Morgan Evans

With global energy storage deployments poised to hit 500 GW by 2031, the U.S. energy storage market leads its peers on the world stage, according to Wood Mackenzie’s Global Energy Storage Outlook. 

Houston-based CenterPoint Energy Inc.’s natural gas and electric utility is “on track to meet our current capital investment plan for the year, having invested over $2 billion in the first six months of 2022,” said CEO Dave Lesar. 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom last week turned up the heat on climate change initiatives with a letter to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) in which he stressed state agencies to prepare for an energy transition that involves no new natural gas plants. 

A coalition of 17 states, Washington, DC, and Quebec released last week an action plan to tackle transportation-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by calling for a “whole-of-government” approach to electrifying 100% of medium- and heavy-duty vehicle (MHDV) sales by 2050. 

Injecting hydrogen into California’s existing natural gas distribution infrastructure may increase leaks, a study sponsored by the state’s regulators has found.

Portland, OR-based natural gas utility NW Natural is preparing for carbon neutrality by 2050 with plans to inject hydrogen into its natural gas distribution system. 

With plans to purchase 500 million gallons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), as well as a conditional pre-order for electric planes from Vertical Aerospace Group Ltd., American Airlines Group Ltd. is gaining speed in its climb toward net-zero emissions by 2050. 

Florida-based NextEra Energy Inc., already one of the largest solar and wind utilities, said it is planning to convert 16 GW of its 20 GW-plus natural gas electrical generation fleet to run on green hydrogen as it continues to move toward zero carbon emissions.

While Iowa could require 35-199 GW of additional installed wind capacity to meet net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, land use ordinances and regulatory hurdles leave the door open for natural gas to play a role in decarbonizing, according to estimates.

Trailblazer Pipeline Co. LLC (TPC) and Rockies Express Pipeline LLC (REX) are moving through the regulatory process with plans to abandon the Trailblazer system and repurpose the infrastructure for carbon dioxide (CO2) transportation.