of FERC Order 841 on Grid Battery Installations 10/26/2022

On Equal Footing: The Impact of FERC Order 841 on Grid Battery Installations

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange, student researcher Anuja Oke, and Critical Mineral Research Associate Caitlin McKennie write about how new technologies don’t often “fit” within market designs as well as the incumbent technologies. As a result, subtle changes in market rules can have large impacts on new technology adoption, and their associated supply chains. This research measures the impact on grid battery installations, and the resulting lithium demand – both generated by the June 2020 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Order 841.  October 26, 2022.  

The Keys to the Future Oil and Gas Production Facility: The Colorado Story 10/26/2022

The Keys to the Future Oil and Gas Production Facility: The Colorado Story

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton, and Mines Student Researchers Wyatt Lindsey and Chiang Cheng Siew and write about how with the growing concern about climate change, the need for a diversified energy portfolio for energy security and the expectation for an energy transition away from fossil fuels to non-carbon energy solutions, such as renewables, all signals suggest that the energy transition has already begun. States like Colorado has been rewriting regulations to include stricter rules on oil and gas production. While the energy industry is transitioning due to market forces, public policies, and technological advances, fossil fuels are not yet out of the picture for the total energy supply of the future. October 26, 2022.  

The Future of Oil and Gas Production in Urban and Suburban Environments 10/25/2022

The Future of Oil and Gas Production in Urban and Suburban Environments: “Is Colorado an Example of Where the North American Crude Oil and Natural Gas Industry Might be Headed?”

Mines Student Researcher Wyatt Lindsey, Alumni William Jordan, Student Researcher Chiang Cheng Siew and Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton write about how there has and is much discussion about the future of fossil fuels, specifically the oil and gas industry. With growing concern on climate change, the need for a diversified energy portfolio, incorporation of clean energies into energy production, and the expectation for an energy transition away from fossil fuels to non-carbon energy solutions, such as renewables, signifies that the energy transition has already begun. While the energy industry is transitioning due to market forces, public policies, and technological advances, fossil fuels are not yet forgotten in the total energy supply of the future.  October 25, 2022.  

Novel Steel Industry Flaring Capability at Payne Institute 10/24/2022

Novel Steel Industry Flaring Capability at Payne Institute

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Director Christopher Elvidge, Research Associate Mikhail Zhizhin, Communications Associate Kelly Tabor, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the they have developed a new method for detecting flaring at industrial sites with the capability to produce worldwide data on steel mills.  This data is relevant for policy-makers, non-governmental organizations, and industry leaders seeking innovative Green Steel solutions; traditional steel manufacturing produces more CO2 emissions than any other heavy industry.  October 24, 2022.

Aligning Value with Communities: Conceptualizing a ‘Carbon Steward’ Federal Tax Credit 10/20/2022

Aligning Value with Communities: Conceptualizing a ‘Carbon Steward’ Federal Tax Credit

Ashleigh Ross and Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield write about how there is a significant and growing risk to wide-spread deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in the US that exists not in the technical space, but rather with social license to operate. The central challenge is how to achieve the principles of environmental justice for communities when the only incentives go directly to industry, and stakeholders must negotiate for fair compensation. Here we propose that a direct to community and landowner tax credit, the ‘Carbon Steward Tax Credit,’ may be the solution that enables true alignment between projects and communities. October 20, 2022.

Supporting a Just Energy Transition through Alternative Funding Strategies for African Hydrocarbon Developments 10/18/2022

Supporting a Just Energy Transition through Alternative Funding Strategies for African Hydrocarbon Developments

Payne institute ESG Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how Africa contains significant amounts of hydrocarbon reserves that contribute extensively to state revenue and facilitate social and economic development. The growth prospects for these African countries are however under threat as international financial institutions reduce their funding for hydrocarbon developments in response to global warming and its adverse effects.  The paper reemphasize the importance of hydrocarbon resources to African development and present alternative funding strategies that can minimize disruptions to growth and are consistent with notions of a just energy transition.  October 19, 2022. 

9 Element Strategic Programming Framework, 10/18/2022

9 Element Strategic Programming Framework

SPE Gaia’s Sustainability Program is an engaging and empowering framework for engineers and scientists to generate scale and act with urgency & purpose.  Their vision is to advance the oil and gas community’s ability to meet the world’s energy demands in a safe, environmentally responsible, and sustainable manner. They achieve this through the mission of collecting, disseminating and exchanging technical knowledge concerning the exploration, development and production of oil and gas resources and related technologies for the public benefit; and by providing opportunities for professionals to enhance their technical and professional competence.  October 18, 2022.

 

Mines professors contribute to roadmap for successful wind energy projects 10/14/2022

Mines professors contribute to roadmap for successful wind energy projects

Electrical Engineering’s Kathryn Johnson and Payne Faculty Fellow Engineering, Design & Society’s Jessica Smith were co-authors on the findings recently published in JOULE.  The two Colorado School of Mines professors were part of an effort to create a first-of-its-kind roadmap that demonstrates how communities, governments and researchers can work together to consider social, technical, economic and political challenges and opportunities to create successful wind energy projects – even when the wind doesn’t blow. October 14, 2022.

UN climate talks in Egypt must urgently focus on methane 10/11/2022

UN climate talks in Egypt must urgently focus on methane

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Fellow Arvind Ravikumar, and Communications Associate Simon Lomax write about how in about a month the global climate community will descend upon Egypt for the next round of annual climate change talks convened by the United Nations. At the same time, much of Europe will be bearing up in the face of a very tough winter for energy security.  If the delegates in Egypt are serious about taking swift action by 2030, they must give another greenhouse gas some urgent attention — methane.  October 11, 2022.

Multiscale Methane Measurements at Oil and Gas Facilities Reveal Necessary Frameworks for Improved Emissions Accounting 10/6/2022

Multiscale Methane Measurements at Oil and Gas Facilities Reveal Necessary Frameworks for Improved Emissions Accounting

Jiayang Lyra Wang, Payne Institute Researcher Associate William S. Daniels, Faculty Fellow Dorit M. Hammerling, Matthew Harrison, Kaylyn Burmaster, Fiji C. George, and Fellow Arvind P. Ravikumar write about how methane mitigation from the oil and gas (O&G) sector represents a key near-term global climate action opportunity. Recent legislation in the United States requires updating current methane reporting programs for oil and gas facilities with empirical data. While technological advances have led to improvements in methane emissions measurements and monitoring, the overall effectiveness of mitigation strategies rests on quantifying spatially and temporally varying methane emissions more accurately than the current approaches. In this work, we demonstrate a quantification, monitoring, reporting, and verification framework that pairs snapshot measurements with continuous emissions monitoring systems (CEMS) to reconcile measurements with inventory estimates and account for intermittent emission events.  October 6, 2022.  

The demand for electric vehicles is skyrocketing. Can the supply of lithium and other critical minerals for batteries keep up? 10/4/2022

The demand for electric vehicles is skyrocketing. Can the supply of lithium and other critical minerals for batteries keep up?

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about how if the world wants to replace all its gas-burning cars and trucks with cleaner electric vehicles, it will have to dig up rocks. A lot of rocks. Demand for EVs is soaring in many parts of the globe, and a wave of domestic policies will send it skyrocketing in the U.S. soon. The batteries that power all those EVs need minerals — cobalt, nickel, graphite and, in particular, lithium — and the race is now on to mine and process enough of them.   October 4, 2022.   

Europe vows ‘robust’ response to alleged sabotage of Russian gas pipelines 9/28/2022

Europe vows ‘robust’ response to alleged sabotage of Russian gas pipelines

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about the large disturbance in the sea can be observed off the coast of the Danish island of Bornholm Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022 following a series of unusual leaks on two natural gas pipelines running from Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany have triggered concerns about possible sabotage. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen says she “cannot rule out” sabotage after three leaks were detected on Nord Stream 1 and 2.  September 28, 2022. 

Colorado must move quickly to keep pace on carbon capture 9/28/2022

Colorado must move quickly to keep pace on carbon capture

Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield, Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler, and Director Morgan Bazilian write an opinion piece about promoting safe and secure injection of CO2 is in the public’s interest, and how Colorado is poised to be central in the effort. Amid growing interest in using carbon capture and sequestration, or CCS, as a tool in the fight against climate change, several states’ legislatures approved CCS-related rules governing commercial and liability issues during their recently ended sessions. Colorado was not among them.  September 28, 2022.  

The Latest in Nuclear Energy Innovation and Deployment, with Alex Gilbert 9/27/2022

The Latest in Nuclear Energy Innovation and Deployment, with Alex Gilbert

Payne Institute Fellow Alex Gilbert is featured on this podcast about the latest developments in nuclear energy innovation, policy, and deployment.  In the podcast, he discusses the types of nuclear technologies in the development pipeline, how they differ from older technologies, which technologies are being piloted, and how recent policies—especially the Inflation Reduction Act—are incentivizing the deployment of these technologies. September 27, 2022.

