Omnibus

The Senate on Thursday narrowly approved as part of the omnibus energy bill a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) that mandates the increased use of renewable energy in the production of electricity, a move that could eventually reduce the amount of natural gas consumed by the generation sector and cause gas prices to taper off somewhat.

As the Senate began its second day of debate on the omnibus energy bill, President Bush on Wednesday called on Capitol Hill lawmakers to stop sparring over the controversial issues like methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and get a bill to his desk by the end of summer.

The Senate is expected to begin floor consideration of the omnibus energy bill early Tuesday, aides to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee said.

“Vague, open-ended, unclear” provisions in the Senate and House omnibus energy bills that deal with the states’ role in permitting liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals could wind up stalling or killing, rather than encouraging, the construction of future LNG facilities in the United States, an energy analyst with Stanford Washington Research Group said last Thursday.

As the Senate gets ready to begin debate on an omnibus energy bill on Tuesday, a top Republican staff member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee conceded that the controversial methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) provisions could threaten the energy measure this year.

“Vague, open-ended, unclear” provisions in the Senate and House omnibus energy bills that deal with the states’ role in permitting liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals could wind up stalling or killing, rather than encouraging, the construction of future LNG facilities in the United States, an energy analyst with Stanford Washington Research Group said Thursday.

The Senate is expected to begin consideration of the omnibus energy bill early next week, aides to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee said.

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee last Thursday voted out by a wide margin an omnibus energy bill, but it won the overwhelming support only by putting off some of the more controversial amendments involving the moratorium on drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), siting authority over liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals anda renewables’ mandate for electricity production until the floor debate on the measure, which is likely to occur in June.

The oil and gas title of the Senate omnibus energy bill would spur development of natural gas storage, accelerate interstate pipeline projects, give sole siting authority over liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities to FERC and promote the sharing of Outer Continental Shelf (OCS ) revenues with coastal states.