Sustainable Energy & Infrastructure

Energy & Sustainability Washington Updates — May 2020

Read about how price gouging statutes and enforcement, by NY state and city, Mass., and the federal government, may affect businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read the latest round of M&A activity in the energy and sustainability space. Read here.

With the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic over the past month as a major public health and economic crisis, the primary focus on Capitol Hill has been on passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Stimulus (CARES) Act, which was signed into law by President Trump on March 27. However, there were other developments on energy and sustainability policy on Capitol Hill and in the Administration.

Our April newsletter brings you COVID-19–related news, Part IV in our series on TCI, M&A activity, Washington updates, news from Greentech Capital, and industry webinars.

Energy & Sustainability Webinar Highlights – April 2020

This alert describes two types of relief loans available to small businesses suffering due to COVID-19: Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and SBA EIDL loans.

In Part III of our series on the Transportation and Climate Initiative, we took a deep dive into one TCI jurisdiction, Massachusetts, to see how the plan might look once implemented. However, the broad implementation of this regional initiative is anything but certain. Despite the steps that some jurisdictions have taken in progressing towards legislation and executive action to implement the plan, many states are facing legitimate challenges that may prevent this regional program from actually going into effect. 

Demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has been growing as more and more models and are coming to market, some from new automakers. One barrier to widespread adoption of EVs is the amount of charging time that is required, especially when using home or other charging systems where users must charge their vehicles overnight to obtain a full charge. This is a technical issue that the industry is in the process of resolving, chiefly by improving upon today’s much-used “plug-in” charging systems.

This alert discusses what companies outsourcing critical business process functions to India should do in light of the Indian government’s order that telecom, IT, and other technology companies should, as far as possible, work from home.

This article reviews guidance issued Friday, March 13, 2020 by the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance to help public companies manage their upcoming annual meeting processes in light of COVID-19.

Our March 2020 newsletter covers the Massachusetts component of the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) and features Oberon Fuels, a company producing ultra-low carbon and carbon-negative fuels.

Read the latest energy policy updates coming out of the Capitol, including updates on the president’s 2020 fiscal year budget request, new energy legislation, and the recent State of the Union Address.

This month, we are thrilled to feature Oberon Fuels, a company dedicated to decarbonizing the transportation sector by producing a range of ultra-low-carbon and carbon-negative fuels that are practical, economical, and sustainable alternatives to today’s fossil fuels.

Don’t miss this month’s exciting events in the energy and sustainability space.

In early February, the United Kingdom announced a new goal in its efforts to confront climate change: a ban on the sale of all new gas and diesel cars by 2035. The ambitious announcement is set to speed up the country’s timeline for addressing and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by five years, modifying the previous goal of a 2040 ban.

Read about recent M&A activity in the energy and sustainability space.

In Parts I and II of our series delving into the details of the Transportation Climate Initiative, we provided an overview and described the structure of the TCI. In Part III, we will discuss how the plan might look in one TCI jurisdiction, Massachusetts, and how the Commonwealth will prioritize investment of the proceeds from the initiative.

Read about Spring Lane Capital and its inaugural $156.5 million fund to finance sustainability projects in the energy, food, water, and waste industries.

Learn about upcoming energy industry events, including the Northeast Region Emissions Reduction Summit in Boston co-hosted by Mintz, The Brattle Group, and NECEC.