Sustainable Finance Lab
INTEGRATING FINANCIAL INSIGHT INTO DECISION-MAKING AND ADVANCING IDEAS TO FOSTER MORE CAPITAL INVESTMENT INTO THE ENERGY TRANSITION
Sustainable Finance Lab
Reference Corner
Decarbonizing the global economy will cost tens of Trillions of dollars and public capital can realistically provide only a very small portion. Instead, the public sector needs to create vibrant enabling environments for private investment, and there is also ample room for the private sector to act on its own.
The Payne Institute brings vast experience from the financial industry, academia and the public sector, which we leverage in the Sustainable Finance Lab to bring a deeper understanding of the opportunities for financing decarbonization and the energy transition. We also advance ideas related to spurring private investment, encompassing financial products, the roles of investors, markets, policy and regulation.
PAYNE FINANCIAL FLOW
Snapshots of trends and financial tools in the energy transition
- Insurers Grapple with Climate Tech Coverage
- Albermarle Initiates Lithium Auctions
- Largest CCS VCM Credit Issuance to Date
- Barclays’ New Rules for Financing Fossil and Transition Activities
- Lower Hanging Fruit in Filipino Coal Retirement
- VCM 2023 Update: Retirements Stable; Transaction Volume Falls
- Coal retirement updates from COP28
- DAC’s Recent Cost Curve Signals
- The Growth in Commitments to VCM
- Unbundling Attributes to Reveal More Value
RESEARCH
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.
The cleaning of U.S. natural gas; evolution of differentiated gas and related crediting mechanisms 2/15/24
The cleaning of U.S. natural gas; evolution of differentiated gas and related crediting mechanisms
Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler and Student Researcher Felix Ayaburi write about the concept of differentiated gas, the emerging role of crediting mechanisms in promoting its adoption, and the prospects for demand growth and its evolution. After rapid growth in the supply of U.S. differentiated gas through late 2021 and 2022, demand is rising from domestic utilities and industry as well as European energy companies. February 15, 2024.
Letter from the US: Chesapeake-Southwestern merger is big deal for US LNG 2/6/2024
Letter from the US: Chesapeake-Southwestern merger is big deal for US LNG
Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian, Policy and Outreach Advisor for Responsible Gas Simon Lomax and, Program Manager of the Sustainable Finance Lab Brad Handler comment on the Chesapeake-Southwestern merger’s potential to foster more differentiated gas use in LNG exports. The merger comes amid a wave of multibillion dollar oil industry tie-ups, including ExxonMobil buying Texas-headquartered Pioneer Natural Resources and Chevron buying New York-headquartered Hess. February 6, 2024.
What is the Cost of Going Green? (Part B) 1/23/24
WHAT IS THE COST OF GOING GREEN? Perspectives from Ghana (PART B)
Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton, Paulina Lanz, and Justine Huang are on this podcast (part B) discussing what the real costs of going green are, and who is going to pay the bill? In Part B of the episode, Jim chats with a panel of Payne Institute student researchers from Ghana at the Colorado School of Mines – Eben Manful-Sam, John Ayaburi, Rueben Anafo and Felix Ayaburi– who help us better understand the challenges of sustainable development from a sub-Saharan Africa perspective. January 23, 2024.
What is the Cost of Going Green? (Part A) 1/19/2024
What is the Cost of Going Green? (Part A)
Payne Institute Faculty Fellow Jim Crompton, Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler, Paulina Lanz, and Justine Huang are on this podcast discussing what are the real costs of going green, and who is going to pay the bill? Brad Handler breaks down why we are still investing so much in fossil fuels, the investments that might be needed to support the growth of renewable energy, and how we might redirect investments towards developing countries that will play a large role in the energy transition. We also dive into why oil companies have been so profitable, whether divesting from fossil fuels is a good idea, and the role that Wall Street and the fossil fuel industry might play in the energy transition. January 19, 2024.
Fast-growing ‘carbon-neutral’ energy company ramps up oil and gas production 1/16/2024
Fast-growing ‘carbon-neutral’ energy company ramps up oil and gas production
Payne Institute Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler contributed to this article about the Canadian wildfires this past summer, killing at least 17 people and burning more than 45.7 million acres — blazes that were made 50% more intense by climate change fueled by the burning of fossil fuels — some Canadians took out their anger on their country’s pension plan. They demanded that the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board stop investing their retirement savings in a Colorado oil and gas company that’s ramped up its extraction activity in recent years, drilling near homes, schools and parks. January 16, 2024.
Transition finance advances at COP28 12/12/2023
Transition finance advances at COP28
Payne Institute Program Manager Brad Handler writes about how announcements made during the COP28 climate talks signal progress on several fronts when it comes to unlocking finance to support the energy transition. Transition finance holds the key in terms of giving the owners of emitting assets the financial incentive for closure or conversion, but flows of transition finance have not risen to the challenge so far. December 12, 2023.
Vietnam Renewables: Investment Priorities 12/6/2023
Vietnam Renewables: Investment Priorities
Centre for Climate Finance & Investment at Imperial College Business School led a team, including the Payne Institute Sustainable Finance Lab Program Manager Brad Handler, to write “Vietnam Renewables: Investment Priorities”, a review of prospects and challenges to deploy more renewable energy in the country. The report offers specific steps for further renewable power deployment in Vietnam in the context of its economic growth and incredible resource potential (solar and wind), through a combination of policy and market mechanisms. December 6, 2023.
Enabling Finance for Net-Zero Energy Transitions 12/6/2023
Enabling Finance for Net-Zero Energy Transitions
Payne Institute Program Manager Bradley Handler, Director Morgan Bazilian, and Fellow Johannes Urpelainen and others write about how the key issue of financing of the transition required in the energy sector to get to net-zero targets. It identifies key technologies, maps them to potential sources of finance, identifies key barriers to at scale deployment, and suggests potential solutions to these barriers. Policy solutions include setting net-zero targets and creating sector specific pathways, enabling cost-effective procurement, providing supporting policies, and enabling a diverse financial sector. Financial solutions include development of risk-mitigation instruments, blended finance funds, and innovative financial products. December 6, 2023.
U.S. EV Makers Are Still Stuck on China. The Stakes Are Rising. 12/5/2023
U.S. EV Makers Are Still Stuck on China. The Stakes Are Rising.
Payne Institute Student Researcher Isabel Guajardo, Program Manager Brad Handler and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how U.S. automakers are dependent on China for important aspects of EV construction. It’s in the interests of the U.S. economy to accommodate the current shortcomings, work with allies, and make long-term investments toward more robust and resilient sourcing. December 5, 2023.
Leadership
Brad Handler
Payne Institute Program Manager,
Sustainable Finance Lab, and Researcher
1600 Jackson Street, Suite 370
bhandler@mines.edu