Total takes Talos

Total acquires Talos Low Carbon Solutions for $148 million

• Talos Energy announced the sale of its subsidiary, Talos Low Carbon Solutions LLC (TLCS), to TotalEnergies E&P USA, Inc. for $125 million plus additional reimbursements and adjustments.

• The total transaction value is approximately $148 million, based on an effective date of January 1, 2024, with the deal set to close on March 18, 2024.

• Talos plans to use the sale proceeds to repay borrowings under its credit facility and for general corporate purposes.

• The sale includes Talos’s entire carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) business, including projects along the U.S. Gulf Coast: Bayou Bend CCS LLC, Harvest Bend CCS LLC, and Coastal Bend CCS LLC.

• Additional cash payments may be realized upon achieving certain milestones at the Harvest Bend or Coastal Bend projects, or upon a subsequent sale by TotalEnergies.

• Robin Fielder, Talos Executive Vice President, Low Carbon Strategy and Chief Sustainability Officer, will continue in her role for a transition period before leaving Talos.

After hunting for cash, Talos Low Carbon Solutions went with a sale. This fits with Talos preference for cash flow and upstream consolidation. Also highlights another international NOC making moves in gulf coast CCS.

Chevron and JX Nippon to explore CCS from Japan to Australia

• JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corporation (JX) and Chevron New Energies signed an MOU to evaluate the export of Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) from Japan to Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects in Australia and other Asia Pacific countries.

• The MOU aims to assess the feasibility of the CCS value chain, including CO₂ capture from industries in Japan, transportation by ship to Chevron’s greenhouse gas storage portfolio in Australia, and exploring transboundary policies and potential CO₂ storage sites in the region.

ESGEN SPAC and Sunergy closes merger becoming Zeo Energy

• ESGEN Acquisition Corp. completed its business combination with Sunergy Renewables, becoming Zeo Energy Corp. (Zeo).

• Zeo Energy Corp. began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbols “ZEO” for common stock and “ZEOWW” for warrants starting March 14.

• Sunergy’s senior management will lead Zeo Energy Corp., and the Board of Directors will include members from both Sunergy and ESGEN.

• The merger is expected to accelerate Zeo’s growth strategy in providing residential solar and energy efficiency solutions in Florida.

• The transaction is expected to result in gross proceeds of approximately $18 million for Zeo, which will be used to fund operations, growth strategies, and expenses related to the business combination.

• Here’s the episode of Sunya Stories with CFO of ESGEN SPAC, Nader Daylami

Google to support 430 MW of wind, solar and battery on NextEra’s Salt River Project in Arizona

• Google is working on sustainability initiatives in Arizona, including an agreement to bring wind and solar energy to the local electricity grid.

• The agreement with Salt River Project (SRP) will support over 430 megawatts of new-to-the-grid, carbon-free energy capacity, helping Google’s operations in Arizona reach at least 80% carbon-free energy by 2026.

• The agreement includes a mix of wind power, solar energy, and battery storage from facilities operated by NextEra Energy Resources on SRP’s power grid.

• Google aims to run its entire business on 24/7 carbon-free energy by 2030 and is actively working to add carbon-free energy capacity directly to Arizona’s grid.

• The Mesa data center will be operational in 2025, and Google plans to continue collaborating with SRP to decarbonize the grid, invest in local programs, and support overall economic development in the area.

Baker Hughes and bp collaborate on methane monitoring tech

• Baker Hughes collaborated with bp to implement flare.IQ technology for quantifying methane emissions from flaring operations, a new application in the upstream oil and gas sector.

• The collaboration resulted in one of the largest full-scale studies of flare combustion, testing various flares under challenging conditions and verifying the accuracy of flare.IQ technology.

• bp is now using real-time data from flare.IQ at 65 flares across seven regions to carry out early interventions and reduce emissions from flaring operations.

• flare.IQ, part of Baker Hughes’ Panametrics product line, uses advanced analytics to pull critical information from flare systems, enabling emissions reporting based on real-time measurement and compliance with OGMP 2.0 level 4 standards.

US appeals court temporarily pauses SEC climate disclosure rules

• The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted an administrative stay on SEC rules requiring public companies to disclose climate-related risks, following a lawsuit by Liberty Energy and Nomad Proppant Services.

• The stay is the first challenge against the SEC’s climate-disclosure rules, leading to a potential protracted legal battle as similar lawsuits unfold across the U.S.

• The court’s action prohibits the SEC from enforcing any part of its rule while considering arguments against it by the companies.

• The companies argued that the rule overreaches by requiring detailed disclosures about climate-related risks and greenhouse gas emissions, impacting the economy significantly.

• The SEC rules aim to standardize disclosures about carbon emissions, weather-related risks, and preparations for the energy transition, but face criticism and legal challenges for exceeding authority and complexity.

• The amended rules do not require reporting Scope 3 emissions.

• Compliance with the rule is not required before March 2026 at the earliest, but uncertainty around its fate could lead some companies to wait and see how litigation unfolds.

Quaise raises $21 million Series A1 for geothermal drilling tech

• Quaise Energy secured a $21 million Series A1 financing round led by Prelude Ventures and Safar Partners, with Mitsubishi Corporation and Standard Investments among new investors.

• Quaise uses novel millimeter wave drilling technology to harness deep geothermal energy at 3-20 km below the Earth’s surface, based on research from MIT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

• The funding will support geologic understanding at pilot plant locations and strengthen the supply chain for Quaise’s drilling technology through joint development and licensing agreements.

• Quaise aims to repurpose existing fossil-fired industrial assets for a smoother energy transition and believes deep geothermal power plants globally can collectively generate terawatts of clean power, rivaling fossil fuels but with zero carbon emissions.

• Hitachi Zosen Inova acquires stake in Italian biogas plant developer and supplier Schmack Biogas

• Viridi Energy developing renewable natural gas facility in Maine

• Japan’s industry ministry seeks local support to restart Tepco nuclear plant

• LNG developer Tellurian to explore sale among other options, CEO steps down

• Latest Sunya Stories podcast with Steve Trauber

• Sunya Stories podcast with Chesapeake’s Jim Grant

• Last Thursday’s edition – DOE’s $750mm hydrogen grant and $2bn lithium loan

DOE releases “Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Next-Generation Geothermal Power”

DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.