With help from Kelsey Tamborrino

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Quick Fix

— French energy trading firm Engie quietly signed a deal to buy U.S. LNG, after a deal last year fell apart over environmental concerns.

— New legislation on wildlife protections and pipeline security will go before a pair of committees this week.

— The Biden administration is expected to unveil its long-awaited biofuel blending standards this week.

HAPPY MONDAY! I’m your host, Matthew Choi. Congrats to AnnDyl’s Rick Counihan for knowing Finnish and Swedish are the official languages of Finland. For today: What was the last airline to operate scheduled commercial service on a DC-10? Send your tips and trivia answers to [email protected]. Find me on Twitter @matthewchoi2018.

Check out the POLITICO Energy podcast — all the energy and environmental politics and policy news you need to start your day, in just five minutes. Listen and subscribe for free at politico.com/energy-podcast. On today's episode: Defining eco-terrorism.

Driving the Day

HUSH HUSH FRENCH BUYS: French energy commodities trading firm Engie sought to keep a deal to buy liquefied natural gas deal from U.S. producer Cheniere under wraps a year after the firm walked away from a separate deal last year because of climate change concerns, Pro’s Ben Lefebvre reports. Officials with the French government who sit on the firm’s board had protested over the high emissions linked to the previous deal, but the volumes under the new deal with Cheniere deal signed in June were small enough to avoid the approval of that board this time around.

“No publicity should be made around the transaction to keep it under the radar,” read a document the Engie officials submitted to the company’s executive committee that Ben reviewed. But the document also noted the companies should not assume the deal would remain a secret, given the number of stakeholders involved.

Environmental group Friends of the Earth got its hands on the documents and lambasted the covert deal. Lorette Philippot, a campaigner for the group, called it a “serious breach of [the firm’s] duty of vigilance and a disgrace for this energy company which is making so much effort to green its image.”

Europe has been suffering from a shortage of natural gas and soaring energy prices going into winter. And progressive Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, are pushing for the U.S. to block natural gas exports as the U.S. undergoes its own energy price spikes. Read more from Ben.

On the Hill

PIPELINES, WILDLIFE AND PFAS IN COMMITTEE THIS WEEK: Several committees will be taking a look at energy and environment-related legislation this week. A House Energy subpanel chaired by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) will meet Tuesday to discuss Rush’s recent bill, the Energy Product Reliability Act (H.R. 6084 (117)), which would create a new standards-writing body for pipeline reliability. The bill comes in response to last winter’s Texas energy crisis and the Colonial Pipeline cyber attack. Read the bill text here.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will meet on Wednesday to dig into the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (S. 2372 (117)), which provides $1.3 billion in each year for wildlife conservation and education. The bill has wide bipartisan support in the Senate.

PFAS "forever chemicals" will get some attention in both chambers this week, with two House Science Committee subpanels meeting on Tuesday to hear from academics and stakeholders on the chemicals linked to various health issues. And the Senate Homeland Security Committee will meet on Thursday to hear from EPA and Defense Department officials as well as advocates on federal PFAS efforts.

The House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis also has a hearing Thursday on ways to use clean energy to lower costs for everyday Americans.

LOOKING AT METHANE THROUGH THE NEW YEAR: The House Science Committee wants to see details on how oil and gas companies operating in the Permian Basin detect and repair methane leaks — potentially hinting at new legislation next year on the issue, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports. Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) wrote letters to 10 oil and gas producers asking for the information by Jan. 21, saying the committee “is investigating whether existing [leak detection and repair] programs possess the capabilities to achieve wide-ranging, quantifiable emission reductions from oil and gas sector methane leaks, and whether additional policies and research may be required to support a stronger Federal role in monitoring, quantifying, and evaluating methane leak emissions.”

The oil and gas industry has already rebuffed the methane fee under consideration for Democrats’ reconciliation package, but have been more receptive to direct methane regulation by EPA. Read more from Alex.

