Governors' Biofuels Coalition

The report, released Wednesday by the Economic Policy Institute, concluded that it would take government subsidies focused on developing a domestic supply chain and increasing demand for U.S.-made vehicles to avoid job losses. It found that without additional government investment, the industry could lose about 75,000 jobs by 2030, the year by which Mr. Biden wants half the new vehicles sold in the country to be electric. By contrast, the report said, if government subsidies were targeted to increase the portion of electric vehicle components that are manufactured domestically, and to increase the market share of U.S.-made vehicles, the industry could add about 150,000 jobs by the end of the decade.

In light of the wrangling over the precise parameters of the $3.5 trillion budget plan making its way through Congress, a new survey found that 61 percent of the electorate would support the inclusion of renewable energy tax credits, including those for electric vehicle purchases. That figure includes 30 percent who “strongly” back the tax credits and 31 percent who “somewhat” support their inclusion. Meanwhile, 15 percent of registered voters somewhat oppose the potential provisions and 12 percent strongly oppose them. 

The Biden administration will unveil its proposed biofuel blending mandates on Friday, according to Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, who said farmers will not forget if the president breaks his biofuel campaign promises. Grassley told reporters on Tuesday morning that EPA will release Friday afternoon its proposed renewable volume obligations that set blending requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

“Carbon is our enemy, not the internal combustion engine,” he said during a Japan Automobile Manufacturer’s Association (JAMA) press conference. He’s the group’s chairman. He pointed out Japan’s car industry has cut its CO2 emissions by 23% over the past 20 years, largely with hybrid technology like the system Toyota pioneered before a vast majority of its domestic and international rivals. In his view, the industry needs to “leverage the technological advantages that we have built up and take immediate steps to maximize CO2 reductions using the electrified vehicles we have now,” a strategy which would free up resources to develop solutions for other carbon-emitting industries.

Reconciliation talks are likely to slip into October amid ongoing policy disputes and a brewing fight in the House between moderates and progressives. That leaves President Biden’s agenda in an uncertain position, with less than a week to go before a scheduled House vote Sept. 27 on the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

President Biden this summer trumpeted his bipartisan infrastructure deal as a “historic” win for the climate. But the arrival of autumn finds Democrats in danger of a historic failure. The bipartisan infrastructure bill, which prescribes $550 billion in new spending, is in danger. So is a larger $3.5 trillion reconciliation package that contains a much more ambitious approach to climate change

EPA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) is launching an investigation into the agency’s handling of the renewable fuel standard (RFS) credit market, long-criticized as opaque and prone to high price volatility by opponents of the RFS biofuels blending program, as some East Coast lawmakers press for price controls on the credits to aid refiners. In a Sept. 17 memo, Mike Davis, director of environmental investment and infrastructure at the OIG’s Office of Audit, tells EPA acting air chief Joe Goffman that the OIG will audit the market for RFS credits, known as renewable identification numbers (RINs). The OIG intends to determine whether the market is sufficiently protected against fraud, David writes.

A global drive towards electrification of road transport to reduce carbon emissions may cut demand for the world’s oil refining capacity by half in 2050, consultancy Rystad Energy says. “Going forward we will be touching by 2050 somewhere very close to 90% of electrification,” Mukesh Sahdev, senior vice president and head of downstream at Rystad Energy said, adding that this scenario would probably lead to a 50% decline in global refining capacity.

Plans are underway for Michigan to construct a first in the nation segment of road that will charge electric vehicles while they’re driving, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Tuesday at the Motor Bella auto show in Pontiac. Michigan’s Department of Transportation and the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification are partnering to make a one-mile stretch of state roadway in Wayne, Oakland or Macomb counties to allow public transportation and private vehicles to charge while traveling as a part of the Inductive Vehicle Charging Pilot, according to a news release.

The Biden administration is preparing to propose cutting biofuel quotas for 2020 and 2021, amid pressure from refining interests and their Democratic allies in Congress, according to several people familiar with the matter. The Environmental Protection Agency also is on track to propose a modest increase in the amount of plant-based fuels that must be mixed into gasoline and diesel in 2022, under a draft plan now being reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget.