Energy & Sustainability

Last week, the Supreme Court handed down a ruling affirming that federal regulators may encourage large electricity users to reduce consumption at peak times in exchange for price breaks, a practice known as "demand response."

President Obama signed into law the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (the “FAST Act”) on December 4, 2015 to address the nation’s infrastructure challenges. 

Are you working on or interested in advanced surface technologies? Look no further than the TechBridge Challenge on Advanced Industrial Surfaces! In collaboration with ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company, Fraunhofer TechBridge is using this Challenge to accelerate the development of new material formulations.

When one thinks of renewable energy and the growing movement to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, the US military is not, perhaps, the first thing that comes to mind. In reality, however, the military is tied inextricably to the renewable energy movement - oil is its lifeblood and this dependence is a great strategic vulnerability.

Mintz Levin Strategies recently published its Washington Outlook for 2016, and it contained a variety of insights for the energy technology industry. 

Last month the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) issued a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers and Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT) 2016.”

The 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change concluded last month with the approval of a landmark climate accord that seeks to combat climate change on a global level.

Mintz Levin is very excited to announce the launch of “The State of the Cleanweb” report, which we are proud to support. Within, resources and energy are referred to as “software’s next meal” – and you’ll want to know why! The report was produced by SuperCollider with data powered by CB Insights, and is also supported by New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

Early Wednesday morning Congressional leaders reached agreement on a year-end spending and massive tax deal that would prevent a government shutdown and extend a series of tax breaks that benefit businesses and individuals.

Congratulations to our client, Bigbelly, for being recognized as one of BostInno’s 2015 “50 on Fire” winners. The 50 winners were selected from 200 finalists and thousands of nominations and represent a group of diverse individuals and organizations driving innovation in Boston and beyond.

Mintz Levin’s own Paul Dickerson was quoted in a Law360 article published last week regarding the past year’s M&A developments in the energy industry.

Last week the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) released a report highlighting the rapid growth in the use of solar energy by American businesses.  According to the study, the top corporate solar users now operate 1,686 solar systems producing 907 MW of electricity, enough to power more than 158,000 homes. 

With climate change front and center on the world stage as a result of the ongoing U.N. Climate Change Conference in Paris, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and a group of other business leaders used the opportunity to make several prominent announcements pertaining to climate change and energy technology funding.

Last week U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz awarded $125 million in funding for 41 cutting-edge energy technology projects under the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program.

America’s 10 year energy resurgence exhibits the difficulty of prediction. Unexpected global events, from the persistence of the U.S. fracking revolution to the impact (or lack thereof) of low natural gas prices on the business case for renewable exergy, have fundamentally transformed America’s energy standing.

In a headline grabbing move, last week President Obama rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline, ending a seven year waiting period. The pipeline would have carried 800,000 barrels of oil each day from Canada’s tar sands to refineries on the Gulf Coast.

Join the Mintz Levin team at the New England Women in Energy and the Environment (NEWIEE) Annual Meeting and Fall Fête on November 17, 2015 from 4:30 – 9 p.m. at the Algonquin Club of Boston. 

Tom Burton, Chair of Mintz Levin’s Energy Technology Practice, has published a weekly installment providing insight into the challenges and possible solutions that, if implemented, promise a bright future as clean energy moves America forward. In this series, Tom included one challenge per week and the potential solution(s). This is the sixth and final installment of the series.

Earlier this month, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz released a report presenting the Department of Energy’s (DOE) assessment of expected regional energy sector vulnerabilities to climate change. 

On Wednesday, September 23, the Northeast Electrochemical Energy Storage Cluster and North Shore InnoVentures co-hosted the 2015 Clean Energy Storage Finance Forum at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC). The event kicked off with storage company pitches moderated by Tom Kinneman, Vice President and COO of North Shore InnoVentures.