Transportation and Infrastructure

Companies are turning to seemingly unlikely sources for the lithium needed to make electric vehicles, according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription): oil-and-gas reservoirs.

What’s going on: “These oil-and-gas sites harbor not only hydrocarbons, but also brine that contains metals including sodium, calcium and some lithium. When drillers poke holes into oil-saturated formations, the brine flows back to the surface along with the molecules that end up as fuel, and companies have been prompt to discard the earthy marinade.”

• “But now that the EV battery material has become a prized commodity, lithium companies are developing technologies to remove it from this brine—and oil-and-gas companies are also taking a second look.”
• Lithium companies in the U.S. and Canada are working with oil-and-gas firms to get the metal out of old oil fields and produce it from wastewater pumps.

Skyrocketing demand: U.S. demand for lithium is expected to increase to nearly six times its current size by 2030, to $52 billion, according to Boston Consulting Group.

Why it’s important: Most lithium today comes from China, Chile and Australia, with the three countries providing around 92% of the lithium extracted globally last year. But in the U.S., the process would be more environmentally friendly.

• “Because energy companies have drilled millions of oil-and-gas wells and collected subsurface data in the process, lithium prospectors know where to look.”

A faster process: The direct extraction method could significantly speed lithium production. In it, “brine is sent to a processing unit, where chemicals, a resin or a membrane, among other technologies, are used to capture the lithium ions. The water is then reinjected into the aquifer where it originated. The process takes at most a few days, and recoveries are up to 90%.”

• Some are hoping direct extraction will allow lithium producers to get the metal in the Permian basin of West Texas and New Mexico.

New orders for manufactured products rose for the second month in a row in April, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

What’s going on: New orders inched up 0.4% in April, following a 0.6% gain in March.

• Durable goods orders increased 1.1%, owing mostly to a rise in defense aircraft and parts orders, which can be volatile from month to month.
• Excluding transportation equipment, factory orders dipped 0.2% in April, the third straight month of declines.

The big picture: Overall, orders for new manufactured goods have declined 2.6% since peaking a year ago.

• With factory orders (excluding transportation) down 4.3% over the past 10 months, manufacturing activity has contracted notably since last summer.

The good news: New orders for core capital goods (nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft) rose 1.3% in April after two straight months of declines.

• Core capital goods orders are considered a proxy for capital spending in the U.S. economy. These totaled $73.982 billion in April, just under the record $73.985 billion in December and signifying 2.5% year-over-year growth.

Factory shipments: Factory shipments decreased 0.4% in April, the third straight month of declines.

• Overall, total factory shipments have declined 2.9%—or 4.2% excluding transportation equipment—since peaking a year ago.
• However, core capital goods shipments rose 0.5% in April to $73.848 billion, just slightly under January’s record of $73.850 billion. Core capital goods shipments have risen 4.1% year-over-year.

As the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission prepares to issue a final rule that would change the way new energy projects connect to the U.S. electrical grid, some are concerned the regulation may be insufficient, according to E&E News’ ENERGYWIRE (subscription).

What’s going on: “Speeding up the grid connection system is critical for the success of the Biden administration’s signature climate initiatives and for many states’ clean energy goals. Today’s protracted process for linking new energy projects to the transmission system is widely considered one of the chief hurdles to deploying more carbon-free energy.”

The problem: Developers of clean energy undertakings and others say FERC’s coming changes likely won’t have the effect of getting new projects online sooner.

• Some policies—such as the direction of regional transmission lines to study interconnection requests in groups, not individually—have already been implemented to little effect, they say.
• And some potential issues slowing grid connection aren’t covered by the regulations, including grid operators’ difficulty in hiring sufficient numbers of experienced engineers to process all the requests.
• Then there are network-upgrade costs, which “are rising sharply” and may not be “meaningfully address[ed]” by FERC’s proposed rule.

Too long a wait: Before being able to deliver power to businesses and households, new energy projects need to be connected to the transmission system—and getting approval for that connection can take years.

