Energy Security Matters | August 7, 2024
In this issue:?Bipartisan permitting reform bill is good news for America's grid infrastructure and potential mining investments; we're keeping an eye on upcoming new rules from Commerce about Chinese AV software; Uber-BYD deal should be a wakeup call; and ReMo presents at TRB's ARTS conference.
Questions about this newsletter? Reach us at?[email protected]?with questions or comments.
New Rules Could Ban Chinese Software in Connected Vehicles
Washington is bracing for proposed new rules from the Commerce Department that will bar Chinese software in connected and autonomous vehicles, according to ascoop from Reuters.
When Commerce first announced its investigation in the Spring. SAFE’s Coalition for Reimagined Mobility lauded the move as overdue and provided detailed commentson how the U.S. can take bold actions to navigate these risks while understanding that industry can’t decouple overnight.
We’ll be watching for the pending rulemaking and commenting—stay tuned.
This development comes on the heels of a State Department/White House meeting last week with partner nations to exchange views on this regulatory action, as well as? a broad range of data and cybersecurity risks.
Unlocking America's Energy Potential Through Permitting Reform
Last week also saw the markup of the long awaited permitting reform package from Sens. Joe Manchin (I- W.Va.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). The bill is an important step to address long-standing obstacles to unlocking America's potential as an energy superpower for the 21st century.
SAFE has voiced our strong support for the bipartisan Energy Permitting Reform Act(EPRA) of 2024, and we were very happy to see it moved out of??Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee handily?with a 14-to-4 vote?on last Wednesday.?
The permitting bill represents real compromise and a vital first step toward addressing two critical choke points on America's path to an advanced industrial economy by:?
The bill also sets ambitious goals for wind and solar development on public lands and offshore wind capacity.?While some environmentally focused legislators and groups have opposed the bill for including provisions on oil and gas leasing, the strong bipartisan committee support reflects the important balance of compromises included in the legislation.?
While there are still plenty of hurdles to clear before making it to the President’s desk, the lame duck session may create an opportunity to finally push this through, and the issue couldn’t be more urgent.
Economic Growth Demands A Modernized Grid
Driven by economic growth, strides in computing technology (like AI and blockchain), reshoring smelting and processing, and transportation electrification, demand on America's grid is surging after three decades of almost no change.
But the majority of our grid infrastructure was built a half-century ago—or longer—and is nearing the end of its useful life. Decades-long planning and permitting processes for?new transmission lines hinder our ability to bring new generators online?to meet that growing demand.
As of 2023, there was an estimated?backlog of about 12,000 power generation projects,?including those using renewables, waiting to be connected to the grid
Investment in and the viability of key, strategic industries—from aluminum refining and smelting to auto manufacturing to AI development—are contingent on access to affordable, reliable energy.
Beijing knows this.?China's primary grid operator, State Grid Corp., plans to boost spending to a record $83 billion this year to ease energy transmission bottlenecks and better deliver electricity from new power generators using renewable sources to their industrial centers.
State Grid Corp. is the world's single largest purchaser of copper, which means its new investments will drive up demand for this critical material. Overall, the electricity network is the biggest factor in growing demand for copper.
The U.S. has copper, but permitting uncertainty and litigation has limited our ability to access this vital resource.
The Energy Permitting Reform Act would offer up some certainty around mining activities on federal lands, which is an important first step toward opening up access to domestically sourced critical minerals. But there is still plenty of work to do on that front.
We don't need unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles at home on top of unfair competitive practices out of Beijing.
领英推荐
?
Image via Uber Investor
Uber-BYD Deal: A Wakeup Call to American Industry and Policymakers
News last week that Uber and BYD would enter into a deal for the ridesharing company to deploy 100,000 EVs by the Chinese automaker was a reminder that U.S. automakers continue to fall behind in the global manufacturing race.?
Avery Ash, Executive Director of SAFE’s Coalition for Reimagined Mobility (ReMo), said: "The CCP is playing a different game than western countries and companies, and have created a civil-military fusion to leverage critical technologies—like batteries and electric vehicles—with a long-term goal to continue seizing global market share of advanced manufacturing industries. Once we lose competitiveness and know-how in this industrial arena, it is impossible to regain."?
Deals like the Uber-BYD one not only help drive demand for—and investment in—EV manufacturing, but also for the materials that go into building EVs.?
“If we continue on the path of insufficient demand signals that are not coordinated with our allies—particularly for the up and midstream—the future of the automotive sector will not be American, but Chinese,” said Abigail Hunter, Executive Director of SAFE's Center for Critical Minerals Strategy.?
The reality is that global demand for EVs continues to grow, but China dominates market. There is tremendous economic opportunity for the U.S. and our allies, but only if we "build on the industrial policies we do have, stop bickering over the politics of these policies, and focus on their value for our economy and our national security," Ash said.??
"And we must continue to implement trade barriers to block Chinese EVs that are produced through exploitative and anticompetitive tactics, while continuing to work with allies and other free societies to do the same,” he said.
?
China Looks to Get Around FEOC Provision through Indonesia Nickel Deals
Most of the world's nickel,?vital to battery and stainless steel manufacturing, comes from Indonesia.?Recent moves by Chinese firms?aim to bypass important sourcing provisions and qualify for the IRA's EV tax credit. U.S. policymakers must remain diligent about?efforts to undermine our goal of building out secure and high standard domestic and allied supply chains for the critical minerals and materials that underpin our modern economic and national security.
Chinese-owned smelters in Indonesia undercut domestic producers and allied producers (including some in Indonesia), which operate under very strict environmental and labor regulations.
The solution isn't to leave Indonesia to China, but we need to ensure companies do not skirt?FEOC and undermine the goals of the IRA.
?
ReMo Represents at TRB's 2024 Automated Road Transportation Symposium?
Ashley Simmons, Deputy Director of SAFE's Coalition for Reimagined Mobility, and Allanté Whitmore, Director of the Autonomous Vehicle Initiative, brought their expertise to the stage at TRB's annual Automated Road Transportation Symposium (ARTS) conference in San Diego last week.
Simmons, drawing on her experience with ReMo,?participated in USDOT’s workshop on National Collaboration Models Around Roadway Digital Infrastructure for Automation and discussed her expertise?mobilizing and convening a broad group of global stakeholders to revolutionize mobility?and prepare America’s infrastructure for the AV era.
Whitmore moderated a panel on the economic growth potential for the U.S. and other countries of AV deployment. The conversation looked at the contrast of AV development here and in China, which has invested $1.5 trillion in the deployment of the technology.