How a clean energy future is colliding with mining’s dark past 9/22/2022

How a clean energy future is colliding with mining’s dark past

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee contributes to this article about how no one wants a mine in their backyard. Clean energy will require a lot of metal.  As global demand for these “critical minerals,” a group that includes lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper, is projected to increase by 400-600 percent driven by a surge in manufacturing of renewable technologies.  September 22, 2022. 

The Inflation Reduction Act Is the Start of Reclaiming Critical Mineral Chains 9/16/2022

The Inflation Reduction Act Is the Start of Reclaiming Critical Mineral Chains

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Gregory Brew write about how green technologies depend on the supply of a few key resources.  But one important component of the the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has been largely overlooked. Built within the IRA is a commitment to increasing the domestic U.S. supply of critical minerals—lithium, nickel, manganese, and graphite, among others—to provide the materials necessary for a vast expansion in electric vehicles (EVs), batteries, and renewable power production infrastructure. September 16, 2022.

EU official unveils proposals to address energy crisis amid Ukraine war 9/14/2022

EU official unveils proposals to address energy crisis amid Ukraine war

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how the European Commission proposed emergency measures on Wednesday aimed at quelling a burgeoning energy crisis that is rattling the continent amid Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. The plans — which individual EU member states must still approve — would serve to tackle soaring prices exacerbated by “a severe mismatch between energy demand and supply,” the commission said, attributing the circumstances to “the continued weaponization by Russia of its energy resources.” September 14, 2022.

Lithium mining’s water use sparks bitter conflicts and novel chemistry 9/13/2022

Lithium mining’s water use sparks bitter conflicts and novel chemistry

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jessica Smith is featured on this podcast exploring the impact of the world’s hunger for lithium-ion batteries, an important tool in the fight against climate change. Mining of lithium used to manufacture batteries in electric cars comes with a cost to the local environment and access to water. September 13, 2022.

Monitoring of Portovaya Gas Flares 9/12/2022

Monitoring of Portovaya Gas Flares

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Christopher Elvidge, Mikhail Zhizhin, Communications Associate Kelly Tabor, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how using a proprietary Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Nightfire clustering algorithm, Payne Institute scientists are monitoring two flares from Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) production facilities owned by Gazprom near Portovaya, Russia.  September 12, 2022.

How Ukrainians Purchased Military Equipment 9/9/2022

How Ukrainians Purchased Military Equipment

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Kathleen Hancock is featured on this podcast about how Ukraine and the IAEA say they’ve learned of a serious development at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. The challenges facing the European Union as ministers meet to discuss what to do about soaring energy prices, as Russia threats to cut off natural gas supplies to Europe.  September 9, 2022.

Closing the Energy Poverty Gap in Africa Using Landfill Gas 9/8/2022

Closing the Energy Poverty Gap in Africa Using Landfill Gas

Payne Institute ESG Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how energy poverty is widespread in African countries and power generation capacity has continued to lag population and economic growth. The prospects for adding generation capacity are currently diminished as global financial institutions reduce lending for carbon-based energy developments in response to the adverse effects of climate change. This paper looks at the economic feasibility assessments of African landfill power generation projects from literature and develops options for policymakers to boost landfill gas power penetration on the continent.  September 8, 2022.

Mines celebrates 100 years of Petroleum Engineering with new Hall of Fame 9/6/2022

Mines celebrates 100 years of Petroleum Engineering with new Hall of Fame

The Petroleum Engineering Department at Colorado School of Mines will mark its 100th Anniversary in 2022 by founding the PE Hall of Fame, which recognizes alumni, faculty and supporters for their contributions to the oil and gas industry and to the department.  Mines’ Petroleum Engineering Department is one of the oldest and highest-ranked programs in the United States. Nearly 5,000 students have come from around the world to earn hands-on, interdisciplinary applied science undergraduate and graduate degrees.  September 6, 2022.

High energy prices could threaten European utilities’ ability to keep doing business 9/6/2022

High energy prices could threaten European utilities’ ability to keep doing business

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about how over the past few days, Europe’s energy crisis has started to look like it might turn into a financial crisis as well.  The turbulence in the natural gas market is threatening the ability of some European utilities to buy the gas they need.  September 6, 2022.

Shifts in the Energy Workforce 9/6/2022

Shifts in the Energy Workforce

Payne Institute Critical Minerals Research Associate Caitlin McKennie, Director Morgan Bazilian, and Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler write about how the recent passage of the Inflation Reduction Act heralds an unprecedented era of climate investment for the U.S. Such investment brings with it the promise of new jobs across the clean energy landscape. For rural communities that have historically depended on fossil fuel development or use, however, included several in Colorado, the outlook is at least more complicated.   September 6, 2022.

Using electricity to reduce emissions 9/5/2022

Using electricity to reduce emissions

Where possible, we invest in infrastructure to power compression engines and drilling rigs using electricity from the power grid. When we can use grid electricity to power a rig, we eliminate 100 percent of nitrous oxides and other ozone precursor emissions from rig operations in summer months and approximately 75 percent in colder months, when operations require the use of boilers for heat.  In the Mustang area, we have drilled 56 wells using utility electric power since 2019.  September 5, 2022.

Colorado School of Mines, BHP announce founding partnership for Global Energy Future Initiative 8/30/2022

Colorado School of Mines, BHP announce founding partnership for Global Energy Future Initiative

Colorado School of Mines Global Energy Future Initiative and BHP announce a founding partnership ahead of the Inaugural Global Energy Future Innovation Forum and Innov8x Challenge set for Sept. 7-8.  BHP becomes a founding partner of the initiative to drive innovative sustainable energy solutions. Through this partnership, BHP will sponsor research projects and participate in steering committees and working groups, adding industry expertise to solve complex problems. In exchange for their expertise, BHP will gain access to cutting-edge research critical to building a sustainable future for the mining industry. Through this partnership, BHP and GEFI aim to develop renewable, secure, resilient, and adaptive energy systems and infrastructure, fostering worldwide economic development while reducing environmental impacts.  August 30, 2022.

Free energy efficiency assessments now available for Colorado, Wyoming businesses 8/30/2022

Free energy efficiency assessments now available for Colorado, Wyoming businesses

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Paulo Tabares-Velasco is the assistant director of the new Rocky Mountain Industrial Assessment Center (RMIAC).  The center assists small- and medium-sized manufacturers to reduce carbon emissions, lower energy costs by offering free energy system assessments for local manufacturers, with the goal of helping them improve their facilities’ energy efficiency and reduce their carbon emissions.  August 30, 2022. 

Woburn startup wants to steer the steel industry away from coal 8/29/2022

Woburn startup wants to steer the steel industry away from coal

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow John Speer contributes to this article about how Boston Metal has developed a way to manufacture iron using sustainable electricity.  The startup, Boston Metal, wants to help the steel industry reduce its dependence on burning coal-based fuel and use electricity instead — ideally sustainably produced electricity from sources such as hydropower or solar.  August 29, 2022.

Oil and gas industry concessions take the sting out of Biden’s climate bill 8/26/2022

Oil and gas industry concessions take the sting out of Biden’s climate bill

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler and Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how the new Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 legislation’s impact on US oil and gas production likely to be modest. From the domestic industry’s standpoint, if could have been much worse.  August 26, 2022.  

Mines department head wins Society of Petroleum Engineers international award 8/25/2022

Mines department head wins Society of Petroleum Engineers international award

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jennifer Miskimins is awarded 2022 Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).  The honor recognizes superiority in classroom teaching, excellence in research, significant contributions to the petroleum engineering profession and special effectiveness in advising and guiding students.  August 25, 2022.

More Than Just a ‘School of Mines,’ CSM Is a Major Player in Climate Research 8/25/2022

More Than Just a ‘School of Mines,’ CSM Is a Major Player in Climate Research

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how the Colorado School of Mines, with its historic connection to fossil fuel and mineral extraction, would seem an unlikely place for a high-level pursuit of the transition from a world powered by fossil fuels to a world of clean energy.  However, Mines recognizes that saving our planet depends on transitioning from oil and gas to other forms of energy that reduce or eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.  August 25, 2022.

Pandemic, War, and Global Energy Transitions 8/23/2022

Pandemic, War, and Global Energy Transitions

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian co-authors this paper about how the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine have impacted the global economy, including the energy sector. The pandemic caused drastic fluctuations in energy demand, oil price shocks, disruptions in energy supply chains, and hampered energy investments, while the war left the world with energy price hikes and energy security challenges. The long-term impacts of these crises on low-carbon energy transitions and mitigation of climate change are still uncertain but are slowly emerging. This paper analyzes the impacts throughout the energy system, including upstream fuel supply, renewable energy investments, demand for energy services, and implications for energy equity, by reviewing recent studies and consulting experts in the field.  August 23, 2022.

The case for closing coal plants at scale 8/23/2022

The case for closing coal plants at scale

Deb Chattopadhyay, Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how pressure to retire coal-fired power plants is building due to economic and environmental concerns. Four business models can be applied to plant closures but greater efficiencies can be achieved when there are coal plant closures-at-scale.  A hybrid model is likely better when a country or region wants to look at a large programme of coal plant closures-at-scale.  August 23, 2022.  