• “As of last year, it took an average of five years for a new energy project in the United States to move through that study process and reach commercial operation, according to the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. That’s up from an average of three years in 2015 and less than two years in 2008.”
• What’s more, “[i]n the current interconnection process in most of the United States, projects are sometimes restudied up to 10 times before they’re approved to connect,” one source told ENERGYWIRE.

Prioritizing projects: The proposed regulation tries to prioritize projects by commercial viability and construction readiness to cut down on the number of “possible” projects in the lineup.

• However … some in the renewables industry say “it’s unrealistic to expect project developers to have most of their permits and contracts in place before they have gone through the interconnection process,” another source told the news outlet.

A fundamental change: FERC has its work cut out for it given the foundational changes that have taken place in the U.S. energy system in the past few decades.

• “Historically, the electric grid was dominated by large, centralized power plants. But as the clean energy transition continues,” that is likely to change.

The NAM’s take: “Manufacturers depend on access to reliable and affordable energy to expand—which is why we support reforms that would foster transparent, streamlined and timely federal regulatory processes for the siting, permitting and licensing of energy delivery infrastructure of all types,” said NAM Vice President of Energy and Resources Policy Brandon Farris.

Advanced nuclear reactors got some good news Wednesday when a measure to speed their development and deployment passed the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, according to E&E News’ GREENWIRE.

What’s going on: “The ‘Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act,’ S. 1111, passed 16-3, with Chair Tom Carper (D-Del.) and ranking member Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) leading the effort to revitalize American leadership on nuclear energy.”

What it would mean: Through a series of awards, the bill would encourage companies to develop advanced-reactor technology. In addition, it would seek approval easing for reactor projects on brownfield sites, land that is underused or has been abandoned because of industrial waste.

• “The proposal would also give the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the nation’s chief nuclear regulator, additional authorities to increase hiring. Lawmakers say current staffing is not enough to effectively deal with the high number of applications for new reactors.”
• And it would supplement “early licensing work” to deploy the reactors more quickly “at critical national security infrastructure sites.”

Some manufacturers are reconsidering their dependence on China in the face of growing security concerns and worries about potential military conflicts, according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription).

What’s going on: “Executives are plotting alternate supply chains or devising products that can be made elsewhere should China’s hundreds of thousands of factories become inaccessible. That prospect became more conceivable, they said, after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine prompted companies to sever ties with Russia, sometimes taking huge write-downs.”

• China’s government recently banned key Chinese firms from purchasing products made by U.S. semiconductor firm Micron Technology, saying the company posed a national security risk to China.

Why it’s important: “China’s access to raw materials and ability to produce components for finished goods remains unmatched, and its dense supplier networks have yet to be replicated elsewhere.”

What manufacturers are doing: Some manufacturers that rely heavily on China for revenue and inputs are using extra discretion when it comes to their data and intellectual property in that country.

• Manufacturers’ caution levels have risen since April, when China revised an espionage law that lets its authorities inspect the facilities and electronic equipment of any companies they suspect of spying.
• Some manufacturers are aiming to assemble new supply chains to circumvent China. These companies are “brac[ing] for higher prices and slower service than [they receive] in China” but “won’t be cut off by the threat of war or a trade embargo.”​​​​​​​

The bill passed in the House Wednesday to raise the nation’s debt limit and avert a default makes some of the most significant revisions to U.S. environmental law in years, “potentially accelerating new renewable-energy investments championed by the Biden administration,” according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription).

What’s going on: The Fiscal Responsibility Act, which boosts the U.S. debt ceiling until after the 2024 presidential election and now heads to the Senate, includes several energy infrastructure-related moves.

• Expedites permitting for MVP: The legislation hastens permitting for the Mountain Valley Pipeline, an Appalachian natural-gas project that would bring affordable energy to the Mid- and South Atlantic regions.
• Shortens timelines: It also “tightens the scope of environmental reviews required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1970 and allows more projects to win approval without having to undergo the most complex types of reviews. It also sets time limits of no more than two years to complete the studies.”
• Streamlines processes: In addition, the bill assigns review of each project to one federal agency rather than multiple agencies and allows infrastructure undertakings “to piggyback on existing reviews for similar projects rather than starting from scratch.”

