Commentary Series

Future of Energy Security: Shifting System to Meet Climate Targets 5/25/2021

Future of Energy Security: Shifting System to Meet Climate Targets

Payne Institute Fellow Jamal Saghir writes about how as world leaders prepare for another international Climate change conference later this year in Glasgow (the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties) and they continue to lay down the path of our clean energy future for generations to come, the world needs to shift its energy system to meet its climate targets. Our energy future will depend on going beyond traditional energy concept, sources and approaches and embrace a new energy security concept.  May 25, 2021. 

Behavior Change Essential to Net-Zero Emissions 5/20/2021

Behavior Change Essential to Net-Zero Emissions, says IEA. Here are 2 Ways it Can Go Further.

Payne Institute Senior Research Associate Greer Gosnell writes an opinion piece about how behavior change has long been a touchy subject when it comes to climate change mitigation. While many of us – the author included—have argued for broader and more rigorous research to enlist individuals in the necessary global transitions, some have argued that a neoliberal focus on individual responsibility is harming (or at least not helping) global climate efforts by distracting us from the real culprits—i.e. fossil fuel interests and policymakers.  May 20, 2021.

Comparative Analysis of Selected African Natural Gas Markets and Related Policies 4/5/2021

Comparative Analysis of Selected African Natural Gas Markets and Related Policies

John Ayaburi, Shashwat Sharma, Payne Institute Senior Research Associate Dr. Greer Gosnell, and Director Morgan D. Bazilian write about the discovery of natural gas resources across the African continent that have inspired debate on how such resources should be developed and best utilized. In several African countries, the discovery of commercial quantities of natural gas reserves has led governments to explore a number of strategies, investments, and policy directions. Two contrasting cases are that of Nigeria, which has pursued policies promoting domestic natural gas consumption and export, and Ghana, which has focused on encouraging sectoral-level domestic consumption.  April 5, 2021.

Integrating Technology and Incentives to Reduce Methane Emissions 3/16/2021

Integrating Technology and Incentives to Reduce Methane Emissions

Payne Institute Fellow Ben Gilbert and Mark Agerton discuss economic considerations with using remote sensing in methane emissions policy. A two-tiered monitoring system like the recently proposed Methane Emissions Reduction Act is a powerful tool to achieve emissions reductions. However, there are important considerations in how to design such a system. A two-tiered system could facilitate emissions pricing and responsible gas markets, reward innovative producers, and fund programs for further climate change mitigation while easing the impact of the energy transition on oil and gas communities.   March 16, 2021.  

In Search of a Trusted Messenger 2/25/2021

In Search of a Trusted Messenger

Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton writes an opinion piece how the world’s 7.5 billion people need a vaccine for COVID-19 as soon as possible, but surveys of Americans suggest that not all of us are ready for the jab. He looks at how the institutional trust context applies to the environmental impact of oil and gas production in the United States. February 25, 2021.  

ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA 1/29/2021

ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA

Payne Institute Fellow Jamal Saghir writes about how climate change will have dire and severe impacts on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region threatening all countries in the region, impacting human lives and health, and causing serious damage to natural and human-made infrastructure and resources.  The climate change challenge for the MENA countries is making development climate resilient.  January 29, 2021.  

Initial Findings from Continuous Monitoring of Oil and Gas Operations 1/13/2021

Initial Findings from Continuous Monitoring of Oil and Gas Operations

Payne Institute Researcher William Daniels, Faculty Fellows James Crompton and Dorit Hammerling, and Director Morgan Bazilian look at the wide deployment of air quality monitoring technology, we can better address greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas industry. There is considerable public pressure, industry engagement, and government regulation surrounding the push for more sophisticated and transparent monitoring. While much focus has been given to the technological development of monitoring devices and the use of airplane and LDAR resources, less focus has been given to the data acquisition, management, and analysis from these monitoring technologies. This paper presents an exploratory analysis of continuous monitoring data from two oil and gas sites in Colorado.  January 13, 2021.