The Inflation Reduction Act’s modest impact on oil and gas 8/22/2022

The Inflation Reduction Act’s modest impact on oil and gas

Payne Institute Research Associate Brad Handler and Director Morgan Bazilian write about the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and how it can be easy to miss that the new law includes several items related to the future of the oil and gas industry. The goal is both to foster more U.S. oil and natural gas development while pursuing lower methane emissions and sharing more revenue with taxpayers.  August 22, 2022.

Perceptions and realities of mercury contamination in a Peruvian artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) community 8/22/2022

Perceptions and realities of mercury contamination in a Peruvian artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) community

Rolando Quispe Aquino, Payne Institute Research Associate Aaron Malone, Faculty Fellow Nicole M. Smith, and Fredy Fortunato García Zúñiga write about how artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the leading global source of mercury pollution. Efforts to reduce or eliminate mercury use in ASGM have produced limited results, in part because they do not engage the complex socio-technical nature of mercury issues in ASGM. The paper takes a multidisciplinary approach to understand the mercury issue with a socio-technical lens, pairing sampling of mercury in soils with surveys of miners’ and residents’ perceptions of mercury pollution and its dispersion.  August 22, 2022.  

Completion Equipment Constraints 8/22/2022

COMPLETION EQUIPMENT CONSTRAINTS

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler has prepared a quarterly report on how activity in the U.S. oil patch has reached the point of being supply constrained. Areas of tightness had been identified earlier in the year and include wellbore pipe known as Oil Country Tubular Goods, or OCTG), hydraulic fracturing (frac) services and frac sand. For now, the oilfield services providers are not yet focusing on adding meaningful amounts of capacity. They, like their oil company customers, have received clear messages from investors and lenders to prioritize financial returns over growth.  And for at least some services, it is only with further price increases — and confidence that demand will persist — that the providers can justify investing in new equipment.  August 22, 2022.  

The technology trying to make farming more sustainable 8/20/2022

The technology trying to make farming more sustainable

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Mike McGuirk contributes to this BBC video on how climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns, mainly caused by human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels.  Attempting to offset carbon emissions to combat climate change is becoming more important for companies around the world. One new permanent solution is to convert unwanted biomass from farmers’ fields or forest debris – which contains carbon – into oil.  August 20, 2022. 

Everything to know about the Biden administration’s new EV subsidies 8/19/2022

Everything to know about the Biden administration’s new EV subsidies

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this brief guide to buying an electric vehicle with Inflation Reduction Act tax credits.  The new law also includes tax credits for purchasing new and used electric vehicles, with several stipulations. Here’s a brief guide to buying an EV with IRA rebates.  August 19, 2022.  

Copper is key to rolling out climate tech—but supply may not keep up 8/19/2022

Copper is key to rolling out climate tech—but supply may not keep up

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how the electrification of everything is copper’s time to shine, but soon the metal could become harder to find.  Copper is a standout electrical conductor—only silver allows electricity to flow more easily. While it is commonly used today in electrical wiring, renewable energy sources and EVs will require much more copper than their fossil-fuel-powered predecessors. Global demand for the metal could nearly double by 2035, from ~25 million metric tons to ~50 million MT, according to a July report from S&P Global.  August 19, 2022.

CUBAN FUEL DEPOT FIRE CAUSES ENERGY CRISIS 8/11/2022

CUBAN FUEL DEPOT FIRE CAUSES ENERGY CRISIS

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group student researcher Elijah Mt.Castle uses satellite imagery to look at how a fuel storage depot in Matanzas, Cuba burned for 5 days. The fire destroyed 4 crude oil tankers in the port which made up 40% of the country’s reserves. The oil in Matanzas is mainly used for generating electricity. The country has already been experiencing blackouts in the last months and shortages on gasoline and other items. August 11, 2022.

How energy subsidy reform can drive the Iranian power sector towards a low-carbon future 8/11/2022

How energy subsidy reform can drive the Iranian power sector towards a low-carbon future

Vahid Aryanpur, Mahshid Fattahi, Siab Mamipour, Mahsa Ghahremani, Brian ÓGallachóir, Payne Institute Director Morgan D. Bazilian, and James Glynn write about how substantial energy subsidies are recognised as the leading cause of Iran’s inefficient electricity generation and consumption. This paper investigates the impacts of subsidy removal on future electricity demand and the required generation mix. A hybrid modelling framework is developed to analyse supply and demand sides under harmonised assumptions. August 11, 2022.

Why isn’t Big Oil up in arms about the climate-friendly Inflation Reduction Act? 8/8/2022

Why isn’t Big Oil up in arms about the climate-friendly Inflation Reduction Act?

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this podcast about how there’s a lot of stuff baked into the 755-page Inflation Reduction Act, which was approved in the Senate and is expected to pass in the House. Top of mind for many is the nearly $370 billion set aside for energy transition and climate change mitigation. In fact, some are calling the Democrats’ measure the biggest piece of climate legislation in U.S. history.  On the surface, that sounds like it could be bad news for traditional fossil fuel companies, specifically Big Oil and Gas. But believe it or not, some of them sound fairly encouraged by the bill.  August 8, 2022.

Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage in the New Inflation Reduction Act 8/5/2022

Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage in the New Inflation Reduction Act

Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield writes about how the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 should offer an immense boost to the carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) industry.  With $369 billion allocated to energy security and climate change, the expectation is to ‘lower energy costs, increase cleaner energy production, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40% by 2030.”  August 5, 2022.

NEW WINNERS, NEW LOSERS: TOWARD A NEW ENERGY SECURITY 8/4/2022

NEW WINNERS, NEW LOSERS: TOWARD A NEW ENERGY SECURITY

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Fellow Cullen Hendrix write about how we are in the midst of the biggest global energy crisis in history.  Old playbooks are not up to the task. This new paradigm will require making the new geopolitical risks and tradeoffs of sustainable energy systems explicit. It will also require figuring out how to ensure energy security for some — major powers and developed economies — does not create massive insecurity for the rest: the many developing countries that have huge unmet energy needs and significant natural resources. August 4, 2022. 

Manchin deal could raise new hurdles for electric vehicle incentives 8/4/2022

Manchin deal could raise new hurdles for electric vehicle incentives

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how Democrats’ push to boost electric vehicles could be hobbled by some of the protectionist supply chain provisions they included as requirements to get electric vehicle tax credits. Part of the credit is also tied to a percentage of battery components being manufactured in North America.  Experts and industry players have indicated that these provisions — particularly the critical minerals piece — represents a high bar, and may hamper electric vehicle adoption in the short term.  August 4, 2022.

Proposed Tax Break for Buying Electric Vehicles Is Too Hard to Get, Auto Makers Say 8/4/2022

Proposed Tax Break for Buying Electric Vehicles Is Too Hard to Get, Auto Makers Say

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how the draft rules in Senate climate package mean few current vehicles would be eligible.  Major automakers are pressing lawmakers to ease a proposed battery-sourcing  requirement for electric-vehicle tax breaks, saying that few, if any, plug-in models on sale today would qualify. But the proposal would stiffen the requirements for an electric vehicle to qualify. Only U.S.-built vehicles would be eligible. August 4, 2022.

Carmakers say the climate bill sets impossible targets 8/3/2022

Carmakers say the climate bill sets impossible targets

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how auto companies would qualify for electric vehicle tax credits only if they move supply chains out of China. The industry warns that could be too ambitious. The dispute underscores the immense challenge the United States faces in its effort to retake control of production lines at a critical moment in the energy transition. August 3, 2022.

Deep in the Democrats’ Climate Bill, Analysts See More Wins for Clean Energy Than Gifts for Fossil Fuel Business 8/3/2022

Deep in the Democrats’ Climate Bill, Analysts See More Wins for Clean Energy Than Gifts for Fossil Fuel Business

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributed to this article about how the Inflation Reduction Act’s provisions on electric vehicles, methane, industrial and agriculture policy add up to big greenhouse gas emissions cuts—if the bill can make it through Congress. At least three separate analyses by think tanks and academic institutions agree that the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 would cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions some 40 percent by 2030—within striking distance of President Joe Biden’s pledge to cut emissions in half.  More evidence of the legislation’s potential to ignite a clean energy transition can be seen in the reaction it has spurred among the most ardent keepers of the fossil fuel status quo.  August 3, 2022.

Scrap, sell, auction or repurpose? What’s the best business model for coal plant closure? 7/29/2022

Scrap, sell, auction or repurpose? What’s the best business model for coal plant closure?

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler and Deb Chattopadhyay write about how various business models and financial mechanisms are available to accelerate the retirement of coal-fired power plants across the globe. But, which one is best depends on a multitude of factors such as the plant’s ownership, utilization prospects and the host government’s commitment.  Examples are provided  to illustrate the decision-making process of how to most quickly retire coal-fired power plants.  July 29, 2022.

Climate bill would create roadblock for full EV tax credit 7/28/2022

Climate bill would create roadblock for full EV tax credit

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how the climate deal struck yesterday by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin would significantly expand consumer tax credits for electric vehicles by offering a $7,500 tax credit to people buying an EV made with a certain percentage of minerals mined or processed in nations with U.S. free trade agreements, or recycled in North America.  But there’s a catch: The EV supply chain required for the tax credit doesn’t exist.  July 28, 2022.