“Unlocking resources”: Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA), who joined NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons at the recent NAM Competing to Win Tour stop in Harahan, Louisiana, and who wrote a previous measure from which the Fiscal Responsibility Act drew, said the legislation is “all about unlocking America’s resources.” This is a point the NAM has long stressed to Congress, too.

• On Tuesday, after the NAM consistently applied pressure on lawmakers to reach a deal, Timmons urged the House to pass the measure, citing its ability “[t]o strengthen manufacturing in our nation, reach our industry’s full potential and outcompete other nations like China” through permitting reforms.
• Bureaucracy and red tape hamstring plans for critical infrastructure, resulting in “yearslong delays on energy projects, making them unfeasible. The most rigorous type of review takes an average of 4½ years to complete, according to the White House,” the Journal reports.

Something we can all agree on: “‘We see an enormous amount of demand for new clean energy projects that are being held up,’ said Sasha Mackler, who directs the energy program at the Bipartisan Policy Center. ‘That reality has brought Republicans and Democrats together here.’”

The debt ceiling bill finalized on Sunday—and set to go to a vote in the House this evening—includes meaningful permitting reform measures, according to E&E News (subscription).

What’s going on: The legislation would approve the Mountain Valley pipeline and enact changes to the National Environmental Policy Act.

• In addition, “a one-year deadline would be placed on the production of environmental impact assessments for new energy projects seeking permits. A two-year maximum would be applied for environmental impact statements.”
• “The agreement would also expand an existing program to expedite federal permitting for infrastructure projects, known as Fast-41.”
• And last, though the bill will not include provisions for a large-scale transmission buildup, it will call for a study of grid challenges and recommendations that might fix them.

The NAM says: NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons commended policymakers on reaching an agreement:

• “Manufacturers have been a leading voice for permitting reform, so we are encouraged that this legislation takes critical steps to improve our broken permitting system, helping us more fully leverage our domestic energy sources and expand manufacturing in the United States.”
• “We will work with Congress and the administration to build on this progress and create a comprehensive bipartisan permitting reform package that also helps unlock the full potential of laws meant to encourage the growth of manufacturing in America, such as the historic infrastructure law and the CHIPS and Science Act.”

The bigger bill: In case you missed it, the debt legislation as a whole would suspend the borrowing limit for the next two years, while also making some spending cuts, according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription).

• “It would cut spending on domestic priorities favored by Democrats while boosting military spending by about 3%. It also would extend limits on food assistance to some beneficiaries to prod them to find jobs.”

NAM in the news: Timmons’ statements on the debt-limit agreement were picked up by CNN Business and The Hill.

Washington, D.C. – Following an announcement that the White House and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had reached a deal to avoid default on U.S. debt, National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons released the following statement:

“Manufacturers congratulate President Biden, Speaker McCarthy and their negotiating teams on reaching an agreement to lift the debt limit. As we have said from the beginning, defaulting on our debt would create economic chaos, harming manufacturing workers and their families and jeopardizing our leadership in the world. Congress should act quickly to pass this agreement and to demonstrate to Americans and to the world the continued strength of our institutions and our democracy.

“Manufacturers have been a leading voice for permitting reform, so we are encouraged that this legislation takes critical steps to improve our broken permitting system, helping us more fully leverage our domestic energy sources and expand manufacturing in the United States. We will work with Congress and the administration to build on this progress and create a comprehensive bipartisan permitting reform package that also helps unlock the full potential of laws meant to encourage the growth of manufacturing in America, such as the historic infrastructure law and the CHIPS and Science Act.

“Once this debate is behind us, our leaders must turn their focus to other policies critical to unleashing manufacturing’s full potential: addressing the crushing regulatory burden facing manufacturers, improving our immigration system and ensuring that our tax code supports manufacturing in America by encouraging investments in innovation and capital equipment.”

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 13 million men and women, contributes $2.90 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 55% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

Implementation of programs and funding from 2021’s historic, bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is now in full swing—and manufacturers are already hard at work.