The Era of Commercial Space Mining Begins 9/23/2020

The Era of Commercial Space Mining Begins

Payne Institute Fellow Alex Gilbert and Morgan Bazilian write a commentary on NASA’s most recent announcement of a ground-breaking solicitation: NASA wants to buy lunar regolith extracted by a private company. In order to spur commercial space resources technology, NASA’s procurement is for the purchase of 50-500 grams of lunar regolith, or rock materials, from the surface of the Moon. September 23, 2020.

Are We Running Out of Natural Gas Storage? 9/23/2020

Are We Running Out of Natural Gas Storage?

Payne Institute Senior Research Associate Greer Gosnell writes a commentary on how the US burned the most natural gas for electricity in its history this summer, but current month-to-month natural gas price spreads suggest we may be running low on natural gas storage.  September 23, 2020. 

Innovation to Drive Water Security in the Arab Region 9/11/2020

Innovation to Drive Water Security in the Arab Region

Payne Institute Fellow Jamal Saghir writes about how the Arab world is now the world’s driest region, with several countries being among the world’s most water scarce, where per capita renewable water availability is already less than 500 cubic meters per year. This is the level set by the World Health Organization for severe scarcity at which water becomes a hurdle to economic growth and beyond which water scarcity becomes a key concern in people’s lives and begins to affect the development process.  September 11, 2020.

Country Spotlight: Gas Flaring in India 9/3/2020

Country Spotlight: Gas Flaring in India

The Payne Institute looks at the gas flaring in India.  According to the IEA, India is the fourth largest refiner of oil (behind the US, Russia, and China), and the third largest importer of crude oil and LNG (behind China and the US), though is outranked by 24 other countries on oil production, with declining trends.  September 3, 2020. 

Hurricane Laura from Space 8/28/2020

Hurricane Laura from Space

The Payne Institute Earth Observation Group has been viewing the power outages following Hurricane Laura.  One of the consequences of many natural disasters are power outages, which result in losses in electric lighting that can be detected with low light imaging data.  This paper looks at the nighttime light images of the impacted areas.  August 28, 2020.

Natural Gas Transportation Price Regulation and the Dash for Gas 8/18/2020

Natural Gas Transportation Price Regulation and the Dash for Gas

Payne Institute Senior Research Associate Greer Gosnell and Payne Faculty Fellow Ian Lange write about the large reduction in natural gas prices due to horizontal fracturing that has led to an unprecedented expansion in natural gas use for electricity generation. Another innovation that helped facilitate the expansion of natural gas electricity generation is the deregulation of natural gas pipeline transportation. Previous to June 2008, the price for transacting space in natural gas pipelines was set by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC Order 712 allowed transactions under one year in duration, generally known as the secondary market, to transact at market prices. This regulatory innovation should facilitate natural gas power plants in procuring natural gas and lead to expanded generation.  August 18, 2020. 

Market failures and willingness-to-accept the smart energy transition: Experimental evidence from the UK 8/13/2020

MARKET FAILURES AND WILLINGNESS-TO-ACCEPT THE SMART ENERGY TRANSITION: EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FROM THE UK

Payne Institute Senior Research Associate Greer Gosnell and Daire McCoy have a new working paper that discusses why there is a need to facilitate the sustainable energy transition, and how governments and innovators are encouraging households to adopt smart technologies that allow for increased flexibility in energy grids. The UK’s ambitious smart metering policy has indisputably failed to achieve its objective of equipping all dwellings with smart meters. This research uses a novel experiment to elicit the willingness-to-accept of 2,400 nationally representative UK households for smart meter installation.  August 13, 2020.  

CAUCASUS ENERGY INFRASTURCTURE UNDER THREAT, AS AZERBAIJAN-ARMENIAN CRISIS CONTINUES? 8/5/2020

CAUCASUS ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE UNDER THREAT, AS AZERBAIJAN-ARMENIAN CRISIS CONTINUES?

Payne Institute Fellow Cyril Widdershoven writes about the decades old Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is heating up again, as both sides are putting their armed forces on alert. The unexpected escalation, which could be even going into a next phase, due to increased Turkish-Azerbaijani cooperation the last days, is not only putting the Caucasus region on full alert, but also could be threatening major regional and international oil and gas transport infrastructure at risk.  August 5, 2020.