The Net-Zero Industry Tracker 7/28/2022

The Net-Zero Industry Tracker

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is an advisory board member for the new World Economic Forum Net-Zero Industry Tracker report that sets the their ambition to establish a robust tracking platform that supports the emergence of low-carbon industries by the decade’s end. Industrial sectors account for nearly 40% of global energy consumption and more than 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The transformation of these sectors is pivotal to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. It is time to close the gaps with timely and consistent monitoring of industrial decarbonization.  July 28, 2022.

Gov. Polis, as Chair of the Bipartisan Western Governors Association, Outlines Geothermal Opportunities for Colorado & West 7/26/2022

Gov. Polis, as Chair of the Bipartisan Western Governors Association, Outlines Geothermal Opportunities for Colorado & West

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on this announcement by Colorado Governor Jared Polis on his “Heat Beneath our Feet” initiative with the 2023 Western Governors’ Association (WGA). HBOF is a bold initiative that will jump-start the development of geothermal energy generation. HBOF and the exploration of geothermal energy generation is an innovative approach to expanding clean energy resources, saving people money, and promoting bipartisan partnership with other Western States. July 26, 2022.

How Manchin wobble may hit Biden’s public land oil strategy 7/18/2022

How Manchin wobble may hit Biden’s public land oil strategy

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how after Sen. Joe Manchin sent climate negotiations into chaos on Capitol Hill last week, the pressure is on President Joe Biden to take his own concrete steps to halt global warming, like toughening his stance on drilling for oil on public lands.  The West Virginia Democrat waffled ahead of the weekend on whether he will support climate spending in ongoing negotiations over the reconciliation package that Democrats are trying to get passed ahead of the midterm elections — when the GOP is predicted to gain spots in Congress. He blamed inflation for his position.  July 18, 2022.

A View from the Ground Along the Proposed Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP) Route 7/15/2022

A View from the Ground Along the Proposed Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP) Route

Payne Institute ESG Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how the proposed Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline (TSGP) has been conceived to transport gas from the Niger delta in Nigeria, across Niger and Algeria to supply Europe as it reduces its dependence on Russian gas while transitioning to lower carbon energy. Technical risks to the pipeline’s success can also be substantially mitigated through engineering studies before the final investment decision is made. A case can be made that beyond these latter risk categories, that there would be residual risks to the TSGP’s success that are non-market and non-technical in nature. July 15, 2022.

Clearing the Non-Technical Hurdles for CCS 7/15/2022

Clearing the Non-Technical Hurdles for CCS

Payne Institute Communications Associate Brooke Bowser, Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler, CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the oil and gas industry began injecting carbon dioxide into the ground in the 1970s as a technique to produce more oil (now called enhanced oil recovery), but today there is a renewed interest in CO2 injection for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects — this time as a way to address climate change. Despite CCS technology itself being decades-old, persistent regulatory and liability questions paired with limited economic viability threaten development, even as the industry appears to be gathering momentum for large-scale growth.  July 15, 2022.

After years of contamination at Pittsburgh airport, nearby drinking water still hasn’t been tested 7/15/2022

After years of contamination at Pittsburgh airport, nearby drinking water still hasn’t been tested

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins contributed to this article about how the airport has known about the potential contamination on its property for years but hasn’t tested for it or taken steps to protect nearby residents. There are no laws requiring it to take action. Scientists say the airport’s $1.4 billion construction project could make the contamination problem worse.  July 15, 2022.

Payne Institute for Public Policy tackling ripple effects of renewable energy on mineral supply chain 7/14/2022

Payne Institute for Public Policy tackling ripple effects of renewable energy on mineral supply chain

The Payne Institute Supply Chain Transparency Initiative is studying, documenting journey for materials that are critical to clean energy transition.  Though increased clean energy should ultimately help slow the progression of climate change, it may also cause wide-ranging ripple effects around the world. The new Supply Chain Transparency Initiative at the Payne Institute for Public Policy aims to better understand these issues and, using Mines’ technical expertise, offer solutions for addressing them.  July 14, 2022.

More than 8 million Illinoisans get drinking water from a utility where forever chemicals have been detected, Tribune investigation finds 7/12/2022

More than 8 million Illinoisans get drinking water from a utility where forever chemicals have been detected, Tribune investigation finds

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins contributed to this article about how something as simple as drinking tap water is exposing millions of Illinoisans to toxic chemicals that build up in human blood, cause cancer and other diseases and take years to leave the body.  Scientists call the chemicals per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS. They are commonly known as forever chemicals because they don’t break down in the environment.  July 12, 2022.

Why tellurium mining is the key to a low-carbon economy 7/7/2022

Why tellurium mining is the key to a low-carbon economy

Payne Institute Communications Associate Simon Lomax writes about how Utah’s Kennecott copper mine produces one of Earth’s rarest metals — tellurium. Vital to low-carbon technologies, this mining project can help us reduce our carbon emissions.  But the next phase of the energy transition will be more challenging.  July 7, 2022.

US College Students Are Shunning Oil-Industry Degrees for ESG Future 7/6/2022

US College Students Are Shunning Oil-Industry Degrees for ESG Future

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jennifer Miskimins contributed to this article about how college students see energy transition marginalizing industry and the number of new oil grads seen plunging 83% from 5 years ago.  Students feel that fossil fuels may not have much of a future given increasing pressure from politicians, activists and investors to pivot toward more climate-friendly energy sources.  July 6, 2022.  

Colorado oil and gas companies said a 2019 state law would destroy them. That didn’t happen. But here’s what did. 7/6/2022

Colorado oil and gas companies said a 2019 state law would destroy them. That didn’t happen. But here’s what did.

Colorado oil and gas regulators applying the new rules set by Senate Bill 181 have plans for 1,900 wells to consider so far this year, some are already approved. The demise of the oil and gas industry in Colorado — predicted after the passage of legislation and regulations focused on protecting public health, safety and the environment — does not appear to be imminent. Plans for nearly 1,900 new oil and gas wells are before the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission in 2022 — some already approved and others in various states of review.  July 6, 2022.

Less is More: The Impact of Auto Lender Risk on Household Auto Purchases

Less is More: The Impact of Auto Lender Risk on Household Auto Purchases 

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange, Payne Institute Researcher Caitlin McKennie, and Mirko Moro write about how credit risk can be an impediment to new auto purchases, especially for electric vehicles. This paper looks at the elimination of auto loan cramdowns for Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings, where the loan value is made equal to the auto value, on three outcomes: auto value, likelihood of new auto, and loan-to-value ratio of new autos. Using a difference-in-difference approach based on a state’s historical use of Chapter 13 bankruptcy, we show that household’s secure better loan-to-value ratios and acquire higher valued autos due to lower credit risk following the reform. July 5, 2022.

Colorado has been spreading biosolids with “forever chemicals” on farms, records show. How dangerous is it? 6/30/2022

Colorado has been spreading biosolids with “forever chemicals” on farms, records show. How dangerous is it?

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Chris Higgins contributes to this article about how environmental groups say there is no safe level for toxic PFAS chemicals in drinking water or on farm land. State regulators say they are studying it.  June 20, 2022.

Decarbonizing the pulp and paper industry: A critical and systematic review of sociotechnical developments and policy options 6/30/2022

Decarbonizing the pulp and paper industry: A critical and systematic review of sociotechnical developments and policy options

Dylan Furszyfer Del Rio,  Benjamin K. Sovacool, Payne Institute Fellow Steve Griffiths, Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Jinsoo Kim, Aoife M. Foley, and David Rooney write about how paper has shaped society for centuries and is considered one of humanity’s most important inventions. However, pulp and paper products can be damaging to social and natural systems along their lifecycle of material extraction, processing, transportation, and waste handling. The pulp and paper industry is among the top five most energy-intensive industries globally and is the fourth largest industrial energy user. June 30, 2022. 

Can African countries benefit from the coming boom in battery minerals demand? 6/27/2022

Can African countries benefit from the coming boom in battery minerals demand?

Payne Institute Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how many African nations are falling further behind developed countries in providing economic opportunities for their citizens despite having substantial mineral and energy endowments. Accepting the view that increasing commodity exports can help close the gap, this commentary examines the availability of cobalt, lithium, and nickel resources, reserves and production in African countries and their potential for meeting the future demand for electric vehicle batteries. June 27, 2022.

Wildfire in Cyprus 6/27/2022

Wildfire In Cyprus

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group student Elijah Mt.Castle writes about the large wildfire in northern Cyprus and how it was started by a vehicle fire and quickly spread to over 10,000 acres. Fire crews have been sent by Israel, Turkey, the UN, the UK, and the Republic of Cyprus to help fight the blaze. June 27, 2022. 

The Dimming of Lights in Afghanistan 2022 versus 2021 6/24/2022

The Dimming of Lights in Afghanistan 2022 versus 2021

Payne Institute’s Earth Observation Group Senior Research Associate Christopher Elvidge and Research Associates Tilottama Ghosh and Mikhail Zhizhin write a Commentary “The Dimming Lights in Afghanistan 2022 versus 2021”.  Included is a color composite image to identify Afghanistan cities or towns where the lighting has dimmed during the first part of 2022 relative to a year ago using VIIRS day / night band cloud-free average radiances.   June 24, 2022. 

