“[I]n recent years the IEA has been undermining energy security by discouraging sufficient investment in energy supplies… Moreover, its energy modeling no longer provides policymakers with balanced assessments of energy and climate proposals. Instead, it has become an ‘energy transition’ cheerleader.”

An important letter asking for explanation has been sent to Dr. Fatih Birol, director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), by U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY: ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources) and U.S. Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA: chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce). The U.S. is a major funder of IEA, an agenda that has turned its back on its original charter and begun to promote/mislead on the deep-ecology cause of climate alarmism/forced energy transformation.

The U.S., in fact, should immediately cease funding to this agency as one of many budget cutting items.…

The editorial pages of the Houston Chronicle, as well as news reports, did what they could to hype the “energy transition” before, during, and after CERAWeek. Chronicle business editorialist, the conflicted Chris Tomlinson, was particularly egregious in this regard. But just a bit of balance was achieved in the letters section, where an op-ed by Randall Morton, “Houston is making a losing bet on fossil fuels (Opinion),” (March 18), previously examined at MasterResource, received three rebuttals.

The letters follow:

Jim Lloyd, Lakewood, Colo.: Randall Morton painted a very grim picture for the future economics of Houston because of a lower demand for fossil fuels. Morton failed to account for several issues related to the principles of supply and demand. He simply needs to drive in the congested traffic of every large city.…

Ed. Note: This post excerpts energy and climate material from the Media Balance Newsletter, a free fortnightly published by physicist John Droz Jr., founder of the Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions. The complete Newsletter for this post can be found here.

Unreliables (General):
Report: Green Guardrails
America’s Energy Scam
Green Tyrants Get Horrible News as Finance Giants Pull Out Left and Right
High Costs, Greenlash Hit Europe
Transition? What Transition?

Wind Energy — Offshore:
CFACT says offshore wind violates Clean Air and Clean Water Acts
Renewed push to put wind turbines in Lake Erie gets blowback in Hamburg

Wind Energy — Other:
*** Taking the Wind Out of Climate Change (referencing 60± studies)
*** French Council of State annuls wind turbine permits, major impact on energy future
*** Irish High Court Slams Wind Turbine Operator for Noise “Like planes that Never Land”

Solar Energy:
US Solar Factories Are In for ‘Rude Awakening,’ Report Warns

Fossil-Fuel Energy:
Policymakers are clueless that all energy sources came after the discovery of oil

Electric Vehicles (EVs):
EVs lose market share across Europe in January

Miscellaneous Energy News:
*** Short video: Energy and the Poverty of Nations
*** These 10 Charts Caused an NGO Hissy Fit at NARUC
*** Net Zero Emergency Power
America Is Running Out Of Power, Is Rationing And Soaring Energy Prices Ahead?…

“I’ve been around automotive for a long time, but I’ve NEVER seen incentives that represent 90% of new vehicle price. For a Toyota, 10% is the most I’ve seen. Yet, this is exactly what’s happening for the Toyota Mirai.” (James Carter, below)

EVs compete against hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles–at least in California where some one hundred hydrogen dispensing stations are. The range and fill-time of HFCVs is quite competitive with EVs. But it is downhill from there–and a major mess for sellers and buyers. The California Energy Commission (remember Methanol?) has failed again.

Consultant James Carter on LinkedIn summarized a recent article in Jalopnik, by Logan Carter, Toyota Offers $40,000 Discount On A Car Most People Can’t Fuel Up.” His autopsy (verbatim): 

• Toyota’s innovative Mirai might just be the best deal on the car market right now, but access to hydrogen fuel is getting harder.