• A nonprofit backed by Chris Hohn, the billionaire money manager behind TCI Fund Management, says climate investors need to move into the highest-emitting sectors if they’re to effectively bring about a low-carbon energy transition.
• North Dakota officials approve a $32 million loan for a processing facility that will convert natural gas into liquid hydrocarbon products.
• Evanston, Illinois, is among U.S. communities banning gasoline-powered leaf blowers to cut down on noise and pollution, drawing pushback from the landscaping industry.
• Houston has installed 30% more electric vehicle stations since last April, data shows.
• Federal regulators consider approving a large liquified natural gas export terminal in Louisiana.
• The U.S. EPA launches an investigation of how Texas regulates the injection of wastewater, gas and chemicals into the ground, rattling state officials who want the state to oversee carbon capture and sequestration.
• A union that represents the Environmental Protection Agency employees issued its first political endorsement last Tuesday: Supporting President Biden’s reelection. The union, the American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, represents 8,000 EPA employees, including engineers, lawyers and inspectors.
• Leaders of five national environmental organizations criticized New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) controversial decision to delay congestion pricing for drivers entering Manhattan and requested a meeting with the governor in a joint letter last week.
•A coalition of environmental, labor and health care groups called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to classify extreme heat and wildfire smoke as “major disasters” to unlock federal funding for states during these weather events.
• The Treasury Department on Tuesday announced final rules for prevailing wage and registered apprenticeships under the Inflation Reduction Act, saying that qualifying employers in the renewable energy sector will be eligible for a fivefold increase in the available tax credit.
• Marathon Petroleum hired FTI Government Affairs to lobby on issues related to corporate taxation and energy. Mickeala Carter, a U.S. Department of Agriculture and House Agriculture Committee alum, will work on the account.
• Legacy U.S. automakers such as Ford Motor and General Motors should leave the China market to preserve capital amid the costly electric vehicle transition, a leading auto analyst said on Tuesday.
• The Oracle of Omaha has set his sights on the oil industry. Berkshire Hathaway, the holding company helmed by investing titan Warren Buffett, has upped its stake in Houston- based Occidental Petroleum, buying up shares over the past nine trading days to bring its holdings to almost 29% of the firm, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission filings. World
• Ukraine has been systematically targeting Russian energy infrastructure to try to disrupt Russia’s economy and its ability to fund its military effort. Ukrainian officials say attacks have been carried out in retaliation for Russian strikes on the Ukrainian energy system.
• Denmark is planning to target the infamous shadow fleet of tankers carrying sanctioned Russian oil through the Baltic Sea and Danish Straits, its Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said today (June 17). The Nordic country is holding talks with other Baltic Sea states and EU members about how to impede Russia’s sanctions- dodging fleet, which is said to number around 1,400 vessels, including 435 tankers.