The Energy Crisis Is a National-Security Opportunity 6/23/2022

The Energy Crisis Is a National-Security Opportunity

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Emily Holland write about how President Joe Biden took office in 2020 with climate action as a top priority, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and other events have thrown his energy policy into chaos. Yet this crisis also an opportunity: Biden can, and should, reframe the clean-energy transition as an urgent national security priority. June 23, 2022.

A federal gas tax holiday might be popular. But it might not be useful 6/23/2022

A federal gas tax holiday might be popular. But it might not be useful.

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on this podcast about how hoping to curb the pain consumers are feeling at the pump right now, President Biden has called for a suspension of the federal gasoline tax. Biden asked Congress on Wednesday for a three-month suspension of the tax, a lot of which helps pay for roads and bridges, to provide some relief. June 23, 2022.

Nuclear Renaissance Technologies and Policies for the Future of Nuclear Power 6/16/2022

Nuclear Renaissance: Technologies and Policies for the Future of Nuclear Power

Payne Institute Fellow William Nuttall has published his second edition of his book that discusses nuclear power is low carbon and reliable, but in recent years it has struggled to play a strong role in global plans for electricity generation in the 21st century. Many of those involved with nuclear power and environmental agencies see controlled expansion of nuclear plants as the most environmentally friendly way of meeting growing energy demands. In the UK policy makers must recognise concerns around severe accidents and radioactive wastes and balance these against the risks arising from other energy technologies. In addition, energy policy-makers must ensure that energy supplies remain affordable for all in society. How might new nuclear power stations help meet emerging policy needs?  June 16, 2022.

Analysis of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Peru under Climate Impacts Using System Dynamics Modeling 6/16/2022

Analysis of Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Peru under Climate Impacts Using System Dynamics Modeling

Fatih Aranoglu, Tulay Flamand, and Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Sebnem Duzgun write about how they propose a system dynamics (SD) model to examine the dynamics of an informal artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) supply chain that has interactions with the illegal gold supply chain in the Amazon rainforest region, Madre de Dios (MdD), Peru.  June 16, 2022.

WILDFIRES IN ARIZONA 6/15/2022

WILDFIRES IN ARIZONA

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group student worker Elijah Mt.Castle writes about how there are multiple fires burning north of Flagstaff Arizona. The fires are burning in Coconino National Forest. They threaten multiple communities, schools, and cultural landmarks.  June 15, 2022.

US increases production to catch China in global battery race 6/9/2022

US increases production to catch China in global battery race

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how as battery-powered electric vehicles become a mainstay on the nation’s highways — and a key piece of President Biden’s environmental policy — the U.S. is facing a formidable challenge in its efforts to compete in the global battery race. June 9, 2022.

Challenges in Accurately Tracking Copper Trade Flows 6/9/2022

Challenges in Accurately Tracking Copper Trade Flows

Payne Institute Mineral Supply Chain Researcher Zach Krause writes about how copper is among the most heavily traded commodities world-wide. The trade volume of copper in combination with the environmental impact of the mining industry has drawn increased attention to the processing and trade of copper and other primary metals. Moreover, copper is a metal that is essential to the energy transition as a component of renewable technologies.  June 9, 2022.

CHINESE FISHING FLEET RETURNS YEARLY TO ARGENTINA 6/7/2022

CHINESE FISHING FLEET RETURNS YEARLY TO ARGENTINA

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group student worker Elijah Mt. Castle writes about a Chinese fishing fleet has returned to the waters around Argentina. This fleet has returned year after year to fish outside of Argentina’s economic exclusion zone (EEZ). The coastal waters inside of the EEZ are biodiverse and home to the second largest squid fishery in the world. Around half of the world’s shortfin squid is caught within Argentina’s waters. The shortfin squid market can generate upwards of $2.4 billion dollars a year. While legal to fish outside of the 200-mile EEZ, portions of the fishing fleet will fish illegally within Argentina’s EEZ.  June 7, 2022. 

Synergies Between Carbon Capture, Utilization and Sequestration and Geothermal Power in Sedimentary Basins 6/7/2022

Synergies Between Carbon Capture, Utilization and Sequestration and Geothermal Power in Sedimentary Basins

Payne Institute CCUS Program Manager Anna Littlefield and Eric Stautberg write about how to achieve a rapid and effective energy transition, society will need to widely deploy both existing and emerging technologies and tools. Mitigating the emissions of greenhouse gases while maintaining the world’s growing demands for energy will require these to deployed at great pace and scale. Natural synergies exist between two such technologies: carbon capture utilization and sequestration (CCUS) projects and geothermal power generation from hot sedimentary aquifers. The overlapping technical and operational components of these projects underline an opportunity for cost savings and accelerated deployment.  June 7, 2022.

Conditions prime for energy boom in Colorado, so what’s the holdup? 6/7/2022

Conditions prime for energy boom in Colorado, so what’s the holdup?

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler contributes to this article about how experts, industry looks to supply-chain issues, labor shortages and regulations; state, environmentalists say system is working. Other factors affecting how quickly the oil and gas industry can turn up the taps are ongoing kinks in the supply chain and tariffs that have constrained the availability of steel for tubing and sand used to frack wells. June 7, 2022.

Four Mines faculty members named Fulbright Scholars 6/6/2022

Four Mines faculty members named Fulbright Scholars

Payne Institute Faculty Fellows Neal Sullivan and Marte Gutierrez were named Fulbright Scholars for the coming year.  Dr. Gutierrez’s award will take him to the University of Chile, where he will conduct research with faculty there on the impacts of climate change on landslides, rockfalls and mudflows in Chile. The research will identify localities in Chile and provide mitigation solutions for amplified geological hazard potential from climate change. Dr. Sullivan will be spending seven months at the Western Australian School of Mines (WASM) at Curtin University in Perth, Australia. The work he plans to conduct there will be similar to what he and his team work on at the Colorado Fuel Cell Center: developing next-generation materials for “green” hydrogen production. WASM’s work is supported by Western Australian companies, including Fortescue Metals Group, which has pledged to become Asia’s supplier of carbon-free green hydrogen over the coming decades.  June 6, 2022.

Little growth likely in Colorado, U.S. oil production in 2022, report finds 6/2/2022

Little growth likely in Colorado, U.S. oil production in 2022, report finds

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler contributes to this article about how supply issues, and Wall Street demands limit drilling activity despite 1,400 active permits in Colorado.  Oil and gas drilling activity has inched upwards in Colorado since the Russian invasion of Ukraine sent prices soaring earlier this year, but investor demands and supply constraints — not state or federal policy — will likely limit production growth through at least the end of the year, a new Colorado School of Mines analysis concludes.  June 2, 2022.

Coal prices are way up and long-term commitments from customers are hard to find 6/2/2022

Coal prices are way up and long-term commitments from customers are hard to find

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange is featured on this podcast about how Saudi Arabia is ready to start pumping more oil onto the market, which could bring oil prices down a bit. But oil and gas aren’t the only fossil fuels in tight supply.  A lot of miners are having to tell customers that even if they wanted to sell them coal at these high prices, they just don’t have any ready and they have to fulfill their prior commitments.  June 2, 2022.

School of Mines report: Stockholder pressure will limit O&G production increases 6/2/2022

School of Mines report: Stockholder pressure will limit Oil&Gas production increases

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler contributes to this article about how as gas prices move well past the $4 per gallon mark in Colorado and around the country, motorists can expect no help for the remainder of this year from increased oil and gas production.  June 2, 2022.

Sweltering India turns to superheating coal for cooling 6/2/2022

Sweltering India turns to superheating coal for cooling

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how India has experienced a series of unusually early and prolonged heat waves this year. To cool off, the country has leaned on the fuel most responsible for the blazing temperatures.  Coal generation is surging to meet the demands of cooling systems like fans and some air conditioning, prompting a scramble by the Indian government to reopen mines and secure tons of coal imports to produce electricity.  Scientists say that as the planet warms, heat waves are becoming more frequent and severe.  June 2, 2022.

LARGEST WILDFIRES IN NEW MEXICO’S HISTORY 6/1/2022

LARGEST WILDFIRES IN NEW MEXICO’S HISTORY

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group student worker Elijah Mt. Castle writes about how multiple wildfires have been burning in the state since April. These fires have surpassed the largest fires in New Mexico’s history. Dry conditions, high winds, and the number of fires have hindered fire suppression. Fortunately, most of the wildfires are either contained or approaching containment.  June 1, 2022.

In a Bid to Save Its Coal Industry, Wyoming Has Become a Test Case for Carbon Capture, but Utilities are Balking at the Pricetag 5/29/2022

In a Bid to Save Its Coal Industry, Wyoming Has Become a Test Case for Carbon Capture, but Utilities are Balking at the Pricetag

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about how under a 2020 law, utilities must generate some of their power from coal plants fitted with technology that captures carbon, but in recent filings to regulators, two companies are warning about the cost and environmental impacts.  May 29, 2022.

