Climate Change, Emissions, Carbon Markets, Wind, Solar, Biofuels : CCA Laws

The U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) recently released two new nationwide resource assessments for wave and tidal energy projects in the U.S. The reports, funded by the DOE and prepared by the Electric Power Research Institute ("EPRI") and the Georgia Tech Research Corporation, present the most rigorous and comprehensive analysis to date on the magnitude of the resources available for electricity generation and where those resources are located. Wave Energy: The wave energy report, “Mapping and Assessment of the United States Ocean Wave Energy Resource” states (as most expected) that the best resources are on the West Coast, including Alaska and Hawai’i. EPRI calculated the resource’s potential to be 400 gigawatts nationally. Tidal Energy: The tidal energy report, “Assessment of Energy Production Potential from Tidal Streams in the United States” follows on the heels of the DOE’s release of its interactive national tidal resource database in July 2011. For more on the database and relevant links, see my blog on the topic. Ocean Current, Ocean Thermal Gradients, and New Hydropower: In addition to these two new reports, the DOE anticipates releasing additional resource assessments for developers of ocean current, ocean thermal gradient, and new hydropower projects. Based on our experience assisting clients to develop wave, current, and tidal energy projects across the country, we are encouraged by both the results of the resource assessments and the DOE's encouraging perspective on the role that new hydropower and hydrokinetic projects should have in expanding the nation's renewable energy resource mix. For detailed information on all aspects of marine and hydrokinetic project development, download a PDF of our recently updated Law of Marine and Hydrokinetic Energy.

Renewable + LClimate Change, Emissions, Carbon Markets, Wind, Solar, Biofuels : Western United States

On February 2, 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") issued a Notice of Violation ("NOV") of the Renewable Fuel Standard ("RFS") to Absolute Fuels, a company located in Lubbock, Texas. The NOV alleges that between August 31, 2010, and October 11, 2011, Absolute Fuels generated over 48 million Renewable Identification Numbers ("RINs") and that all of these RINs were invalid. This EPA action is likely to have a substantial impact on the overall RIN market and could be followed by related NOVs to other market participants.

The Absolute Fuels NOV represents the second major enforcement action by the EPA under the RFS. The first action alleged invalid generation of over 32 million RINs by Clean Green Fuel. The Clean Green Fuel action proceeded with a criminal filing by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland and was followed by the EPA's filing of 24 NOVs against the companies that utilized the Clean Green Fuel RINs for compliance with RFS obligations. EPA did not allege that the obligated parties that received the Clean Green Fuel RINs had any knowledge or reasonable basis to have knowledge regarding the RINs' invalidity. This alert provides an analysis of the regulatory basis for these EPA enforcement actions.

UPDATE 1-Camco California CO2 credit issuance up 27 pct | Reuters

California carbon trade scheme starts in 2013, boosts demand* Energy projects could make up half of revenue in 2 years-CEO* Eyes Australia's emissions reduction schemeBy Susanna Twidale and Nina ChestneyLONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Camco International saw a 27 percent rise in the number of California carbon credits issued in the second half of last year as participants geared up for the start of the U.S. state's emissions trading scheme, the low-carbon project developer said in a trading update on Tuesday.As of Jan. 6, Camco had 356,061 California carbon credits under management, compared to 281,061 on July 28, 2011. In the six months to Dec. 31, 2011, the company's north America carbon credit portfolio increased 25 percent with 2.5 million now under management, boosted by the number of livestock projects it has registered, the firm said. Camco said nine of its clean energy projects have been registered under the Climate Action Reserve (CAR) standard and it has monetized over 130,000 credits from CAR agricultural projects. Camco, whose core business is to sell credits to rich countries struggling to meet carbon caps, is one of the biggest developers of clean energy projects and hopes to profit from California's carbon trading scheme, due to start in 2013. It is one of the United States' biggest responses to climate change and demand for California Carbon Offsets (CCOs) under the scheme is expected to be at least 200 million over the period 2013 to 2020. By 2015, when transportation fuels are brought under the cap, the system will cover 85 percent of the California economy, the eighth largest in the world. Camco said its $25-million dairy biogas plant in Idaho has started to operate. The 4.5-MW project produces biogas from cow manure to generate renewable electricity. Camco chief executive Scott McGregor said the company hopes to complete more similar plants in north America by 2013 and added the move will increase the portion of company revenues that come from energy sales. "We would expect energy projects to make up 50 percent of Camco's revenues in around two years time," he told Point Carbon News, adding that energy revenues would most likely be split equally among North American and Asian projects. Camco is one of the largest developers of projects under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) - where projects generate carbon credits that can be used for compliance in Europe's Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Earlier in January the company warned it may have to revise its 2011 revenue forecast after Certified Emission Reductions prices plunged 63-percent in 2011. However, McGregor said CDM projects will remain a core business for the company. "Carbon is still a key focus for us. We expect stronger prices (in the EU ETS) in the medium term and have a solid post-2012 CDM portfolio," he said.