Will Biden join EU’s anti-fossil-fuel fight?

Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Jun 17, 2024 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell A woman looks at the Jaenschwalde coal-fired power plant in Peitz, Germany. | Sean Gallup/AFP via Getty Images Some of the world's richest nations want to limit funding for fossil fuel projects — and the U.S. could make or break the plan. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is meeting starting today to discuss a European Union-led proposal to end loans and guarantees from their export credit agencies to oil and natural gas projects, writes Sara Schonhardt. The group of 38 countries — which collaborates on issues of trade and finance — ended such investments in coal in 2021. But the Biden administration has left it unclear how it will approach the latest proposal. “All eyes are on the U.S.,” Kate DeAngelis, deputy director of international finance at the climate advocacy group Friends of the Earth, told Sara. “Without the U.S. coming to the table, we’re not going to see Japan and Korea get in line.” If the countries reach a deal, it could help squash the flow of billions of dollars into international energy projects that release planet-warming pollution into the atmosphere. But the window for such action could be closing. The next round of talks is in November, when former President Donald Trump, who’s running on a pro-fossil-fuel agenda, could win his bid to retake the White House. The Treasury Department, which represents the United States in these meetings, said in a statement that the administration was still working “on the details of our position.” “The United States is committed to its international climate pledges, including ending new direct support for the international unabated fossil fuel energy sector,” Megan Apper, a senior spokesperson for Treasury, told Sara in an email. President Joe Biden has previously made other efforts to end public funding for fossil fuel projects abroad. In 2021, he signed an executive order barring federal agencies from financing these overseas projects. But one U.S. agency, the Export-Import Bank, has continued to back them, drawing fire from Democratic lawmakers and climate activists.   It's Monday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net.   THE GOLD STANDARD OF DEFENSE POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries, like defense, equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists. Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other. Our defense reporting team—including Lara Seligman, Joe Gould, Paul McCleary, Connor O’Brien and Lee Hudson—is embedded with the market-moving legislative committees and agencies in Washington and across states, delivering unparalleled coverage of defense policy and the defense industry. We bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY.     Listen to today’s POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: Alex Guillén sits down for an extended conversation with David Doniger, a prominent environmental lawyer, to discuss how a forthcoming Supreme Court ruling could undermine the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies. Power Centers President Joe Biden speaks at the General Motors Factory Zero electric vehicle assembly plant on Nov. 17, 2021, in Detroit. | Evan Vucci/AP Why EVs could mean more pollution for this tribe Meeting President Joe Biden's electric vehicle and Made in America goals requires the domestic production of a lot of copper, writes Sean Reilly. But the top U.S. producer is a century-old plant in arid southeastern Arizona that in recent years has spewed hundreds of tons of lead, arsenic and other hazardous pollutants into the skies only a few miles from an Apache Indian reservation. As production rises, the tribe fears that pollution will rise, too. They’re coming (with labels) for gas stoves Lawmakers in California, New York and Illinois have introduced bills requiring gas stoves to come with a warning label informing shoppers that the ubiquitous kitchen appliance puts them, their children and even (in California) their pets at risk of asthma, leukemia and other illnesses, write Wes Venteicher and Marie J. French. Appliance manufacturers like Samsung and LG are pushing back, accusing proponents of demonizing the fossil fuel for political gain — the latest skirmish in the fight over regulating gas stoves, an effort Republicans have cast as a symbol of Democratic overreach in addressing climate change. ‘Clean’ hydrogen faces Texas water fight Environmentalists are pushing back against a $2.5 billion clean hydrogen project in Texas, saying it could use too much water in an area prone to drought, writes Christian Robles. The Avina Clean Hydrogen project would use a machine called an electrolyzer to split millions of gallons of water a day from the Nueces River to form zero-carbon hydrogen. In Other News Oil spill: A huge oil spill blackened Singapore’s picturesque beaches, launching a multiday cleanup operation. Too much of a good thing? Spain's green energy might exceed demand.   JOIN US ON 6/26 FOR A TALK ON AMERICA’S SUPPLY CHAIN: From the energy grid to defense factories, America’s critical sites and services are a national priority. Keeping them up and running means staying ahead of the threat and protecting the supply chains that feed into them. POLITICO will convene U.S. leaders from agencies, Congress and the industry on June 26 to discuss the latest challenges and solutions for protecting the supply lines into America’s critical infrastructure. REGISTER HERE.     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. | Adrian Kraus/AP New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is facing political consequences for her congestion pricing reversal, including alienation from many of her key supporters. Federal scientists have forecast a Connecticut-sized dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico this summer, where low-oxygen levels from fertilizer and other nutrients kill or drive out marine life. The Senate is expected to pass a bipartisan nuclear energy package this week, paving the path to the president's desk for the first major climate and energy bill since the Inflation Reduction Act. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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