The US role in securing the European Union’s near-term natural gas supply 5/26/2022

The US role in securing the European Union’s near-term natural gas supply

Payne Institute Fellow Arvind Ravikumar, Director Morgan Bazilian, and Michael Webber write about how the European Union’s plan to phase out Russian natural gas imports by 2027 rests partly on increasing near-term imports of US liquefied natural gas. This will require a coordinated policy response that includes securing supplies from major exporters, global diplomacy, expanding import capacity, and alignment with Europe’s climate goals.  May 26, 2022.

Lithium Is Key to the Electric Vehicle Transition. It’s Also in Short Supply 5/26/2022

Lithium Is Key to the Electric Vehicle Transition. It’s Also in Short Supply

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how the element lithium, a lightweight substance, is a critical component in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, which are used in most personal electronics and electric vehicles. And in the last year, it’s gotten expensive.  Lithium has shot up 432% year over year, hitting nearly $62,000 per metric ton in April.  The price spike is due to the booming electric vehicle market, which is putting demand pressure on battery producers, which in turn puts demand pressure on the minerals suppliers.  May 26, 2022.

INFLATING 5/24/2022

Inflating

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler has prepared a quarterly report on how the top priority for the U.S. public oil and gas (O&G) companies remains to deliver higher financial returns to shareholders. Public commentary as the companies reported their 1Q22 earnings included widespread commitments to pay higher dividends and to buy back shares of their own stock.  Yet, only a couple of months after laying out their spending expectations for 2022, the companies have also begun to raise their spending budgets for the year. These increases are largely in response to rising prices for goods and services, a function of supply constraints.  May 24, 2022.

Mines launches new research center with Peruvian partner university 5/24/2022

Mines launches new research center with Peruvian partner university

The Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Paul Santi, Director of the Mines Institute for Initiatives in Latin America, is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Universidad Nacional de Trujillo (UNT), located in Trujillo on the Pacific coast of northwest Peru.  This new collaboration agreement on May 9 to establish the Center for Research in Sustainable Resources (Centro para Investigación en Recursos Sostenibles) and to begin the first phase of collaborative research projects involving research teams and students based in the U.S. and in Peru.  May 24, 2022.

Industrial decarbonization via natural gas: A critical and systematic review of developments, socio-technical systems and policy options 5/23/2022

Industrial decarbonization via natural gas: A critical and systematic review of developments, socio-technical systems and policy options

Colorado School of Mines student researcher Shivani Mathur, Payne Institute Fellow Greer Gosnell, Benjamin K. Sovacool, Dylan D. Furszyfer Del Rio, Payne Institute Fellow Steve Griffiths, Director Morgan Bazilian, and Jinsoo Kim write about how natural gas is an important and highly flexible fuel across the industry sector globally.  However, the future of natural gas remains uncertain, especially for industry planning to be net-zero or carbon neutral by mid-century. This review addresses the role that natural gas might play in global industrial decarbonization, and how it can help decarbonize industrial processes.  May 23, 2022.  

Residential gas bills to jump 26% next month in Southwest Colorado 5/21/2022

Residential gas bills to jump 26% next month in Southwest Colorado

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about how the volatility in energy markets created by pandemic and war in Ukraine are behind the rise in natural gas bills.  The gas cost adjustment is a periodic rate adjustment natural gas utilities use to adapt to changing wholesale gas prices. A pass-through cost is the direct cost consumers pay for changes in natural gas prices.  May 21, 2022.

The West, reliant on hydro, may miss it during heat waves 5/20/2022

The West, reliant on hydro, may miss it during heat waves

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Adrienne Marshall contributes to this article about how when California suffers a heat wave, it leans heavily on hydropower from the Pacific Northwest to keep the lights on.  The report highlights a paradox of running the region’s electric grid in a warming world: As energy demand rises with temperatures, there may be less hydro available to supply power, increasing the need for fossil fuels. May 20, 2022.

Salty, subterranean water could relieve world’s lithium shortage 5/20/2022

Salty, subterranean water could relieve world’s lithium shortage

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee contributes to this article about how the next bottleneck in lithium-ion battery supplies isn’t cobalt, even though China has a stranglehold on the market, and it’s not nickel, either, despite nickel prices nearly doubling in the past five months. There’s no substitute for one crucial component of these batteries: Lithium. Today’s lithium mines can’t hope to meet the skyrocketing demand for the next decade and beyond. May 20, 2022.  

In coal country, a new chance to clean up a toxic legacy 5/19/2022

In coal country, a new chance to clean up a toxic legacy

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Rod Eggert contributes to this article about how waste from abandoned and bankrupt mines has contaminated more than 12,000 miles of waterways. Now states are looking at how to extract critical elements from those waters to try to offset the high cost of cleanup.  May 19, 2022.

Whose data is this anyway? Striving for higher standards of emissions reporting 5/17/2022

Whose data is this anyway? Striving for higher standards of emissions reporting

The Payne Institute is proud of our research with Baker Hughes on creating higher standards for emissions reporting.  The new research partnership aims to clarify best practices and help industry come to grips with disclosing Scope 3 GHG emissions.  May 17, 2022.  

Water Security Issues for Lithium Mining in Chile 5/17/2022

Water Security Issues for Lithium Mining in Chile

Payne Institute Communications Associate Eleanor Igwe writes about how due to lithium’s central role in electric vehicle batteries, its demand is predicted to continue a steep rise and likely reach the level of two to four million metric tons by 2030. In addition to the stresses this will put on mining production and the environment – issues of water security are likely to become a key challenge.  May 17, 2022.  

A solar-energy trade dispute erupts at exactly the wrong time 5/17/2022

A solar-energy trade dispute erupts at exactly the wrong time

Payne Institute Communications Associate Simon Lomax and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how a complaint by a California company is tanking production just when we need it most — and could delay Xcel’s exit from coal.  Colorado’s coal phase out hasn’t happened yet – and it won’t happen without the continued construction of new power sources to take the place of old power sources when they are due to shut down. Actions that slow down or stop these construction projects, however well intentioned, only increase the risk of failure.  May 17, 2022.  

The electricity scene from above: Exploring power grid inconsistencies using satellite data in Accra, Ghana 5/17/2022

The electricity scene from above: Exploring power grid inconsistencies using satellite data in Accra, Ghana

Zeal Shah, Noah Klugman, Gabriel Cadamuro, Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Research Associate Feng-Chi Hsu, Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Director and Senior Research Associate Christopher D. Elvidge, and Jay Taneja write about how complicated systems are complicated to monitor. The electric grid is one of the most complicated systems, and subsequently goes under-monitored in many regions around the world that cannot easily afford expensive meters. Past work has shown that images taken by satellites during the night, capturing nighttime illumination (“nightlights”), could provide a proxy measurement of grid performance for minimal cost.  May 17, 2022.

Hydropower is 53% of the renewable energy supply in the West. Drought is slowing down production 5/17/2022

Hydropower is 53% of the renewable energy supply in the West. Drought is slowing down production

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Adrienne Marshall contributes to this article about how Tri-State Generation, the largest hydropower customer on the Colorado River system, says it has enough other sources of energy to make up for less hydro production.  Sagging hydropower production on the Colorado River system, which has raised concern over the long-term reliability of the power source in the West, has not had a significant impact here. May 17, 2022.

2021 FLARING NUMBERS PUBLISHED 5/16/2022

2021 FLARING NUMBERS PUBLISHED

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Tamara Sparks writes about how the EOG has posted our annual 2021 flaring numbers on our VNF website. Global flaring increased slightly in 2021 to 156.2 BCM from 152.6 BCM in 2020, including upstream and downstream flaring. Both upstream and downstream flaring saw a slight increase.  May 16, 2022.

Mines researchers aim to bring more science into decision-making through AGU Local Science Partners 5/16/2022

Mines researchers aim to bring more science into decision-making through AGU Local Science Partners

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Kamini Singha and Joel Singley were selected as members of the inaugural cohort of a new American Geophysics Union program to empower scientists to build sustainable partnerships with policymakers.  Through the program, the science ambassadors receive resources and training on the legislative process, science policy and communication skills, as well as regular legislative and policy updates and opportunities to participate in Congressional visit days in Washington D.C.  May 16, 2022.  

First-of-its kind project in Colorado will bury 350,000 tons of planet-warming carbon that would have been released into the air 5/12/2022

First-of-its kind project in Colorado will bury 350,000 tons of planet-warming carbon that would have been released into the air

Payne Institute Program Manager Anna Littlefield contributed to this article about how the Colorado company Carbon America announced what it says will be the state’s first commercial-scale projects to capture and store carbon dioxide — the harmful and long-lasting greenhouse gas — before it’s released into the air.  Carbon America will build and operate a new system that siphons off carbon dioxide produced at the Sterling and Yuma ethanol plants in northeastern Colorado. The gas will then be pumped through pipelines and stored in a saline aquifer almost a mile underground.  May 13, 2022.

 

Get digging 5/12/2022

Get Digging

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee contributes to this article about how we’re going to need a lot of minerals for the clean energy transition — think copper, nickel and lithium, among others.  We’ll need those minerals for solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicle batteries and battery storage for renewable energy. Lithium in particular is a key component for batteries – but China controls most battery processing, and current trade tensions and national security concerns are raising concerns about the reliability of that source.  May 12, 2022.