PROPOSING A JUST TRANSITION RATING SYSTEM 7/16/2020

PROPOSING A JUST TRANSITION RATING SYSTEM

Payne Institute Fellow Brad Handler and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the energy transitions threaten to leave communities struggling with facility closures, job losses, and reductions in tax revenues. Many of these communities will seek to reinvigorate—or even reinvent—themselves through investment and programs to spur job and business creation. Although some communities may have “rainy day” funds available for this investment (although legislatures have to be persuaded to use such funds for this purpose), many do not. As such, some municipalities (or other local government formations) will likely have to turn to public debt markets. July 16, 2020.

SO, YOU WANT TO MAKE BATTERIES BETTER TOO? 6/9/2020

SO, YOU WANT TO MAKE BATTERIES BETTER TOO?

Payne Institute Fellow Emily Hersh, Alex Grant, and Chris Berry write a framework for developing lithium-ion battery supply chain industrial strategy.  The 2020s will see a boom in demand for lithium, manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries, and electric vehicle deployment on a massive scale as a part of our energy transition away from fossil fuels. Politicians around the world are wondering how their jurisdictions can participate in the lithium ion battery supply chain. Simultaneously, there is concern about the concentration of lithium-ion battery industrial activity in China.  June 9, 2020.
English Version – So, You Want to Make Batteries Better Too?
Spanish Version – Serie de comentarios de Payne – Entonces tú También Quieres Hacer Baterías

COVID-19: A Wake-up Call to Increase Access to Electricity in Africa 4/24/2020

COVID-19: A WAKE-UP CALL TO INCREASE ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY IN AFRICA

Payne Fellow Jamal Saghir and Adrian Tylim write an commentary on how the world is at a turning point. COVID-19 is putting enormous pressure on each segment of a country’s society and economy. For developing countries that were already facing major social, health and economic challenges before COVID-19, this pressure is particularly excruciating. April 24, 2020.

POST COVID-19 NEW WORLD CONFIGURATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIONS: TWO URGENT PRIORITIES 4/10/2020

POST COVID-19 NEW WORLD CONFIGURATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIONS: TWO URGENT PRIORITIES

In few weeks or months, the world will have to reconvene to forge a new chapter in humanity, I would call it the Post COVID-19 New World Configuration. It will be an historic moment: the ultimate test of global survival, globalization, and cooperation. Yet the building blocks toward this new World are proceeding so slowly that humanity is in grave danger. If we miss the opportunity to protect ourselves and our planet, there will be no second chance; no way to go back and undo the catastrophic health, economic and social damage of COVID-19.  April 10, 2020.

POST COVID-19 NEW WORLD CONFIGURATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIONS: TWO URGENT PRIORITIES 4/10/2020

POST COVID-19 NEW WORLD CONFIGURATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIONS: TWO URGENT PRIORITIES

In few weeks or months, the world will have to reconvene to forge a new chapter in humanity, I would call it the Post COVID-19 New World Configuration. It will be an historic moment: the ultimate test of global survival, globalization, and cooperation. Yet the building blocks toward this new World are proceeding so slowly that humanity is in grave danger. If we miss the opportunity to protect ourselves and our planet, there will be no second chance; no way to go back and undo the catastrophic health, economic and social damage of COVID-19.  April 10, 2020.

A DIGITAL CANOPY: GETTING TO TRANSPARENCY April 3, 2020

A DIGITAL CANOPY: GETTING TO TRANSPARENCY

Earlier we wrote a commentary titled, “LEANING IN: MOVING AHEAD OF REGULATIONS FOR NATURAL GAS EMISSIONS.” That Commentary stressed that one of the key steps for oil and gas operators is to establish transparency across their operations, which will help support a ‘social license to operate’ from the community, regulators, and investors. This is a critical step in moving towards “responsibly-sourced” oil and gas. April 3, 2020.

 

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DISCLAIMER: The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect the opinions, beliefs, viewpoints, or official policies of the Payne Institute or Colorado School of Mines.