Around the Agencies

BIOFUELS, AT LAST?: The Biden administration is expected to finally issue its proposals for biofuel blending volumes, setting up a likely clash between corn producers and oil refiners. Reuters reported on Friday that as part of the proposal, the administration is planning to expand the kinds of renewable fuel production processes that can receive credits under the Renewable Fuel Standard. The move could help increase production of advanced biofuels and may echo an Obama-era proposal from 2016 that would allow biofuel producers to partially process renewable feedstocks at one facility and then turn them into renewable fuels at another site under existing approved production pathways.

DOE SEEKS CARBON MANAGEMENT INPUT: The Energy Department is taking the first steps to implement initiatives of the recently enacted bipartisan infrastructure law, which includes more than $10 billion for DOE for carbon capture, direct air capture and industrial emission reduction. The Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management will publish a request for information today to gather insight from the public on carbon management technologies that are ready to be demonstrated.

The document seeks input on potential carbon management demonstration and deployment projects, as well as point source carbon capture technologies and integrated projects; validation of carbon storage resources for commercial development; carbon dioxide pipeline infrastructure; direct air capture; opportunities for the recovery of critical minerals and to reclaim abandoned mine lands for clean energy. It also seeks information on the potential benefits to underserved communities related to the demonstration projects. Responses are due by Jan. 24, 2022.

SPIRE SEES ANOTHER DAY: As expected, FERC is letting the controversial Spire STL pipeline continue to operate, citing concerns that shutting down the natural gas pipeline could threaten energy supplies in the St. Louis area going into winter, Pro’s Catherine Morehouse reports. The pipeline’s emergency certificate was originally set to expire Dec. 13 after a federal court ordered FERC to vacate its authorization for the line.

Just before FERC extended the emergency authorization, Spire appealed the federal court’s ruling with the Supreme Court on Friday. The high court has already rejected the company’s request for an emergency stay to ensure it can keep operating the STL pipeline through the winter.

ICYMI: Willie Phillips was officially sworn in as a FERC commissioner, giving the Democrats a 3-2 majority at the energy regulator, Catherine reports.

Beyond the Beltway

LOOKING AT AFGHANISTAN: Afghanistan’s rich lithium and copper deposits are attracting renewed attention from China, The Financial Times reports. Chinese officials have been in contact with the Taliban since the summer, and a cohort from China’s mining industry visited Afghanistan recently to discuss access to copper deposits in Mes Aynak, southeast of Kabul, according to FT. Afghanistan is believed to have some of the richest deposits of lithium and other crucial resources on Earth, and demand for the resources is only expected to grow with higher reliance on batteries for electricity storage and electric vehicles.

Republicans have used foreign-sourced resources as a cudgel against Democrats’ clean energy plans, particularly following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Read more from FT.

CALIFORNIA’S ROOFTOP BATTLE: California could be drastically altering its incentives for rooftop solar, and a whole smorgasbord of interest groups, from retail to greens to other clean energy providers, are all trying to get their word in. Backers of the incentives view them as important for keeping clean energy deployment affordable for customers, but critics say the subsidies are too high and allow solar owners aren't paying their fair share to maintain the electrical system, Pro’s Colby Bermel reports.

An administrative law judge could published a proposal for changing the state’s net metering program as soon as this week, leading to a vote by the California Public Utilities Commission in January.

Movers and Shakers

— Anchal Liddar is taking on the role of senior vice president of Global Industry Services at the American Petroleum Institute. Liddar was previously vice president of GIS’ Business Services Department. Liddar has also worked at Boeing focusing on supply chain, finance and program management.

The Grid

— “Congo Ousts Mining Leader in a Cloud of Corruption Claims,” via The New York Times.

— ”Groups join to support New Jersey offshore wind power,” via The Associated Press.

— “How to blow up a podcast,” via POLITICO.

— “Bob Dole, longtime Senate leader and 1996 GOP presidential nominee, dies at 98,” via POLITICO.

THAT’S ALL FOR ME!

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