A proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule intended to encourage industry to adopt best practices that reduce emissions of methane and thereby avoid paying. Photo via Canva

Oil and natural gas companies for the first time would have to pay a fee for methane emissions that exceed certain levels under a rule proposed Friday by the Biden administration.

The proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule follows through on a directive from Congress included in the 2022 climate law. The new fee is intended to encourage industry to adopt best practices that reduce emissions of methane and thereby avoid paying.

Methane is a climate “super pollutant” that is more potent in the short term than carbon dioxide and is responsible for about one-third of greenhouse gas emissions. The oil and natural gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions in the United States, and advocates say reduction of methane emissions is an important way to slow climate change.

Excess methane produced this year would result in a fee of $900 per ton, with fees rising to $1,500 per ton by 2026.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the proposed fee would work in tandem with a final rule on methane emissions EPA announced last month. The fee, formally known as the Methane Emissions Reduction Program, will encourage early deployment of available technologies to reduce methane emissions and other harmful air pollutants before the new standards take effect, he said.

The rule announced in December includes a two-year phase-in period for companies to eliminate routine flaring of natural gas from new oil wells.

“EPA is delivering on a comprehensive strategy to reduce wasteful methane emissions that endanger communities and fuel the climate crisis,” Regan said in a statement. When finalized later this year, the proposed methane fee will set technology standards that will “incentivize industry innovation'' and spur action to reduce pollution, he said.

Leading oil and gas companies already meet or exceed performance levels set by Congress under the climate law, meaning they will not have to pay the proposed fee, Regan and other officials said.

Sen. Tom Carper, chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said he was pleased the administration was moving forward with the methane fee as directed by Congress.

“We know methane is over 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in our atmosphere in the short term,'' said Carper, D-Del. He said the program "will incentivize producers to cut wasteful and excessive methane emissions during oil and gas production.”

New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said oil and gas companies have long calculated that it's cheaper to waste methane through flaring and other techniques than to make necessary upgrades to prevent leaks.

“Wasted methane never makes its way to consumers, but they are nevertheless stuck with the bill,” Pallone said. The proposed methane fee “will ensure consumers no longer pay for wasted energy or the harm its emissions can cause.''

Republicans call the methane fee a tax that could raise the price of natural gas. “This proposal means increased costs for employers and higher energy bills for millions of Americans,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-West Virginia.

The American Petroleum Institute, the oil and gas industry's largest lobbying group, slammed the proposal Friday and called for Congress to repeal it.

“As the world looks to U.S. energy producers to provide stability in an increasingly unstable world, this punitive tax increase is a serious misstep that undermines America’s energy advantage,'' said Dustin Meyer, API's senior vice president of policy, economics and regulatory affairs.

While the group supports “smart” federal methane regulation, the EPA proposal “creates an incoherent, confusing regulatory regime that will only stifle innovation and undermine our ability to meet rising energy demand,'' Meyer said. “We look forward to working with Congress to repeal the IRA’s misguided new tax on American energy.”

Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund, called the proposed fee "common sense,'' adding that oil and gas companies should be held accountable for methane pollution, a primary source of global warming.

In a related development, EPA said it is working with industry and others to improve how methane emissions are reported, citing numerous studies showing that and oil and gas companies have significantly underreported their methane emissions to the EPA under the agency's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program.

The climate law, formally known as the Inflation Reduction Act, established a waste-emissions charge for methane from oil and gas facilities that report emissions of more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year to the EPA. The proposal announced Friday sets out details of how the fee will be implemented, including how exemptions will be applied.

The agency said it expects that over time, fewer oil and gas sites will be charged as they reduce their emissions in compliance with the rule.

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Port Houston secures $3M from EPA program to fund green initiatives, clean tech

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Port Houston’s PORT SHIFT program is receiving nearly $3 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Ports Program.

The grant, funded by the federal Inflation Reduction Act, will help promote cleaner air, reduced emissions, and green jobs.

“With its ambitious PORT SHIFT program, Houston is taking a bold step toward a cleaner, more sustainable future, and I’m proud to have helped make this possible by voting for the Inflation Reduction Act,” U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia says in a news release.

