Will you be mine, Minegolia?

Presented by Chevron: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Jul 31, 2023 View in browser   By Heather Richards Presented by Chevron Trucks move ore at an open-pit copper and gold mine in the south Gobi Desert of Mongolia. | Paula Bronstein/Getty Images Mongolia, shoehorned between China and Russia, could be a powerhouse supplier of critical minerals for U.S. clean energy projects. That was one pitch from American officials during a recent visit. The other sales pitch: The U.S. can give Mongolia a better deal than China or Russia. Grasslands once trammeled by Genghis Khan’s riders are rich in copper and other minerals needed for large-scale wind and solar power and for bringing millions of electric cars to market. Senior U.S. officials went to Mongolia last month to forge business and government ties and to ensure ethical standards are established for mining projects. The need to ease global reliance on China for critical minerals looms large over talks with Mongolia and other resource-rich countries, writes Sara Schonhardt. “Mongolia is facing a generational opportunity, and that generational opportunity is a need for us to find critical minerals and rare earths in order to achieve our clean energy goals,” Jose Fernandez, undersecretary of State for economic growth, energy and the environment, told E&E News. China dominates the flow of raw and processed minerals that feed the world’s exploding demand for clean energy technology. The U.S. wants to rebuild and diversify the supply chain. The United States is part of the Minerals Security Partnership — a coalition of mostly Western countries, including Canada, Australia and South Korea, working to secure minerals as demand for batteries and other energy technology ratchets up. But the initiative isn’t without its critics. Republicans accuse the White House of overlooking human rights abuses in Congo and other resource-rich developing nations, even as the Biden administration has restricted proposed U.S.-based mines. What does it all mean for Mongolia — once nicknamed “Minegolia” because of its abundant natural resources? Communist China extends nearly 3,000 miles along Mongolia’s southern border, controlling access to the global market by land and sea. Strengthening ties to the U.S. and its allies could have repercussions for Mongolia’s well-established trade relationship with China, where most of its copper and coal currently go. For the West, Mongolia is just one piece of a complex diplomatic puzzle the U.S. and its allies are piecing together to counter China and unlock new sources of minerals.   It’s Monday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO’s Power Switch. I’m your host, Heather Richards. Arianna will be back soon! Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to hrichards@eenews.net.   A message from Chevron: At Chevron, we know carbon capture and storage is critical in helping enable progress toward global net zero. That’s why we’re developing and deploying the technology in our facilities while also working with partners to scale it to other industries, like cement and steel.   Listen to today’s POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: Josh Siegel breaks down why Republicans are angry about President Joe Biden’s proposed overhaul of the National Environmental Policy Act’s rules.   HITTING YOUR INBOX AUGUST 14—CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes.     Featured story Plant Vogtle's planned nuclear additions — units 3 and 4 — are pictured in July in eastern Georgia. | Georgia Power Power began flowing from a new unit at the Vogtle nuclear reactor this morning in eastern Georgia, marking the first time in 30 years a new nuclear reactor made from scratch in the U.S. has come online. But as POLITICO’s E&E News reporter Zach Bright explored in his story today, Vogtle’s stumble over the finish line after years of escalating costs and setbacks could tell a deeper story about the future of nuclear power in the U.S. Nuclear may be critical to reaching the nation’s larger climate goals — like the Biden administration’s plan to decarbonize the nation’s electricity sector by 2035 — as a carbon-free and tremendously powerful source of energy. One uranium pellet holds about as much power potential as 1 ton of coal. Steven Biegalski, chair of the Georgia Institute of Technology’s nuclear and radiological engineering program, told Bright that the sheer force of nuclear potential in meeting climate aims stands in its favor, calling alternatives to the type of reactor built at Vogtle a “pipe dream” by comparison. But Vogtle also illuminates the technical and construction challenges, as well as the expense, of bringing on new nuclear. Coming in roughly at $30 billion, double the original budget, the nuclear projects — Georgia Power has a second unit planned to be operational by next year — were beset by repeated delays. “There is no nuclear power plant that we’re aware of that has ever come on in the Southeast on budget or on schedule,” Stephen Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, told E&E News in an interview. This Is Climate Change A 38-year-old German hiker disappeared in Switzerland’s Alps in 1986. Due to global warming, his remains were found on Friday. Grisly discoveries of lost climbers in Switzerland’s high elevations are an increasing phenomenon as its glaciers retreat due to climate change, officials in the country reported. Power Centers Permitting on the rocks after NEPA GOP lawmakers are slamming the White House as “dishonest” and “sneaky” after a draft version of rules on how to apply the National Environmental Policy Act included climate and environmental justice provisions not included in a deal between the Biden administration and Capitol Hill Republicans last month, report Emma Dumain and Robin Bravender. The discord could throw a wrench into ongoing talks on permitting reform that could be critical to the White House’s hopes to deploy large amounts of clean energy. Is an EU climate initiative too "toxic" to advance? Talks among policymakers in the European Union have stalled over revising tax floors on energy products, from diesel to electricity, report Victor Jack and Zia Weise. The 20-year-old initiative is one of the tools in Brussels’ toolbox to meet its climate targets. But with energy prices for voters already holding high, updating an energy tax is proving politically thorny.   A message from Chevron:   In Other News Tesla’s workaround to state laws: Electric vehicle maker Tesla is attempting to roll out more showrooms on tribal lands. Selling the elite vehicle in Indian Country helps Tesla skip over state laws that ban direct sales of cars by manufacturers to consumers without an auto dealership as a middleman to protect a competitive market. Miles away: An unwritten rule in Texas could be bucking pushback over industrial pollution unless protesters live within a mile of the facility. State regulators say the rule doesn’t exist, but environmental groups say it’s being used to defend projects from opposition. Offshore wind and a tribe’s fight for preservation: As offshore wind advances off the coast of California, it highlights one Southern California tribe’s fight to preserve its history in the Pacific Ocean.   YOUR TICKET INSIDE THE GOLDEN STATE POLITICAL ARENA: California Playbook delivers the latest intel, buzzy scoops and exclusive coverage from Sacramento and Los Angeles to Silicon Valley and across the state. Don't miss out on the daily must-read for political aficionados and professionals with an outsized interest in California politics, policy and power. Subscribe today.     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. What’s a global coal CEO’s pitch in a suite of meetings with politicians and policymakers in Washington? The U.S. Agency for International Development is increasingly factoring climate change into its programs as the globe’s rising temperatures put new or increasing stress on the developing world. As G-20 leaders face an impasse on shared climate strategies, the stalemate could herald potential challenges  for the U.N. Climate Change Conference later this year. The Biden administration’s offshore wind ambitions are growing with new areas carved out in the central Atlantic. That’s it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   A message from Chevron: By 2030, our target is to reach 25 million tonnes of CO2 per year in storage and offsets, the equivalent to the emissions of 3.1 million homes annual energy use. Part of that effort is our proposed Eastridge CCS project in the San Joaquin Valley, which is projected to capture up to 300,000 metric tonnes of CO2 per year. And through our partnership with Svante, we’re working to reduce the cost of carbon capture and help scale the technology. Moving toward a lower carbon future by developing and deploying carbon capture and storage solutions, that’s energy in progress.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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