The Continuing Impact of Coal Ash - Energy Law Insights
The methodology outlines a three-step approach for obtaining credits: retirement of coal-fired power plants, generation of replacement renewable electricity, and assurance of a just transition....more
On April 9, 2025, President Trump announced a slew of executive actions seeking to bolster the coal industry. One of the three executive orders is directly targeted at procedures to increase coal mining and production, which...more
The Trump Administration is leveraging the U.S. Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office (LPO) as a strategic tool to catalyze private sector investment in energy infrastructure. This approach aims to enhance U.S....more
On March 12, 2025, EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (“OECA”) issued a memo outlining new national enforcement and compliance initiatives (“NECIs”). ...more
In December 2022, planning permission was granted by the secretary of state for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities ("SoS") to extract coal from a coal mine in Whitehaven, Cumbria, England. The project would have been the...more
In the latest update in the years-long fight on behalf of Foresight Coal Sales, Bailey Glasser has secured another win for interstate commerce and constitutional law. On September 24, 2024, the district court granted...more
The IRS released additional guidance on June 7, 2024, in the form of Notice 2024-48 (Notice) regarding the energy community bonus credit under Sections 45, 48, 45Y and 48E of the Internal Revenue Code. The Notice follows...more
Coal production and mining jobs over the past half-century have been influenced by several factors, principally demand from the utility sector, technological breakthroughs in natural gas production, railroad deregulation, and...more
In early August 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed denial of Alabama’s permit program to manage coal combustion residuals (CCR) in landfills and surface impoundments within the state. The...more
The Notice enables developers and investors to more easily determine the Energy Community status of projects. Key Points: ..The IRS and the Treasury Department have provided tables to assist in determining eligibility...more
With names like “boiler slag” and “bottom ash,” it’s no wonder that anyone who has ever heard of coal ash, or the coal combustion residuals (CCRs) produced from burning coal, assumes they are the basest forms of pollution....more
Ford Building Massive Electric Vehicle and Battery Plants with $11.4 Billion Investment "Automaker says production hubs will bring 11,000 jobs to Tennessee and Kentucky." Why this is important: Ford Motor Company and...more
California AG Rob Bonta, New Mexico AG Hector Balderas, New York AG Letitia James, and Washington AG Bob Ferguson sent a letter to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) urging it to consider the full social and...more
Texas is now the third state with an approved CCR permit program. On June 28, 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency published the approval of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s partial State Coal Combustion...more
A Bad Day for Big Oil - "ExxonMobil, Chevron lose key shareholder votes and Dutch court orders Shell to cut emissions faster." Why this is important: Issues related to climate change embroiled three oil companies this...more
Gas Stations Run Dry as Pipeline Races to Recover From Hacking - "Gas stations along the U.S. East Coast are beginning to run out of fuel as North America’s biggest petroleum pipeline races to recover from a paralyzing...more
The local economies of many communities in the southwest are tied to the operations of large coal-fired power plants. As those plants start closing, the communities can face significant disruption in their local economies...more
World's Largest Coal Miner Coal India Bets on Solar, Eyes Further Mine Closures - "Pramod Agarwal said its joint venture with state-run NLC India Ltd plans to invest around 125 billion rupees ($1.73 billion) in solar...more
U.S. Congress Launches Probe Into Multibillion-Dollar 'Clean Coal' Tax Credit - "The U.S. Congress is investigating a multibillion-dollar subsidy for chemically treated coal that is meant to reduce smokestack pollution,...more
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf Floats Natural Gas Tax to Pay for $3 Billion Pandemic Recovery Plan - "Long a proponent of an extraction tax, Wolf said it could pay for improvements to workforce training and support, remove...more
On June 1, 2020, the Government of Alberta rescinded A Coal Development Policy for Alberta, which was also commonly known as the "1976 Coal Policy". The authors published Alberta to Rescind Coal Development Policy, on the...more
Asia's switch from coal to natural gas is driven by stricter emission standards, low natural gas prices, and more efficient new natural gas turbine technology. The overwhelming consensus seems to be that thermal coal is on...more
Welcome to our first issue of 2021! We have been publishing a weekly edition of Currents since 2017 and hope that you find it informative and helpful. Our goal for 2021 is the same -- provide access to interesting and...more
Looking ahead, here are a few themes I think will play a role in 2021, which are a continuation or evolution of where we’ve been in 2020....more
Welcome to our 46th issue of Currents for 2020. Our Energy Practice Group looked at current energy articles, and we also explain the significance of every article. These issues peaked our interest this week, and we have...more