Climate report warns U.S. needs to end oil production by 2034

OIL & GAS: A new report says wealthy nations, including the U.S and Canada, need to end oil production by 2034 to meet Paris Agreement emissions targets. (Washington Post)

ALSO:
• President Biden has limited options to help European countries reduce dependence on Russian natural gas to support Ukraine’s war effort. (Politico)
• Surging oil prices are not translating into higher pay for oilfield workers, 21% of whom say they’ve had their pay cut in the last year. (Bloomberg)
• Nineteen states are challenging new FERC rules requiring climate impacts be accounted for in reviewing natural gas projects. (E&E News, subscription)
• Minnesota authorities release details about two additional instances in which Enbridge crews working in the Line 3 replacement pipeline breached aquifers, spilling millions of gallons of groundwater. (MPR News)

CLIMATE: Investors and climate advocates praise proposed SEC disclosure rules, saying they will simplify the process of assessing risk. (Inside Climate News, Reuters)

CRYPTOCURRENCY:
• Bitcoin mining companies increasingly lean into renewables in an attempt to rebrand the industry and challenge the prevailing view that its power-guzzling computers are harmful to the climate. (New York Times)
• A California investment firm plans to use inexpensive hydropower to convert a Washington state paper mill town into a cryptocurrency mining hub. (Union-Bulletin)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• A bill in Congress would block the U.S. Postal Service from entering into a contract for new vehicles unless 75% of them are electric. (Mother Jones)
• An auto industry report shows electric vehicle sales increased 11% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2021, while gasoline vehicle sales fell slightly. (E&E News, subscription)
• Cadillac begins production of a new luxury​electric vehicle at its recently renovated Tennessee auto plant, a milestone in the company’s transition to a fully-electric lineup. (Tennessean)

SOLAR:
• Iowa utility regulators accept applications for two proposed solar projects at the state’s only nuclear plant, which was recently decommissioned. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
• After a six-month moratorium on solar projects, city officials in Warwick, Rhode Island, decide that any new ground-mounted solar developments must be sited on previously developed commercial or industrial land. (ecoRI)
• Dominion Energy partners with an airport authority to turn 835 acres at Washington Dulles International Airport into a solar farm. (Sun Gazette)

UTILITIES: National Grid files a plan with Massachusetts regulators to transition its natural gas service in the state completely away from fossil fuel-derived gas by 2050, instead pinning its future to renewable natural gas and renewable hydrogen. (RTO Insider, subscription)

EFFICIENCY:
• Maryland’s General Assembly passes bills that will require the state to fund energy efficiency upgrades for low-income households. (Renewable Energy Magazine)
• Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont wants landlords to include an ​“energy label” in apartment listings so potential renters can compare the cost of running appliances between different units. (CT Insider)

HYDROGEN: California environmental justice advocates say hydrogen fuel can play a climate change-fighting role in some applications, but should not be used as an excuse to block electrification efforts. (Los Angeles Times)

COMMENTARY: A California geologist and an energy policy expert say geothermal projects at the Salton Sea could provide baseload power and solve the lithium supply crunch with adequate policy support. (The Conversation)