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Full-Text Articles in Law
Requirements For A Renewables Revolution, Felix Mormann
Requirements For A Renewables Revolution, Felix Mormann
Felix Mormann
This Article identifies and analyzes the obstacles presently barring the rise of renewables, evaluates the role of the current policy favorite emission pricing, and offers design recommendations for a comprehensive U.S. renewables policy.
Successful climate change mitigation requires a timely shift to renewable sources of energy, such as sunlight, wind or tides, to decarbonize today’s high-carbon electricity sector. But market pull alone is not strong enough. This Article discusses the most widely cited economic barriers and identifies and evaluates additional obstacles related to the electricity sector’s regulatory framework.
Emission pricing is largely considered the most efficient policy to drive the …
Smarter Finance For Cleaner Energy: Open Up Master Limited Partnerships (Mlps) And Real Estate Investment Trusts (Reits) To Renewable Energy Investment, Felix Mormann, Dan Reicher
Smarter Finance For Cleaner Energy: Open Up Master Limited Partnerships (Mlps) And Real Estate Investment Trusts (Reits) To Renewable Energy Investment, Felix Mormann, Dan Reicher
Felix Mormann
This policy proposal makes the case for opening Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) — both well-established investment structures — to renewable energy investment. MLPs and, more recently, REITs have a proven track record for promoting oil, gas, and other traditional energy sources. When extended to renewable energy projects these tools will help promote growth, move renewables closer to subsidy independence, and vastly broaden the base of investors in America’s energy economy.
Mobilizing Public Markets To Finance Renewable Energy Projects: Insights From Expert Stakeholders, Paul Schwabe, Michael Mendelsohn, Felix Mormann, Douglas J. Arent
Mobilizing Public Markets To Finance Renewable Energy Projects: Insights From Expert Stakeholders, Paul Schwabe, Michael Mendelsohn, Felix Mormann, Douglas J. Arent
Felix Mormann
Financing renewable energy projects in the United States can be a complex, time consuming, and expensive process. Currently, most equity investment in new renewable power production facilities is supported by tax credits and accelerated depreciation benefits, and is constrained by the pool of potential investors that can fully use these tax benefits and are willing to engage in complex financial structures. For debt financing, non-government lending to renewables has largely been provided by foreign banks that may be under future lending constraints due to economic and regulatory conditions.
To discuss these and other renewable energy financing challenges and to identify …
Beyond Tax Credits: Smarter Tax Policy For A Cleaner, More Democratic Energy Future, Felix Mormann
Beyond Tax Credits: Smarter Tax Policy For A Cleaner, More Democratic Energy Future, Felix Mormann
Felix Mormann
Solar, wind, and other renewable energy technologies have the potential to mitigate climate change, secure America’s energy independence, and create millions of green jobs. In the absence of a price on carbon emissions, however, these long-term benefits will not be realized without near-term policy support for renewables. This Article assesses the efficiency of federal tax incentives for renewables and proposes policy reform to more cost-effectively promote renewable energy through capital markets and crowdfunding.
Federal support for renewable energy projects today comes primarily in the form of tax incentives such as accelerated depreciation and, critically, tax credits. Empirical evidence reveals that …
Enhancing The Investor Appeal Of Renewable Energy, Felix Mormann
Enhancing The Investor Appeal Of Renewable Energy, Felix Mormann
Felix Mormann
This article introduces an investor-oriented framework for the evaluation of renewable energy policy, applies these newly developed criteria to a qualitative comparison of the primary policy instruments, and offers recommendations to enhance the investor appeal of renewable energy in the United States.
The multi-trillion dollar task of scaling renewable energy technologies to mitigate climate change, ensure energy security, and create green jobs is one of the most daunting challenges of the twenty-first century. It is, in fact, too great a challenge for either the public or private sector to shoulder alone. Rather, public policy must catalyze private investment in renewable …
Deployment Of Geoengineering By The Private And Public Sector: Can The Risks Of Geoengineering Ever Be Effectively Regulated?, Daniela E. Lai
Deployment Of Geoengineering By The Private And Public Sector: Can The Risks Of Geoengineering Ever Be Effectively Regulated?, Daniela E. Lai
Daniela E Lai
Geoengineering has been described as any large-scale environmental manipulation designed with the purpose of mitigating the effects of climate change without decreasing greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). Currently there are no specific rules regulating geoengineering activities particularly if geoengineering is deployed in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This article argues that, in order to mitigate the risks of geoengineering, there needs to be effective regulation of its deployment both in international and domestic law. The risks of geoengineering can only be effectively regulated if there is international cooperation between all levels of governments and private individuals involved in the research and development …
Misguided Energy: Why Recent Legislative, Regulatory, And Market Initiatives Are Insufficient To Improve The U.S. Energy Infrastructure, Joshua P. Fershee
Misguided Energy: Why Recent Legislative, Regulatory, And Market Initiatives Are Insufficient To Improve The U.S. Energy Infrastructure, Joshua P. Fershee
Joshua P Fershee
This Article argues that recent legislative and regulatory attempts to address inadequate energy infrastructure in the United States are too limited in scope and rely too heavily on market-based initiatives to stimulate the urgent improvements that are necessary. The Article analyzes the likely effects of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, challenging the assumption that the provisions intended to remove potential impediments to investment--including those repealing the Public Utilities Holding Company Act and modifying the merger review authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”)--are likely to result in significant new investment in energy infrastructure. In addition to identifying remaining …