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EPRINC studies energy economics and policy issue with special emphasis on oil, natural gas and petroleum product markets. We provide objective and technical analysis on a wide range of energy issues.

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Chart of the Week

A Tale of Two States on Electricity

  • California’s aggressive program to drive out baseload with intermittent wind and solar, among other policy initiatives, has put cost pressure on electricity prices.
  • Growing power demand for AI, Data Centers, EVs and advanced manufacturing will be constrained by high power prices and power interruptions (blackouts) unless cost pressures are addressed.
  • Florida’s approach to accelerate natural gas use and pace the deployment of intermittent power has limited price increases for electricity.

Michael Lynch, Energy Policy Research Foundation Distinguished Fellow and President of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, has published a short piece in Forbes entitled “Vermont’s Attack On Big Oil Is Pandering Not Climate Policy“. In this piece, he examines Vermont’s decision to pass a bill intended to charge oil companies for the damage climate change has caused and the implications of that decison.

EPRINC Director of Research Programs Max Pyziur was featured in a story in Scripps News written by John Mone. In the piece, Pyziur provides commentary on the IEA’s predictions of an imminent glut in oil production capacity in its recent report.

One of Pyziur’s quotes is below:

Max Pyziur, the research director for the Energy Policy Research Foundation, said, “Electrical generation from intermittent resources such as solar and wind, I see that as being very difficult to commission. Consequently, you’re going to continue to need to rely on oil and gas and coal for the duration.”

The article can be found here.

EPRINC has just published a complete revision of its Gasoline Blending Primer. This expanded version of the Primer concisely explains the evolution of gasoline production and formulation from early efforts to meet rising performance standards to recent blends required by more rigorous pollution regulations and biofuel mandates.
In the process, finished gasoline that was once a simple combination of a few refined petroleum components usable across a wide geographic space has evolved to many formulations that have become increasingly complex adjusted for the requirements of different regulatory jurisdictions,” commented Max Pyziur, EPRINC’s Research Director. “This is a formidable achievement, but it comes with increasing costs.”
The Primer is updated with discussions of current policy considerations and issues. It is available here.

We’re excited to present to you our latest video on global LNG terminal capacity. The animation delves into the significance of LNG for securing and diversifying energy supplies, while also highlighting its positive impact on the US trade balance.

This video is part of the Foundation’s ongoing animation series on critical topics in energy security and energy transition.

EPRINC Distinguished Fellow Michael Lynch has published another piece in Forbes, entitled “Oil Companies Should Listen To Activists—But Skeptically“. Click the link to read the full article on the Forbes website! A PDF of the piece can be found here.

In an interview with Kevin Killough for Just the News, EPRINC’s Max Pyziur discusses the formidable efficiency gains that have been made by data centers helping to deliver increasing loads while questions remain as to their future electricity demand growth. The article, “America’s electricity grid is stressed, and new data centers may put even bigger demands on it“, was published February 18, 2024.

On Tuesday, December 5 2023, Energy Policy Research hosted a workshop called: “Pathways to Net Zero: Electric Power and EVs”. The workshop consisted of two panels to address the central tasks necessary to proceed with an energy transition that relies upon a rapid electrification of the national economy. We expect our attendees to participate in the discussion. Experts that are undertaking assessments on operational risks to the national grid from EPA energy mandates and the acceleration in power demand for EVs and other electrification proposals participated, as well as representatives from the automotive industry.

Our existing assessments on “Net Zero” have outlined cost risks, technology constraints, and regulatory obstacles for a rapid build out of the electric grid, including power requirements to meet demand from the expansion of EVs. Sound policy will require a careful understanding of the challenges ahead.

An agenda from the workshop is here, and some of the presentations that were given at the workshop can be found below.

EPRINC Trustee Larry Goldstein was quoted in two separate articles, one by CNBC and one by the New York Times, on the topics of the recent acquisitions by oil majors ExxonMobil and Chevron. Links to the articles are below:

CNBC – Why Exxon and Chevron are doubling down on fossil fuel energy with big acquisitions by Cat Clifford

Larry Goldstein (larryg@eprinc.org) is an internationally recognized authority on petroleum markets, and has extensive advisory relationships with energy companies, research institutes, and government agencies. He is a former president of the Petroleum Industry Research Foundation (PIRINC) now the Energy Policy Research Foundation (EPRINC), its successor organization, and continues to be on EPRINC’s Board of Trustees. He was a founder and president of the PIRA Energy Group, a major energy consulting firm that was acquired by S&P Global in 2016.

