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Top Story
Trump Demands Changes to Coronavirus Relief Bill, Calling It a ‘Disgrace’
Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, who had been pressing for similarly sized checks, welcomed Mr. Trump’s intervention. “Republicans repeatedly refused to say what amount the President wanted for direct checks. At last, the President has agreed to $2,000 — Democrats are ready to bring this to the Floor this week by unanimous consent. Let’s do it!” she wrote on Twitter. House Democrats planned to bring up the $2,000 payments for a vote by unanimous consent on Thursday, said an aide who was familiar with the proposal. [ read more … ]
A Dinner, a Deal and Moonshine: How the Stimulus Came Together
A week before Thanksgiving, a small group of moderate senators gathered in the spacious living room of Senator Lisa Murkowski’s home on Capitol Hill to embark on what they considered an urgent assignment. They were there — eating Tuscan takeout as they sat socially distanced, with the windows open to let the cold air circulate as a coronavirus precaution — to talk about how to get the Senate, polarized and paralyzed on nearly every issue, working again. [ read more … ]
Relief Bill
Federal stimulus includes wind, solar tax credit extensions, adds first US offshore wind tax credit
The package includes extensions on the solar and wind production tax credit (PTC) and investment tax credit (ITC), energy efficiency incentives, research and development “enhancements” for clean energy technologies and more, according to a joint statement from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and House Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y [ read more … ]
Solar Energy
Senators press Biden to scrap Trump solar tariffs
A dozen senators are asking President-elect Joe Biden to fully repeal the Trump administration tariffs on solar panel imports, saying they’ve harmed the domestic solar industry. In the letter initiated by Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), the senators argue that in three years the tariffs have “dealt a significant setback to the solar power sector.”
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The States
Major power producer backs shutdown of all Md. coal plants
One of the nation’s largest independent power producers has announced it is closing a coal plant in Maryland and is throwing its weight behind a bid to phase out coal-fired generation in the state entirely. GenOn Holdings Inc., a Houston-based firm, said it plans to retire its Morgantown Generating Station in southern Maryland by 2027, marking the firm’s third closure announcement this year. [ read more … ]
3 states, D.C. agree to cap automobile emissions
Three states and the District of Columbia yesterday reached a historic agreement to cap planet-warming emissions from cars. The memorandum of understanding among Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Washington marks a milestone in the yearslong process of launching the Transportation and Climate Initiative Program, a proposed cap-and-invest system for cars in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. [ read more … ]
The Transition
Biden is eyeing renewable energy. So are hackers
President-elect Joe Biden’s rush to renewable energy may open up a host of cybersecurity dangers if more isn’t done to secure the technology from hackers. Fast-evolving solar and wind technologies pose new risks to power grid security, especially as smaller renewable energy companies often lack resources to fight against hackers, experts warn. And a recently discovered hacking campaign targeting federal agencies and potentially hundreds of energy companies only underscores the scale of the challenge [ read more … ]
Biden’s Cabinet picks could fuel EPA, FERC pipeline wars
President-elect Joe Biden’s Cabinet and climate czar picks are likely to make a dramatic U-turn from the Trump administration’s policies on global warming. That in turn could have ripple effects for the nation’s pipeline sector, which depends on regulations and permitting from multiple federal agencies. “This administration is very focused on climate change,” said Mark Ryan, a former Clean Water Act attorney for EPA Region 10, which covers the Pacific Northwest. “It’s not likely they’re going to go to bat to help the pipeline industry.” [ read more … ]
EVs
Exclusive: Apple targets car production by 2024 and eyes ‘next level’ battery technology – sources
Apple Inc is moving forward with self-driving car technology and is targeting 2024 to produce a passenger vehicle that could include its own breakthrough battery technology, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The iPhone maker’s automotive efforts, known as Project Titan, have proceeded unevenly since 2014 when it first started to design its own vehicle from scratch. At one point, Apple drew back the effort to focus on software and reassessed its goals. Doug Field, an Apple veteran who had worked at Tesla Inc, returned to oversee the project in 2018 and laid off 190 people from the team in 2019. [ read more … ]
Tesla slides on first day of trading on S&P 500 index
Tesla Inc. was among the biggest drags on the S&P 500 in its first day of trading on the benchmark. The electric-vehicle maker, which now represents 1.6% of the index and is among its heaviest-weighted stocks, fell as much as 6.3% as it retraced gains from Friday when tens of millions of shares were purchased by index-fund managers. The S&P 500 fell as much as 2% amid fears of a new coronavirus strain in the U.K. [ read more … ]
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