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Climate Change.  Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicts that the green bond market will slow for a second consecutive year in 2016 as companies become increasingly scrutinized about what counts as a “climate friendly” security.  Analysts note that companies are cautious about green-labeled bonds due to the potential for controversy among environmental advocates who have differing opinions about “green principles”.  Bloomberg

Oil Outlook.  A leading oil industry analyst told Reuters that major OPEC producers have begun private discussions about a new oil price equilibrium of $50 a barrel.  The information signals that the market’s deep price rout has officially reached a “bottom”, and suggests that OPEC’s members may resume efforts to manage the market and anchor expectations around a new price point.  Reuters

Energy Policy.  Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders each took a strong stance against hydraulic fracturing during a televised debate between the candidates last night.  Clinton advocated for stricter regulations against fracking and Sanders claimed outright that he does not support it; both candidates’ views mark a divergence from President Obama’s stance on this issue, as he has taken only modest steps to further regulate the industry at the Federal level since taking office.  FT

Climate Change.  The New York Times reports that a recent gas leak in California threatens to tarnish Governor Jerry Brown’s reputation on climate change issues.   The leak, which occurred at an underground storage site last October, released 107,000 tons of methane and ethane gases and marks the largest leak in American history; critics have complained that the governor was far too slow to address the problem, and also that his regulators ought to have done more to prevent it.  NY Times

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Energy Policy.  Today the Supreme Court denied 20 states’ request to block an EPA regulation aiming to cut mercury pollution from power plants until the agency issues its final considerations.  The Supreme Court decided last summer that the EPA must reconsider the mercury rule because it failed to take industry costs into account before deciding to enact the regulation; the rules went into effect in early 2015, and the agency will issue the final supplemental considerations of cost this April.  WSJ

Natural Gas Outlook.  Underground storage of natural gas stands at near-record levels just one month from the end of winter, causing many industry analysts and traders to fear that prices will fall into “uncharted territory” as temperatures rise and demand weakens.  Analysts and traders have also grown concerned that there will not be enough storage space to hold new supplies of natural gas through the summer months. WSJ

Solar.  Nevada recently abandoned a policy called “net metering” which requires utilities to purchase excess power generated by customers who use rooftop solar panels, countering California regulators’ decision to preserve the policy just last month.  The opposing decisions shed light on an escalating national debate over the extent to which the solar industry should benefit from incentives and public support; the industry claims that it cannot exist without such policy supports, but opponents argue that such incentives are unfair and no longer needed for an industry that has witnessed such significant efficiency gains.  Reuters

Energy Policy.  The New York Times reports that there is a growing divide in the Southeastern US over whether or not oil companies should be allowed to explore offshore federal waters for oil drilling.  Populations along the coastline are calling for President Obama to block all oil exploration off Southeastern shores, but state lawmakers and oil company representatives urge the administration to approve exploration, arguing that the plan will create over 100,000 jobs and bring in royalty revenues to improve roads, schools, and public salaries.  NY Times

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Climate Change.  Bill Gates and Canadian oil company Carbon Engineering Ltd. Have joined together on a project to develop “carbon negative” technologies that can capture carbon dioxide from the air. The method — also known as “direct-air capture” — has been criticized and deemed impractical by many critics; if successful however, such a technology holds promise for vehicles that could one day operate on fuel reconstituted from tailpipe emissions.  WSJ

Oil Outlook.  President Vladimir Putin of Russia announced that the nation’s domestic oil producers have agreed to freeze oil output moving forward in 2016, keeping levels in line with production figures from January.  The statement marks the first time that Putin has publicized his views on steadying Russia’s output, though uncertainty remains as to whether other large oil-producing nations will cooperate as well.  Reuters

Energy Policy.  Eduardo Porter argues that the success of the carbon tax in British Columbia illustrates that such policies are feasible among anti-tax, pro-business conservatives.  Porter writes that British Columbia was able to reduce its emissions while maintaining relatively strong economic growth — though he notes that the tax was accompanied by a number of other tax breaks that stimulated the economy and made the tax more palatable to voters and businesses.  NY Times

Energy Outlook.  Aaron Back of the Wall Street Journal writes that investors should not be concerned about the stability of big banks that have extended considerable credit to oil-related firms, as most credit-line agreements give banks the authority to revoke additional credit if a client is in distress.  Back argues that even if the energy bust today proves to be as severe as the bust of the 1980’s and all outstanding credit lines are fully tapped — an unlikely scenario — banks would still be able to manage potential losses.  WSJ

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Oil.  Railcars have emerged as a new oil storage solution as U.S. inventories reach historic highs and shipping by train becomes less profitable in the ultralow price environment.  Industry analysts estimate that as much as one-third of the North American railcar fleet is currently being used for storage, although recent rail safety regulations, liability concerns, and space constraints will limit the use of additional railcars for extra storage capacity moving forward.  WSJ

Oil & Gas.  Nick Butler of the Financial Times writes that the global development of shale resources — also known as the “shale revolution” — is far from being over despite the drastic downturn in global crude prices.  Over the long term, industry forecasters such as BP predict that US shale gas output will nearly double from today’s levels; if true, such predictions imply that downward pressures on prices will continue for a long time and that the world’s energy map and energy trade patterns will shift away from the longstanding OPEC producers.  FT

Climate Change.  Paul Krugman of the NY Times argues that the 2016 presidential election holds great consequence for the “fate of the planet” given the ideological divide on environmental policies among the leading contenders for the nomination. Krugman explains that the stakes are high because the willingness of the next president to continue pursuing “moderately pro-environment policies” will determine the extent to which the world follows suit.  NY Times

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Energy Policy.  The Washington Post reports that many of the nation’s leading states for wind energy generation are also suing the EPA under the Clean Power Plan, despite being relatively well positioned to meet the EPA’s targets.  Analysts note that there are likely several factors at play behind the incongruity, such as the fact that wind is a relatively new market player in these states, and that states’ attorneys general are typically separate and distinct from the state bodies that would be charged with implementing the plan.  WP

Oil.  The New York Times reports that the “smallest of the small” oil operators are in severe stress as the falling price of crude continues to undercut companies’ break-even price requirements. These small firms typically strip out the last barrels of crude from aging wells and each produce at most 15 barrels of oil per day, collectively accounting for more than 10 percent of national production; the possible shut-off of these wells could lead to a reduction of 400,000 barrels a day of production or more.  NY Times

Oil Outlook.  Several Midwest refiners have moved to scale back production of gasoline in recent months as they work to draw down inventory buildups and wait-out low refining profit margins.    Industry analysts are questioning whether demand will be as strong as needed to rebalance the countries’ glut of gasoline, particularly amid broader concerns about sluggish economic growth.  WSJ