| Welcome to our guide to the energy and commodities markets powering the global economy. Today, senior reporter Jennifer Dlouhy examines the prospects for carbon capture and storage technology in America. US President-Elect Donald Trump is promising plenty of 180-degree pivots when it comes to energy. Yet one priority of the current administration is likely to stick. Carbon capture and storage has bipartisan support, with advocates touting it as an important tool for paring pollution. Under outgoing President Joe Biden, the Environmental Protection Agency has put CCS at the center of efforts to curtail power-plant emissions. But greenlighting the infrastructure necessary to transport all that trapped carbon dioxide away from power stations and refineries — and then lock it underground — has proved anything but easy. The EPA has a backlog of about 150 applications for wells to store captured CO2, including some filed three years ago. The agency has only authorized two since a key CCS tax credit was expanded under Biden’s signature climate law a couple of years ago.  Equipment installed as part of the Petra Nova carbon capture project at an NRG Energy Inc. generating station in Thompsons, Texas. Photographer: Bloomberg Enter Trump. During his first term, the Republican’s EPA gave two states the lead role vetting CO2 storage wells within their borders (a feat only one additional state has managed under Biden), helping accelerate permitting and construction. What’s more, Trump’s new pick to lead the EPA, former Republican Representative Lee Zeldin of New York, has been vocal in his support for carbon capture. While in Congress, Zeldin cosponsored legislation aimed at luring more financing to the technology. He also hailed the importance of a “robust partnership” between the government and industry to advance CCS deployment. Environmentalists “talk a good game about how important carbon capture is,” said Tom Pyle, president of free-market advocacy group the American Energy Alliance. But that’s stacked up against “how little the administration did to advance the ball on this.” Now, the stage is set for swifter permitting. In Pyle’s view, it could be “ironic to see how quickly the Trump administration can clear away the bureaucracy on this.” --Jennifer Dlouhy, Bloomberg News Europe’s stores of natural gas fell below the five-year average for the first time since the peak of the energy crisis, declining rapidly after a slump in wind-power generation. The lower they get, the bigger the challenge to replenish them in 2025. That risk is already showing up in prices, with the spread between contracts for next summer and winter widening, making it unprofitable to buy fuel for inventories. Trafigura Group was accused by Swiss prosecutors of channeling bribes to an Angolan official via a network of former employees, including one nicknamed “Mr. Non-Compliant” by the company’s late founder. A key oil market gauge is flashing signs of oversupply in the US, indicating a looming global glut. The so-called prompt spread traded in negative territory for the first time since February. The US has imposed a 29% tariff on Nippon Steel Corp. for selling hot-rolled steel in America below normal value. The move comes just as the Japanese producer works to gain support for a $14.1 billion takeover of United States Steel Corp. Thames Water extended the deadline in its search for billions of pounds in new equity as it demands more from potential investors on how they plan to help turn around the beleaguered UK utility. Elliott Investment Management reported a major stake in Tokyo Gas Co., the latest example of an activist investor trying to unlock hidden value in Japanese firms. The fund now holds about 5% of the utility. -
America’s sharply divided Congress needs to make sure critical mineral resources are protected. Foreign Policy magazine identifies five bipartisan actions to bolster key US supply chains. -
Countries are cheating their way to net zero with an overdependence on forests, according to the New Scientist, which says relying on such “passive” carbon sinks may doom the world to continued warming. -
Everyone at COP29 is talking about climate finance, but what do they mean? Wood Mackenzie’s Energy Gang podcast explores how a deal at the talks in Azerbaijan could make a real difference to the energy transition. | 
