MDN’s Energy Stories of Interest: Tue, Sep 23, 2025 [FREE ACCESS]

NATIONAL: Utility-scale batteries are more commonly used for price arbitrage; Net Zero emission ideologies is destructive to future generations; CO2 alarmism – science or superstition?; Trump calls on World Bank to reconsider oil and gas financing; How to end the “100% renewable” fraud; INTERNATIONAL: Crude stays in tight range amid risks; Trump renews pressure on EU to stop buying Russian oil; Exxon and Shell sue the Netherlands for closing Europe’s biggest gas field.

NATIONAL

Utility-scale batteries are more commonly used for price arbitrage
U.S. Energy Information Administration – Today in Energy
Utility-scale battery operators in the U.S. are increasingly prioritizing price arbitrage, buying electricity when prices are low and selling it when prices are high. While batteries serve multiple functions, such as frequency regulation, excess renewable energy storage, peak shaving, and load management, survey results show a shift in their primary use. In 2023, 66% of total capacity included arbitrage among its applications, with 41% dedicated primarily to it, surpassing frequency regulation, which now accounts for 24%. Regional data highlights this trend: by the end of 2024, 43% of California’s 11.7 GW and 50% of Texas’s 8.1 GW of battery capacity were used mainly for arbitrage. [MDN: Interesting that environmentalists sell batteries as “the answer” to storing unreliable wind and solar energy that’s produced when the grid doesn’t need it. But in reality, green grifters are using batteries to make money by price arbitrage.]

Net Zero emission ideologies is destructive to future generations
The Heartland Institute/Ronald Stein, P.E.
The article argues that hydrocarbons like coal, oil, and natural gas, once refined, are indispensable to modern life, providing over 6,000 products and fueling global transportation, agriculture, and industry. These resources have doubled life expectancy since 1900, yet new refinery construction in developed nations faces regulatory and political barriers, while Asia rapidly expands capacity. The piece criticizes “net-zero” policies as destructive, warning they risk shortages, higher costs, and declining living standards. Instead, it advocates using carbon responsibly through advanced technologies such as HELE coal plants, gasification, and next-generation nuclear, framing carbon as a resource to manage wisely, not eliminate. [MDN: Vintage Ron Stein. Clear, concise, rational. Read the full article and learn something.]

CO2 alarmism – science or superstition?
CO2 Coalition/Brian C Joondeph
The article “CO? Alarmism: Science or Superstition?” by Brian C. Joondeph argues that much of the current concern about carbon dioxide is overblown. It claims that CO? levels today—around 420 ppm—are actually low by geological standards, far below concentrations seen over much of Earth’s last 600 million years. The author asserts that temperature and CO? haven’t always moved together, citing past periods when CO? was high but temperatures weren’t, and vice versa. He criticizes what he sees as simplistic “lockstep” causation arguments, pointing instead to a complex interplay among solar cycles, volcanism, orbital changes, and ocean currents. The article concludes that alarm over CO? is more superstition than settled science. [MDN: We agree. Real science shows higher CO2 levels have not led to catastrophic warming of the planet.]

Trump calls on World Bank to reconsider oil and gas financing
OilPrice.com/Michael Kern
The Trump Administration is pressuring the World Bank and other development banks to resume financing oil and gas projects, reversing policies that phased out fossil fuel funding after 2019. While the World Bank had pledged to limit support to exceptional cases aligned with the Paris Agreement, U.S. officials argue that expanding upstream gas and pipelines is essential for energy security and economic growth. This push reflects America’s fossil fuel dominance and coincides with major North American banks quitting net-zero alliances under political and legal pressure. Critics see it as a retreat from climate goals, while supporters frame it as pro-growth. [MDN: There’s a pretty easy fix here. The U.S. should immediately defund any money we give to the World Bank. We provide the lion’s share of the funding to the WB, with an estimated 16-18% of its funding. CUT THEM OFF.]

How to end the “100% renewable” fraud
Alex Epstein Substack
Epstein argues that many corporations exploit the FTC’s “Green Guides” by claiming to be “100% renewable” even though they still rely heavily on fossil-fuel-generated electricity. He says this misleads consumers and policymakers. To stop it, he proposes updating the Green Guides to ban claims of 100% renewability unless every watt used is verifiably from renewable sources, consistently and continuously. He also urges stronger enforcement by the FTC and more transparency in corporate energy sourcing disclosures so that customers can see whether claims match reality. [MDN: The green industry is a shell game, trying to make you believe things that aren’t true. Claims of 100% renewable are one such example.]

INTERNATIONAL

Crude stays in tight range amid risks
Bloomberg/Christopher Charleston
Oil prices slipped as traders weighed EU sanctions targeting Russian oil intermediaries, Ukraine’s strikes on Russian energy facilities, and geopolitical signals from global leaders. West Texas Intermediate closed near $62 a barrel for November, while Brent settled at $66. The EU’s planned sanctions may hit Chinese and Indian entities benefiting from discounted Russian crude under the G7 price cap. U.S. President Trump urged Europe to end Russian imports, though Macron called remaining flows minimal. Canadian PM Carney’s push for secondary sanctions briefly lifted prices, while Ukraine’s intensified drone attacks raised supply concerns but have yet to cause lasting disruptions. [MDN: Oil still in the $60 zone. Which is good.]

Trump renews pressure on EU to stop buying Russian oil
Bloomberg/M. Paula Mijares Torres, J.A. Dlouhy
President Donald Trump reiterated his demand that European nations stop buying oil from Russia, linking continued purchases to undermining U.S. pressure on President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine. Speaking near Washington, Trump criticized Europe for importing Russian energy, noting that while most direct oil purchases ended after the 2022 invasion, small volumes still reach Hungary and Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline, and refined Russian fuels enter through India and Turkey. EU imports of Russian crude have fallen from 27% to 3%, with further bans planned. Trump urged NATO’s U.S. ambassador to press Europe harder and argued that squeezing oil prices could help end the war. [MDN: Seems like getting the imports to zero (from 3%) wouldn’t help all that much, but perhaps it’s more symbolic than anything?]

Exxon and Shell sue the Netherlands for closing Europe’s biggest gas field
Drilled/Rishika Pardikar
For six decades, ExxonMobil and Shell extracted gas from the Groningen field in the Netherlands, earning billions alongside the Dutch government while residents endured some 1,600 earthquakes that damaged homes and caused severe stress. After the field’s 2024 closure and the launch of compensation programs, both companies filed Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) claims against the Dutch government, seeking damages for lost profits and repair costs. Critics argue these secretive arbitration proceedings privilege corporations over citizens, undermining accountability and climate policy. A 2023 parliamentary inquiry revealed residents’ interests were long ignored, while ongoing legal battles now threaten Groningen’s recovery and public trust. [MDN: Although the article is anti-fossil fuel (and anti-Exxon & Shell), it delivers the news that these two companies are suing the Netherlands for shutting down (like some tinpot dictator) their access to legally-purchased drilling rights. We agree with one thing: Make it all open to the public. Everyone should hear how the government has seized the legal rights of these companies (very dictatorial).]