Satellite Data Offers a Broad Array of Policy Insights 5/12/2022

Satellite Data Offers a Broad Array of Policy Insights

Payne Institute Communications Associate Chris Dunn and Director Morgan Bazilian summarize how satellite data is rapidly growing in importance for informing crucial policy decisions. Insights offered fall into one of three main categories: energy security and assessment, emissions and environment, and human and national security. May 12, 2022.

The Biden Administration Has Taken Some Bold Steps on Energy, But More Remains to be Done 5/12/2022

The Biden Administration Has Taken Some Bold Steps on Energy, But More Remains to be Done

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian and Duncan Wood write about how President Biden’s recent invocation of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to include five critical minerals is an important symbolic step toward moving to a low-carbon energy and transport system. The minerals mentioned in Biden’s announcement are those that are especially fundamental to modern batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage for power systems that are increasingly reliant on wind and solar power.  May 12, 2022.

Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2022 5/11/2022

Fostering Effective Energy Transition 2022

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this World Economic Forum report on how the global energy transition builds on the trends from the Energy Transition Index to provide perspective on the current challenges and recommendations on how to navigate the transition through a turbulent macroeconomic and geopolitical environment. A series of compounded shocks pose short-term risks to energy affordability, sustainability, and energy security. However, the window to prevent the worst consequences of climate change is closing fast.  May 11, 2022.

Air-Conditioning Should Be a Human Right in the Climate Crisis 5/10/2022

Air-Conditioning Should Be a Human Right in the Climate Crisis

Rose M. Mutiso, Morgan D. Bazilian, Jacob Kincer, and Brooke Bowser write about how we need to protect vulnerable people from killer heat without destroying the environment.  As the world heats up, billions of people need air-conditioning. This 120-year-old technology used to be considered a luxury, but in the age of climate change, it is a necessity for human survival. Understandably, this has created anxiety over the climate threat of a world overrun with ACs. But the coming boom in air-conditioning is an essential shift toward reducing the enormous gap in cooling availability that exists between rich and poor people and nations—and toward producing a more equitable world.  May 10, 2022.

Corporate ESG Commitments are Gaining Popularity. Can They be Trusted?

Corporate ESG Commitments are Gaining Popularity. Can They be Trusted?

Payne Institute Communications Associate Elsa Barron, Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee, and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about the growing concerns about the long-term sustainability of many industries have led to big changes in approaches to corporate strategies and management. Pressure from financiers is adding to the momentum. Concerns about climate related financial risks and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data, have helped create demand from bankers for companies to show that they are actively working towards global climate goals.  May 9, 2022. 

Location, Location, Low-Carbon: How Climate is Changing the Holy Trinity of Real Estate 5/6/2022

Location, Location, Low-Carbon: How Climate is Changing the Holy Trinity of Real Estate

Payne Institute Communications Associate Simon Lomax writes about how the cardinal rule for real estate used to be location, location, location, but now he is confident the new trinity that drives value in the real estate sector: location, location, low-carbon.  Location remains critically important, but for a growing number of real estate firms, so is climate change and speeding up the world’s transition to a zero-carbon energy system.  May 6, 2022. 

2022 Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report 5/5/2022

2022 Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report

The Payne Institute Earth Observation Group provided gas flaring data for the 2022 World Bank annual Global Gas Flaring Report.  May 5, 2022.

Estimating global economic well-being with unlit settlements 5/5/2022

Estimating global economic well-being with unlit settlements

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group writes about how it is well established that nighttime radiance, measured from satellites, correlates with economic prosperity across the globe.  For 49 countries spread across Africa, Asia and the Americas we are able to predict and map the wealth class obtained from ~2,400,000 geo-located households based upon the percent of unlit settlements, with an overall accuracy of 87%. May 5, 2022.  

GTI Energy’s President and CEO David Carroll Announces Retirement, Dr. Paula Gant to Assume Leadership Role 5/2/2022

GTI Energy’s President and CEO David Carroll Announces Retirement, Dr. Paula Gant to Assume Leadership Role

Payne Institute Advisory Board member Dr. Paula Gant will assume GTI Energy’s leadership as President and CEO effective July 5, 2022.  Since joining GTI Energy in 2019, Dr. Gant has led efforts to enhance the creation and market impact of technology-based energy and environmental solutions.  May 2, 2022.

(Colorado) Executive Order D 2018-12: Orphan Well Program 4/30/2022

(Colorado) Executive Order D 2018-12: Orphan Well Program

Executive Order D 2018-12 formed the Orphaned Well Program (OWP) under the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC). OWP’s mandate is to identify, prioritize, and address orphaned oil and gas wells, locations, and production facilities across Colorado. The order directs the OWP team to create a list of orphaned wells and sites – updated annually into low, medium, and high priority categories – and plug, remediate, and reclaim them. April 30, 2022.

How Artificial Intelligence Can Accelerate Geothermal Investment 4/29/2022

How Artificial Intelligence Can Accelerate Geothermal Investment

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Sebnem Düzgün, Payne Institute Communications Associate Elsa Barron, and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about how in the midst of the global energy transition, geothermal operations promise to provide stable, renewable energy, so why aren’t more investors taking the bait? One of the major roadblocks for geothermal investment is the high level of uncertainty that accompanies the subsurface resource.  April 29, 2022.

NOAA’s Office of Space Commerce gets new director 4/27/2022

NOAA’s Office of Space Commerce gets new director

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group provided the satellite images for this NOAA announcement on their new Space Commerce director Richard DalBello, a venerable figure in government and the private-sector satellite industry, has been appointed to be the new director of NOAA’s Office of Space Commerce (OSC), the coordinator of space commerce policy activities within the U.S. Department of Commerce. DalBello officially will begin his duties on May 9.  April 27, 2022.  

Multiple streams framework and mineral royalties: The 2005 mining tax reform in Chile 4/23/2022

Multiple streams framework and mineral royalties: The 2005 mining tax reform in Chile

Emilio Castillo and Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Kathleen Hancock write about how in economic theories, institutional change usually occurs in response to changes in relative prices. Mineral policies in mining countries frequently follow this behavior, modifying their tax systems as metal prices change. Nonetheless, Chile presents a deviation from common behavior with a mining tax reform that took place before a major increase in mineral commodity prices and when market analysts and political leaders expected prices to remain relatively constant.  April 23, 2022.  

HOW RUSSIA MADE THE WORLD MORE FOOD INSECURE 4/22/2022

HOW RUSSIA MADE THE WORLD MORE FOOD INSECURE

Payne Institute Communications Associate Brooke Bowser and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not only created global food insecurity but is also damaging the environment.  As markets swing with volatility, the reactions of some countries will have significant ramifications for global food security and resilience to climate change.  April 22, 2022.

How Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Will Impact Africa’s Energy Transition 4/22/2022

How Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Will Impact Africa’s Energy Transition

Katie Auth and Payne Institute Fellow Todd Moss write about how the Russian invasion of Ukraine will shift the geopolitics of decarbonization, with particularly stark implications for energy politics in Africa.  The energy sector impacts of this war will reverberate across every corner of the globe.  April 22, 2022.

Here’s how Colorado oil and gas companies say they are getting to net-zero emissions 4/20/2022

Here’s how Colorado oil and gas companies say they are getting to net-zero emissions

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how companies are going public with their climate goals using ESG (the E stands for Environment), as mindful investors push for change. But as sustainability funds thrive, what does “E” really mean?  April 20, 2022.

Power Outage in Afghanistan as Seen by DNB 4/20/2022

Power Outage in Afghanistan as Seen by DNB

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Research Associate Tilottama Ghosh writes about how the economic and humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of the US Armed forces, which was completed on August 31st, 2021, can be viewed from ‘space.’ Areas which were lit before become dimmer or become completely dark because of the loss of electricity.  April 20, 2022.  

RUSSIA’S WAR HINDERS SUSTAINABLE STEEL EFFORTS 4/20/2022

RUSSIA’S WAR HINDERS SUSTAINABLE STEEL EFFORTS

Payne Institute Communications Associate Brooke Bowser and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how climate action and sustainable practices are not a priority for the Kremlin.  Unfortunately, as the metal’s global market is rattled by war and rising prices, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine removes the focus on decarbonization to more immediately pressing issues of security.  April 20, 2022.

Ukraine War Gives U.S. LNG Chance to Shed Fracked-Gas Stigma

Ukraine War Gives U.S. LNG Chance to Shed Fracked-Gas Stigma

The Payne Institute Earth Observation Group provided the satellite data science the experts and employees of Cheniere Energy Inc., the largest U.S. exporter of natural gas, used for their high-stakes campaign to show Europe that as it abandons Russian gas, it can substitute the American variety without fear. Their job is to find the most efficient leak detecting system.  April 19, 2022.

A Critical Minerals Policy Option for the U.S. 4/19/2022

A Critical Minerals Policy Option for the U.S.

