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| By Arianna Skibell |
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An exploratory drilling camp at the proposed site of the Willow oil project on Alaska's North Slope is shown. | ConocoPhillips/AP Photo |
President Joe Biden’s approval today of a massive oil project in Alaska came with an apparent message for the fossil fuel industry: OK — but after this, you’re really cut off. The Biden administration greenlit ConocoPhillips’ $8 billion Willow project, just one day after announcing sweeping restrictions on oil and gas leasing in other areas of the state. The planned restrictions would protect more than half of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska’s 24-million-acre expanse and ban drilling in the Arctic Ocean altogether. The apparent olive branch did little to appease environmental groups and some tribal communities, which fear the Willow project will worsen the climate crisis and threaten the area’s pristine wilderness. “It’s insulting that Biden thinks this will change our minds about the Willow project,” Kristen Monsell, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in an email. “Protecting one area of the Arctic so you can destroy another doesn’t make sense, and it won’t help the people and wildlife who will be upended by the Willow project.” ConocoPhillips plans to build 199 oil and gas wells in the country’s largest single swath of pristine land. The wells, on three sites, could produce more than 600 million barrels of crude over 30 years. That would release nearly 280 million metric tons of planet-warming pollution into the atmosphere over the life span of the project — equivalent to an additional 2 million cars or two coal-burning power plants every year. The White House defended its approval, saying it might not have been legal to pull the plug on the project because Conoco has held some of the oil leases for decades. The administration did, however, reduce the project’s footprint by 40 percent. Conoco had originally sought five drilling locations. The project is supported by all three lawmakers in Alaska’s bipartisan congressional delegation, along with some labor unions that say the project would create 2,500 jobs and generate as much as $17 billion in revenue for the federal government. An analysis by the environmental group Friends of the Earth estimated the climate damage from the Willow project would be $79 billion. The International Energy Agency has said governments must stop approving new fossil fuel projects if the world hopes to prevent the most catastrophic consequences of climate change. Read more about today’s decision from POLITICO’s E&E News reporter Heather Richards and from POLITICO reporter Ben Lefevbre.
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It's Monday— thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net.
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| A message from Renewable Fuels Association: Adding ethanol to our fuel supply saved American drivers 77 cents per gallon of gasoline purchased between 2019 to 2022, according to economists at the University of California, Berkeley and other leading universities. That’s over $750 per household each year, representing total savings to U.S. consumers of $95 billion annually. To ensure consumers continue to enjoy these savings, President Biden should take action now to allow year-round sales of E15. Learn more here. |
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Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: Charlie Cooper breaks down what we know — and don't know — about the Nord Stream pipelines sabotage.
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The $8 billion Willow project by ConocoPhillips would be in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. | AP |
The White House seemed to be trying muffle environmentalists’ outcry over the Willow decision when it announced new drilling prohibitions in Alaska over the weekend, writes Robin Bravender. But Monday’s determination likely won’t end the lengthy Willow dispute, as lawsuits challenging the administration’s move are almost certain. Here’s what else to know about the Willow decision.
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| A message from Renewable Fuels Association:   |
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Large coal piles sits in front of a coal-fired power plant in Castle Dale, Utah. | George Frey/Getty Images |
That's a first
Utah’s largest coal company will relinquish two mining leases and apply the social cost of carbon in the environmental analysis of a third lease as part of a settlement agreement reached last week with environmental groups and the federal government, writes Benjamin Storrow. The agreement comes as the Biden administration weighs a hike in the social cost of carbon — a metric for calculating the monetary damages caused by greenhouse gas pollution — and amid continued debate over fossil fuel production on federal land. Europe's engine battle
France is pushing back against a German effort to create loopholes in EU legislation banning the sale of combustion-engine vehicles after 2035, write Joshua Posaner, Giorgio Leali and Hans von der Buchard. The German government, along with Italy, Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, is threatening to block the legislation unless it allows a loophole for cars running on e-fuels — a synthetic alternative to fossil fuels that can be used in conventional combustion engines.
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The first great energy transition: How humanity gave up whaling. U.N. chief: "Cold, hard facts" should guide climate policy. Banking crisis: The Silicon Valley Bank collapse is threatening climate startups.
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A showcase of some of our best subscriber content.
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 The Nine Mile Point nuclear plant in Oswego, N.Y. | Business Wire |
The Nine Mile Point nuclear plant in New York has begun producing hydrogen, marking a first for the U.S. and casting light on a little-known method for producing carbon-free fuel. After years of partisan infighting on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, acting Chair Willie Phillips says he’s focusing on keeping the peace. Republican states challenging California’s decades-old right to set its own tailpipe emissions standards are arguing that the practice unfairly gives a single state too much power. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.
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| A message from Renewable Fuels Association: Adding low-carbon ethanol to our nation’s fuel supply saved American drivers an average of 77 cents on each gallon of gasoline purchased between 2019 to 2022, according to a new study by economists at the University of California, Berkeley and other leading universities. That represents a total savings to U.S. consumers of more than $95 billion per year, or over $750 annually per household! As Putin’s war in Ukraine continues to wreak havoc on global energy markets, and as abnormally high inflation rates continue to challenge family budgets, the Biden administration and Congress should support the Renewable Fuel Standard and act immediately to allow year-round sales nationwide of lower-cost, lower-carbon ethanol blends like E15. Ethanol is a proven solution for reducing prices at the pump, cleaning the air, and enhancing our energy security. Learn more here. |
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