Category: US and Canada

Greenhouse Gases Life Cycle Assessment for Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas 4/23/2024

Greenhouse Gases Life Cycle Assessment for Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this report from the National Petroleum Institute on titled Reducing GHG Emissions from the U.S. Natural Gas Supply Chain.  His contributions were made to Chapter 4 – Greenhouse Gases Life Cycle Assessment for Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas.  The chapter introduces the fundamental concepts of LCA, discusses modeling GHG emissions from U.S. natural gas and LNG supply chains, quantifies life cycle GHG emissions, and explores application of LCAs in public and corporate policies.   April 23, 2024.

How Quantum Computing Changed Our Understanding of Science 4/19/2024

How Quantum Computing Changed Our Understanding of Science

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Lincoln Carr is featured on this podcast discussing how while we await practical business advantage with quantum computing, has quantum information science already furthered our understanding of science? What’s the difference between a simulator and an emulator, and how does a physical quantum computer fit in? He explores these topics, along with everything from Tensor Networks, to thermodynamics, to complexity, with an eye to how the hardware timeline will make practical power a reality.  April 19, 2024.

Potential for small and micro modular reactors to electrify developing regions 4/19/2024

Potential for small and micro modular reactors to electrify developing regions

Mines Faculty Guillaume L’Her, R. Scott Kemp, Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, and Faculty Fellow Mark Deinert write about how small-scale nuclear power is typically thought of for niche markets, however recent work has suggested that it could help address the massive gaps in energy access in developing countries.  They present a global analysis of regions suitable for nuclear reactor deployment based on physical siting criteria, security, governance and economic competitiveness.  April 19, 2024.

Jennifer Miskimins nominated as 2026 president of Society of Petroleum Engineers 4/17/2024

Jennifer Miskimins nominated as 2026 president of Society of Petroleum Engineers

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jennifer Miskimins, professor and head of the Petroleum Engineering Department at Colorado School of Mines, has been nominated to serve as the 2026 president of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), the premier global organization for oil and gas professionals.  Dr. Miskimins is a Mines alum, Miskimins has 30 years of industry experience and has led Petroleum Engineering Department since 2020.  April 17, 2024.  

Hydrogen Tax Credit Rules Must Sync With Biden’s Climate Agenda 4/10/2024

Hydrogen Tax Credit Rules Must Sync With Biden’s Climate Agenda

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Deputy Director Greg Clough, and Responsible Gas Program Advisor Simon Lomax write about how President Joe Biden’s climate change agenda is more aggressive than anything previously in US energy and environmental policy.  But involving many federal departments and agencies in administering these initiatives introduces risks that must be managed, such as the danger of disorganization and conflicting policies from different parts of the US government that will make reducing carbon emissions slower and more expensive.  April 10, 2024.

Making Sense of the U.S. LNG Pause: Five Key Data Points 4/9/2024

Making Sense of the U.S. LNG Pause: Five Key Data Points

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Deputy Director Greg Clough, and Responsible Gas Program Advisor Simon Lomax write about how the Biden administration’s pause on liquefied natural gas (LNG) export approvals will be over in a matter of months.  They provide five data points offer some critical clues.  April 9, 2024.

The price of copper has been rising. That’s good news for the economy. 4/9/2024

The price of copper has been rising. That’s good news for the economy.

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange is featured on this podcast about the rising cost of copper. We say pretty regularly that if you want to figure out which way the global economy is headed, you should take a look at the price of copper. Because copper is used in so many things — power lines, appliances, vehicles, wind turbines, EV batteries. You get the picture. There is so much demand for the metal right now, the price of copper futures is at its highest since the middle of 2022. April 9, 2024.

Boom goes uranium in Utah — again 4/7/2024

Boom goes uranium in Utah — again

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Ian Lange contributes to this article about the latest concerns of the La Sal Complex, a Uranium mine 32 miles southeast of Moab.  The mine has been opened and closed and opened again over the years. The price of uranium has increased recently, and so has uranium production in Utah. The mining and processing of uranium have ignited old concerns.  April 7, 2024.

Greening the black gold? How private carbon finance can tackle oil & gas 4/5/2024

Greening the black gold? How private carbon finance can tackle oil & gas

Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler writes about how a set of entrepreneurs in the U.S. are considering how carbon finance and the Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCM) can be harnessed in new ways to lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Their target: oil and natural gas wells. These entrepreneurs are looking across the “lifecycle” of a well or a whole oilfield and, in the process, targeting different GHGs. April 5, 2024.

Inside the GOP probe of IEA 4/3/2024

Inside the GOP probe of IEA

Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributed to this article about how the US government has changed their narrative on the energy transition over the years.  Climate activists have been steadfast been criticizing the government for underselling the odds of an energy transition.  April 3, 2024.