“PORT SHIFT is about more than moving cargo — it’s about building a port that’s prepared for the future and a community that’s healthier and stronger,” Garcia adds. “With investments in zero-emission trucks, cleaner cargo handling, workforce training, and community engagement, Port Houston is setting the standard for what ports across America can accomplish.”

Joaquin Martinez, a member of the Houston City Council, says one of the benefits of the grant will be ensuring power readiness for all seven wharves at the Bayport Container Terminal.

The Inflation Reduction Act allocated $3 billion to the EPA’s Clean Ports Program to fund zero-emission equipment and climate planning at U.S. ports.

2 Houston energy transition companies recognized for creating top inventions of the year

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Innovations from two Houston energy transition companies have been crowned among the top inventions of the year.

Time magazine’s "200 Best Inventions of 2024" identified top innovations across consumer goods, home health, robotics, sustainability, and two dozen other categories.

Fervo Energy, a provider of geothermal power, was recognized the Green Energy category for its FervoFlex system. As Time explains, the system enables horizontal drilling into hot rock under the earth’s surface and pumping in water to generate hot water and steam. The geothermal energy that’s produced can be stored and released for future use by Fervo customers.

Jack Norbeck, Fervo’s co-founder and chief technology officer, predicts that by 2050, geothermal energy will become “the backbone of the decarbonized energy system.”

In September, Fervo secured a $100 million bridge loan for the first phase of its ongoing Cape Station project in Utah, which is being touted as the world’s largest geothermal energy plant. Slated for completion in June 2026, this initial phase is expected to generate 90 megawatts of renewable energy. Ultimately, the plant is supposed to supply 400 megawatts of clean energy by 2028 for customers in California.

Time also lauded NanoTech Materials among its Manufacturing and Materials honorees for its Insulative Ceramic Particle. This powder can be added to materials like drywall or shingles to improve fire resistance and decrease heat penetration, according to Time. NanoTech’s Wildfire Shield coating for buildings contains the powder. Wildfire Shield prevents damage to materials and harm from noxious smoke.

NanoTech’s other product, Cool Roof Coat, is painted on a building to decrease HVAC use. This year, NanoTech moved into a 43,000-square-foot space in Katy, Texas, and brought on new partners that expanded the company's reach in the Middle East and Singapore.

A third Houston company was also praised byTime is BiVACOR — named to its Experimental category of the list. The full list of this year's top inventions is available online.

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This article originally ran on InnovationMap.

CenterPoint names 40-year industry veteran as exec for emergency response

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CenterPoint Energy announced the hiring of industry veteran Don Daigler as the new senior vice president of CenterPoint’s Emergency Preparedness and Response.

Daigler will be tasked to lead the company’s yearly work in preparation for, response to and recovery from all emergencies, which includes both natural disasters and man-made events. Daigler and his team will coordinate with all public safety partners.

“I’m pleased to join CenterPoint Energy and lead its Emergency Preparedness and Response team to transform how we prepare, mitigate and respond to the impacts of hurricanes, extreme weather and other emergencies,” Daigler says in a news release. ”The year-round work of our team will help position CenterPoint to deliver the service our customers expect and deserve before, during and after emergencies when the need is greatest.”

He brings over 40 years of experience across private and public sectors in emergency management, and national security and business resiliency. Daigler most recently was the CEO and founder of Resilience Advisory Services, which specialized in advancing resilience efforts across critical infrastructure sectors. He also served as director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Response Planning Division and chief of FEMA’s Tactical Incident Support Branch. Daigler also had leadership roles for the Environmental Protection Agency , National Nuclear Security Administration, and Reynolds Electrical and Engineering Company.

This leadership position “underscores CenterPoint’s commitment to improving its emergency response and coordination following Hurricane Beryl, and represents completing another of the more than 40 commitments CenterPoint made as part of the Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative (GHRI) in August,” according to CenterPoint. CenterPoint completed 41 of the 42 overall commitments. The last commitment is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2024.

“After Hurricane Beryl, we heard loud and clear the calls to improve our preparedness for storms and other emergencies,” President and CEO of CenterPoint Energy Jason Wells adds. “Don will play a leading role in enhancing these operations ahead of the 2025 hurricane season and making CenterPoint a model for other utilities in emergency management and preparedness. His hiring underscores our commitment to better serve our customers in the energy capital of the world and building the most resilient coastal grid in the country.”