** A California city will make an exception to its natural gas ban for world-famous chef José Andrés, after the landlords for the chef’s planned restaurant warned Andrés may pull out over the regulation. After the owners of the mall where Andrés is set to open the restaurant threatened to sue the city, Palo Alto administrators will allow Andrés’s Mediterranean restaurant Zaytinya to use natural gas lines, despite a new law this year that bans them in construction.
** Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) introduced legislation that will reimpose a ban on U.S. fossil fuel exports, citing environmental hazards and possible impacts on domestic prices.
** Lawmakers on Sunday sent the governor a $1.3 billion deal bolstering Minnesota’s extensive transportation network over the next two years — an agreement that Democrats called “historic,” while Republicans fumed over a last-minute move that would boost the state’s gas tax.
** A looming natural gas shortage in south-central Alaska threatens to drive up energy prices, spurring some residents to electrify their homes and install solar panels.
** The U.S. Department of Energy announced Monday nearly $42 million in funding for 22 projects to advance critical technologies for producing, storing, and deploying clean hydrogen. None were located in Oklahoma.
** Chevron Corp said on Monday it is increasing its U.S. oil and gas footprint by acquiring shale producer PDC Energy Inc in a stock-and-debt transaction worth $7.6 billion. For Chevron, the second-largest U.S. oil firm, the deal will increase its production, capital expenditures and cash flow in the United States amid global geopolitical tensions over energy supply following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.
World
** The Group of Seven rich nations put support for gas investments back into their communique on Saturday, calling it a “temporary” step as they try to de-couple from Russian energy, in a move climate activists say may hurt climate goals.
** Stepping up a feud with Washington over technology and security, China’s government on Sunday told users of computer equipment deemed sensitive to stop buying products from the biggest U.S. memory chipmaker, Micron Technology Inc.
** Several vandals from a climate activist group called Ultima Generazione dyed the water in Rome’s Trevi Fountain black Sunday before police hauled them away, multiple outlets reported. The climate protesters held banners that said “we won’t pay for fossil fuels” and shouted about the country “dying,” according to Reuters. The banners, which appear to have been professionally printed, were orange with white lettering.
** Spain is among a handful of countries leading the world in the push toward renewable energy. And last week it reached a new milestone. Energy generated from wind, sun, and water managed to meet the needs of mainland Spain from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, El Pais reported.
** Asian countries like India and China have been buying cheap Russian oil despite the sanctions. Now, they are also snapping up huge amounts of Russian coal and natural gas. That’s on the back of a record heatwave in the region, which is driving the demand for air-conditioning.
** Australia has won the backing of the United States for development of its critical minerals industry after the two countries reached an agreement to coordinate polices and investment to support the industry’s growth. Australia supplies around half of the world’s lithium as well as other minerals like rare earths used in batteries for electric cars and defence amid a global push to diversify supply chains away from dominant producer China.