What’s going on: During discussions at an Infrastructure Week event hosted by United For Infrastructure earlier this month, leaders from Bechtel and Siemens USA discussed the significant social and economic impact of infrastructure investment.

• The Business Roundtable “commissioned a study to look at the economic impact [of] every taxpayer dollar invested in infrastructure, and we concluded that [each dollar] generates $4 in economic growth,” said Bechtel Chairman and CEO Brendan Bechtel, who is also chair of the BRT Infrastructure Committee. “We concluded that a trillion dollars in infrastructure investment over 10 years unlocks, on average, additional household disposable income of $1,800 a year for every family in the United States. Modern infrastructure creates a huge amount of social, environmental and economic benefits.” Bechtel spoke alongside Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and White House Senior Advisor and Infrastructure Coordinator Mitch Landrieu on a panel.
• More benefits of the investment in infrastructure are on display in the many projects of industrial technology company Siemens USA, according to the company’s Vice President and Head of U.S. Government Affairs Brie Sachse.
• Sachse discussed the recent opening of Siemens’ second U.S. electric-vehicle charging manufacturing hub in Carrollton, Texas, as well as a partnership with utility ComEd in the historic Bronzeville neighborhood of Chicago. There, Siemens is providing the management software for a first-of-its-kind, utility-owned microgrid cluster. “It will lead to cleaner, more reliable power for a neighborhood in the midst of revitalization,” Sachse said during a lightning round at the event. “We’re enthusiastic about the momentum to electrify America.”

 Permitting reform and workforce: Both Bechtel and Sachse stressed the critical importance of filling current and future open manufacturing jobs. Bechtel echoed NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons—who spoke on an earlier panel—when he stressed the need for infrastructure-project permitting reform at the congressional level.

• “The shortage of construction workers is real. It’s the current constraint throttling how much work we feel we can responsibly commit to and deliver at once,” Bechtel said. “I think it’s the single most important thing that we can all address besides permitting reform.”
• After the event, Bechtel thanked industry allies and business leaders “for continuing to lead on improving the permitting system so we can move projects through the pipeline more efficiently.” 

The power of apprenticeships: The companies are betting on apprentice programs to help fill jobs.

• Siemens recently launched an apprentice program in Wendell, North Carolina, to “support the growing EV market,” Sachse said, adding that apprenticeships like this one are “opening the door for career pathways that are both well-paying and meaningful.”
• To fill the worker shortage, “we’re doubling down on the things we know that work,” Bechtel said. For example, the company uses apprentice readiness programs, in which people are “learning while they’re earning [and] they’re accessing and accumulating health and retirement benefits that they wouldn’t otherwise.”

In its Sackett v. EPA ruling yesterday, the Supreme Court handed a victory to congressional Republicans and others who believe the Biden administration’s revised Waters of the United States rule is overly broad, according to E&E News’ Greenwire (subscription).

What’s going on: By unanimous vote, “the court found that EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers wrongfully claimed oversight of the wetland on the Sacketts’ property—located about 300 feet from Idaho’s Priest Lake—and that federal courts had erred in affirming the agencies’ jurisdiction.”

• “The ruling could complicate the Biden administration’s legal defense of its new definition of which wetlands and streams qualify as ‘waters of the U.S.,’ or WOTUS, subject to Clean Water Act permitting.”
• The Sacketts have been prohibited from building on their property for more than 15 years because of the wetlands designation and oversight claims.

Why it’s important: The decision—in which “[t]he court said the EPA can only assert jurisdiction over wetlands that have continuous surface connection to navigable waters, rejecting a more expansive view proposed by the EPA,” according to The Wall Street Journal (subscription)—will give much-needed regulatory certainty to manufacturers, which have been caught in limbo over the unclear and changing WOTUS definition.

The NAM says: The court’s ruling “put[s] us on a path to regulatory certainty for manufacturers across the country,” NAM Vice President of Energy and Resources Policy Brandon Farris said.

• “This case demonstrates yet again why manufacturers and our economy need a sensible Waters of the United States proposal that provides clarity and certainty and allows the industry to continue leading the way on environmental protection. The EPA should heed the court’s ruling and revise its latest WOTUS proposal.”