On Monday October 23, 2o23, RealClear Energy published an article titled “Streamline the Regulatory Process to Expedite U.S. LNG Exports”, coauthored by EPRINC President Lucian Pugliaresi and President & CEO of The USLNG Association (“LNG Allies”) Fred Hutchison. In the article, they make a strong case against “the current slow pace of the Department of Energy’s U.S. LNG export authorizations to countries with which the U.S. does not have a free trade agreement (FTA) that includes natural gas—which, by the way, includes all of Europe, including the United Kingdom and Türkiye.” They argue that “U.S. LNG exports are making substantial contributions to U.S. trade balances and domestic employment and bolstering the energy security of our allies. The disruption of pipeline gas shipments to Europe following the Russian invasion of Ukraine was a severe blow to European economic growth and security.”

 

The full article can be found on the RealClear Energy website, here.

On October 23, EPRINC Director of Energy Transition Research Batt Odgerel presented at the American Energy Transition Forum. His presentation, titled “Understanding the Cost, Risk, and Scale Challenge of the Net Zero Transition”, can be found here.

According to the American Energy Transition Forum’s website:

“The American Energy Transition Forum will explore the tools and technologies which will propel this decarbonization journey. The event will gather like-minded stakeholders from the public, business, scientific and innovation sectors. The event will tackle various decarbonization pathways, such as expansion of renewable energy production, carbon capture and storage technology, hydrogen, ammonia and advanced biofuels. Although one of the ultimate goals seems to be fossil fuel substitution with renewables, such sources of energy as LNG cannot be left out as part of successful energy transition. In addition to energy resources, such important areas as climate-tech investments, digitized solutions for energy transition acceleration, energy efficiency and many more topics crucial to the decarbonization journey will be addressed at the event.”

On Wednesday, October 18 2023, EPRINC President Lucian Pugliaresi participated in the Hudson Institute’s panel discussion entitled: “The Arab Oil Embargo 50 Years Later: Lessons Learned and Missed Opportunities”. Specifically, Lou was a member of the panel that focused on “Lessons Learned” from the embargo.

 

A recording of the event and more information about the discussion are available on the Hudson Institute’s website, here.

On Wednesday, October 11, Eurasia Foundation hosted an opening ceremony for 25 new Young Professionals Network (YPN) fellows. Batt Odgerel, Director of Energy Transition Research at Energy Policy Research, joined “a diverse array of professional backgrounds, including consulting firms, think tanks, universities, governmental, non-governmental, and international organizations. It includes fellows from Accenture Federal Services, American Councils for International Education, American Enterprise Institute, American University, the Atlantic Council, Chemonics International, Dataminr, the Foreign Service, Freedom House, Georgetown University, Hudson Institute, International Business Initiatives, Johns Hopkins University, National Endowment for Democracy, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Solidarity Center, TD International, and the World Bank Group’s CGAP. The new cohort also represents six countries: Armenia, China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Singapore, and the United States. All have extensive education, work experience, and language skills relating to the Eurasia region.”

See more here.

EPRINC is excited to announce the new Gaskins Center for Energy Security Studies, named after EPRINC Chairman Dr. Darius W. Gaskins Jr. and established to explore strategies to sustain and enhance American energy security. The Gaskins Center Brochure contains more information about the Center and Dr. Gaskins’s extraordinary accomplishments.

EPRINC Distinguished Fellow Ivan Sandrea has penned an article entitled “Envisioning the Energy Landscape of Distant Futures”. He writes:

“In contemplating the energy system’s distant future, we encounter a range of outcomes that require a paradigm shift, if not a quantum leap, to satisfy future energy needs. In this concise essay, I invite exploration into the potential visage of energy demand and supply – be it a century or even half a millennium from now. As Nils Bohr aptly put it, predicting the future is an intricate endeavor, particularly when it pertains to what lies ahead. So, I am not predicting the future.”

Ivan’s article can be found here.

On September 27-29, 2023, the 8th HAEE Energy Transition Symposium, entitled “Rethinking Energy: A secure and sustainable future” was hosted by the Hellenic Association for Energy Economics at the French Institute of Greece. EPRINC President Lucian Pugliaresi moderated a panel on “Hydrocarbon Energy Transition Pathways”. The discussion covered leveraging national resources and exploration phases, an update on achieving climate neutrality in natural gas networks, and hydrocarbons and renewable energy equilibrium towards 2050. The other panelists were Aristofanis Stefatos, CEO, Hellenic Hydrocarbons & Energy Resources Management Company SA and Ioannis Maris, Country Representative Greece, Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG.

A video recording of the panel can be found here.

The full overview of the event, including an agenda and a full list of speakers from the event, is here.

Other video recordings of other panels from the event can be found on HAEE’s Youtube account, here.

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