Payne Institute Research Associate Baba Freeman writes about how the U.S.’s current policies may be insufficient to meet its strategic goal of supply chain resilience and unfettered access to critical minerals needed for its economic growth and military deterrence purposes. He proposes an additional policy approach to further enrich ongoing discussions about this very important and strategic sector.  April 19, 2022.  

Can oil companies use their extra money to ease pain at the pump? It’s complicated. 4/12/2022

Can oil companies use their extra money to ease pain at the pump? It’s complicated.

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian is featured on this podcast about how the cost of gasoline continues to rise across the globe and in the United States due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and continued inflation associated with the global pandemic.  However, lowering the price at the pump isn’t just about big oil making a small amount less.  April 12, 2022.

BLACKOUT IN PUERTO RICO SEEN BY VIIRS SATELLITE 4/11/2022

BLACKOUT IN PUERTO RICO SEEN BY VIIRS SATELLITE

Payne Institute Earth Observation Group Research Associate Tamara Sparks looks at the power outages in Puerto Rico. The island-wide power outage caused by a fire at a power plant in Puerto Rico is visible in satellite imagery from the VIIRS day night band.  April 11, 2022.

LIGHTS OF A COUNTRY UNDER TALIBAN CONTROL 4/11/2022

LIGHTS OF A COUNTRY UNDER TALIBAN CONTROL

Payne Institute Research Associate Fen-Chi Hsu, Director Morgan Bazilian, and Communications Associate Brooke Bowser write about what the satellite views of Afghan city lights tell us about the economic and political state of the country.  Changing light patterns are not new for Afghanistan, which has dealt with rolling power outages for decades due to issues with supply and conflict, but the departure of US troops, the Taliban’s dominance, and the country’s plunge into an economic crisis create new concerns about electricity blackouts.  April 11, 2022.

Current status of university-based energy institutes in the United States and a pathway to forming a national organization 4/11/2022

Current status of university-based energy institutes in the United States and a pathway to forming a national organization

Jay F. Whitacre, Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Anna J. Siefken, and Michael M. Whiston write about how over the past twenty years, the number of university-based energy institutes (UBEI) that focus on supporting energy-related research has increased substantially. While most of these institutes have formal or informal collaborative interactions with other institutes, there is no existing nation-wide network or organization that all institutes can interact with. As such, we have endeavored to investigate and classify the current landscape of UBEIs, with the intent of enabling the formation of a centralized organization to further support the evolution of the academic energy research movement in the U.S.  April 11, 2022.

Friedland’s Revenge 4/10/2022

Friedland’s Revenge

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee contributes to this article about how mining mogul Robert M. Friedland’s, the eccentric founder of Ivanhoe Mines, decision to partner with some of China’s biggest players represents a conundrum for the West. The renewable energy transition won’t be achieved, he said, without the critical metals needed “to electrify the world economy,” representing a kind of “revenge of the miners” — a vindication that, after decades of investor preoccupation with technology stocks, the world needs people like him to dig stuff out of the ground.  April 10, 2022.

EV AND BATTERY BIG TALK MUST NOW SWITCH TO MINING AS SUPPLY CHAIN BITES 4/8/2022

EV AND BATTERY BIG TALK MUST NOW SWITCH TO MINING AS SUPPLY CHAIN BITES

Simon Moores and Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the lithium ion battery is in the midst of its transition from niche industry to mainstream platform technology for the 21st century.  This sheer scale of battery output has been made possible through the rise of so called gigafactories, battery plants an order of magnitude bigger than their predecessors.  April 8, 2022.

CAN WE GET CLEAN ENERGY WITHOUT DIRTY MINES? 4/8/2022

CAN WE GET CLEAN ENERGY WITHOUT DIRTY MINES?

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about how in 2021, global sales of electric vehicles more than doubled. This year, automakers are projected to make another huge gain, driven by soaring gas prices and new models with increased range. Getting away from gas-powered vehicles is essential to transition to a clean energy economy. But it’s not all good news on the clean energy front. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has disrupted global supply chains, and roiled markets for nickel and other commodities used for renewables and batteries. April 8, 2022.

For Europe, quitting Russian coal will be easier than quitting Russian natural gas 4/05/2022

For Europe, quitting Russian coal will be easier than quitting Russian natural gas

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this podcast discussing the future of fossil fuels and the ease of how Russia supplies coal to much of Europe compared to natural gas.  The EU depends on Russia for around 40% of its oil and natural gas needs. That figure is more like 20% for coal.  April 5, 2022.   

Baltics cut off Russian gas, but Germany, EU face struggle 4/4/2022

Baltics cut off Russian gas, but Germany, EU face struggle

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how pressure is mounting on the European Union to abandon Russian gas supplies as individual countries begin turning off the tap.  The Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia became Europe’s first region to abandon Russian gas supplies entirely this weekend, and they urged other nations on the continent to do the same. April 4, 2022.

Precious Metal Values are Raising Battery Prices and Slowing EV Uptake

Precious Metal Values are Raising Battery Prices and Slowing EV Uptake

James McCandless and Payne Institute Fellow Rod Eggert write about how electric vehicles (EV) are still too expensive for a lot of people. As automakers work to bring EV production to scale, they’re running into a problem: ongoing constraints in the supply chain are keeping prices on battery components high. Specifically, there’s been a sharp increase in the cost of lithium and nickel, both key components to building EV battery cells. April 4, 2022.

Fireside Chats with Gaia 4/4/2022

Fireside Chats with Gaia

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow James Crompton wrote this book about how public health pandemics and Climate Change cannot be ignored. Economic recessions of very large magnitude can’t be ignored either. But the one I want to focus on in this article is the so-called Energy Transition. Environmentalist are talking about an energy transition to a new Green Energy world, net-neutral-carbon-zero world to mitigate against the impacts of Climate Change and predict that we don’t have much time to get there.  April 4, 2022.

Biden invokes Defense Production Act to shore up raw materials for clean energy 3/31/2022

Biden invokes Defense Production Act to shore up raw materials for clean energy

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how President Joe Biden invoked the Defense Production Act on March 31 to stimulate U.S. production of critical minerals.  The directive, issued alongside policy actions aimed at reducing gasoline prices in the U.S., authorizes the use of the Defense Production Act to encourage domestic production of materials critical to transitioning to cleaner energy technologies through purchases, purchase commitments or other action. March 31, 2022.

Biden to unleash oil reserves, use wartime power to boost mining 3/31/2022

Biden to unleash oil reserves, use wartime power to boost mining 

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how President Biden today will announce the largest release of oil reserves in U.S. history and a government-backed effort to boost U.S. mining of critical minerals used in electric vehicles, according to White House officials.  March 31, 2022.

Oil Companies and Wall Street Gain Confidence 3/31/2022

Oil Companies and Wall Street Gain Confidence

Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler has prepared a quarterly report on how stronger oil and natural gas prices have infused oil companies and Wall Street with confidence about future prospects, although remaining in shareholders’ good graces by not “over-spending” continues to dominate U.S. public oil and natural gas (O&G) industry mindset.  March 31, 2022.

Biden poised to invoke Cold War-era law to encourage domestic mining 3/31/2022

Biden poised to invoke Cold War-era law to encourage domestic mining

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about Russia’s presence worldwide in uranium enrichment and how developing countries have traditionally turned to Russia to help develop nuclear power plants.  Up until 2 months ago this was a viable option, now there are other challenges (sound clip starts at 13:00 minutes into the podcast). March 31, 2022.  

Biden eyes using wartime powers for minerals needed in clean energy push 3/30/2022

Biden eyes using wartime powers for minerals needed in clean energy push

Payne Institute Program Manager Jordy Lee contributes to this article about how President Joe Biden could use the Defense Production Act to help secure U.S. sources of critical minerals that are deemed key components of clean energy technology. While the U.S. possesses many of those minerals, industry and some lawmakers of both parties contend regulations have deterred development and forced the U.S. to rely on supplies from nations like China, Russia, South Africa and Australia.  March 30, 2022.

Russia’s role in world’s nuclear energy industry prompts calls to up U.S. uranium production 3/30/2022

Russia’s role in world’s nuclear energy industry prompts calls to up U.S. uranium production

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this podcast about the global uranium market, nuclear power, and how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has complicated their nuclear presence worldwide.  March 30, 2022.

Record-high steel prices could hamper renewable rollout in near-term 3/28/2022

Record-high steel prices could hamper renewable rollout in near-term

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has roiled the oil and gas markets, and it could soon impact the renewable energy world, too. Along with the historic surge in the cost of other key climate-tech materials, like nickel, steel prices have hit record highs. The cause? Supply constraints and soaring energy costs resulting from the war in Ukraine. March 28, 2022.

Biden sends mixed signals to oil industry 3/24/2022

Biden sends mixed signals to oil industry

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how the Biden administration is sending mixed messaging to the oil and gas industry as it seeks to boost oil output while also keeping the industry at arm’s length.  The administration has asked U.S. oil and gas producers to drill more as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has pushed gasoline prices higher. But it has also taken a somewhat hostile tone, blaming the industry for not bringing prices down quickly enough.  March 24, 2022.

Project Canary Adds to Independent Stature with 3rd Party Assessment of ESG Data by Big Four Accounting & Payne Institute 3/23/2022