{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=36113700-D52C-471C-9906-2D8C5E3B5D86", "Heitkamp Highlights Path Forward for Coal, Innovative Technology During Basin Electric Annual Meeting", "2016-11-10", "2016", "2016-11", "Democrat", "House", "ND", "Heidi Heitkamp", "H001069", "www.heitkamp.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "BISMARCK, N.D. \u2013\u00a0U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today reinforced her plan to create a viable, affordable path forward for coal as she joined key energy leaders, experts, and advocates for Basin Electric Cooperative\u2019s annual meeting.\r\nSpeaking alongside Julio Friedmann, the former U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Fossil Energy, Heitkamp discussed the current landscape for clean coal development in North Dakota and the need to spur technology innovation to help secure a strong future for coal across the country. Long a champion of boosting the role of coal as part of nation\u2019s energy mix, Heitkamp has consistently worked with Friedmann in championing a strong path forward for coal through investments in technology, and has been leading the charge in the U.S. Senate toward sensible solutions that will incentivize new carbon technologies capable of turning carbon emissions into usable products.\r\n\u201cSecuring practical, cleaner energy solutions that create jobs and help boost the economy should be goals we can all support \u2013 and we\u2019re providing the road map right here in North Dakota,\u201d said Heitkamp. \u201cAcross the state, we\u2019re reshaping the landscape of coal energy \u2013 and we\u2019re doing it with cutting-edge technologies that reduce emissions and invigorate our local economies. Basin Electric has been a national leader on carbon capture and utilization and continually seeks opportunities to further the technology. In the U.S. Senate, I\u2019m working to bring all sides together to encourage similar federal investment. By taking a page from North Dakota, we can incentivize the continued use of coal in energy generation in a way that secures a place for coal as part of a diverse and cleaner energy strategy for the country for years to come.\u201dSince 2014, Heitkamp has been partnering with Friedmann to help advance a path forward for coal. After accepting her invitation to speak at a national symposium on coal energy she led in March 2014, Friedmann and Heitkamp continued discussions on how to best secure a place for coal as part of the nation\u2019s energy mix. Their years-long work together helped promote a greater conversation within the Administration about how boost carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technologies to make coal a practical, more affordable resource going forward.\r\nA key advocate of energy innovation in North Dakota, Heitkamp is working to provide a strong path forward for coal, which North Dakotans rely on for almost 80 percent of their electricity. Earlier this week, Heitkamp visited Great River Energy\u2019s (GRE) Spiritwood Station, the state\u2019s first high-efficiency coal-fired power plant in more than 30 years which she played a key role in getting online. Within just two years of becoming fully operational, Spiritwood has helped contribute to significant emissions reductions and has created nearly 50 jobs in North Dakota.\r\nAfter working together with U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) to boost recognition that the U.S. and world need to maintain a diverse energy mix that includes traditional energy sources while still reducing national and global carbon emissions, Heitkamp and Whitehouse introduced their bill in July to forge a middle ground on energy issues. Already, their bill \u2013\u00a0which would incentivize the development and use of carbon capture, utilization and storage technologies \u2013 has gained vast bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate.\r\nBackground: \r\nHeitkamp\u2019s work to find a realistic path forward for coal builds on her more than a decade of experience on the board of directors of Dakota Gasification, the one-of-a-kind synfuels plant in Beulah, N.D. During her service as North Dakota\u2019s Tax Commissioner, on the North Dakota Industrial Commission, and as the state\u2019s Attorney General, Heitkamp was able to work on viable solutions to make sure coal remains a strong part of the North Dakota\u2019s energy mix.\r\nSince joining the Senate, Heitkamp has been committed to finding a realistic avenue for clean coal by: \r\n \r\nSecuring a commitment in September 2015 from Janet McCabe, assistant administrator of the EPA, for her agency to send technical staff to North Dakota to work with utilities on the challenges in meeting EPA\u2019s emissions reduction targets.\u00a0During a meeting with the North Dakota congressional delegation the next day, McCabe again agreed to Heitkamp\u2019s request that EPA technical staff visit North Dakota.\u00a0\r\nIntroducing major legislation in 2013 and again in 2015 to put coal on a viable path forward.\u00a0Heitkamp\u2019s\u00a0bill\u00a0\u2013 which she introduced in 2013 and again this Congress \u2013 would incentivize companies to invest in technologies that reduce the carbon footprint of coal-fired power. This is done through federal funding programs, federal support for private investment, and recommendations to Congress that provide insight on how best to support future CCS projects in the U.S. Then in May 2015, Heitkamp and Senator Joe Manchin from West Virginia introduced a\u00a0series of bills\u00a0to make sure coal remains a key part of America\u2019s energy mix, which incorporated Heitkamp\u2019s initial legislation.\r\nBringing EPA Administrator to North Dakota to talk about coal.\u00a0Heitkamp has made it clear to the Administration and EPA that she disagrees with the agency\u2019s policies regarding coal-fired power. After pressing EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, Heitkamp\u00a0brought McCarthy\u00a0to North Dakota in February of 2014 so she could hear about the impacts of EPA regulations directly from North Dakotans.\u00a0Heitkamp has also\u00a0brought U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz\u00a0to North Dakota in August 2014 to push the U.S. Department of Energy for more investment in clean coal technology.\r\n \r\n \r\nWorking closely with U.S. Energy Department (DOE) officials on finding a path forward for coal.\u00a0Heitkamp has met with numerous top officials from DOE about the need to find a path forward for coal, including Friedmann and\u00a0Energy Secretary Moniz. They both participated in clean coal symposiums at Heitkamp\u2019s request, and she will continue to press both of them on the issue.\r\nConvening industry, lawmakers, and academics to discuss a viable path forward for coal.\u00a0Heitkamp co-hosted a Coal Technology Symposium\u00a0on Capitol Hill in 2014 that brought together industry, lawmakers, experts and academics \u2013 including the Energy and Environmental Research Center from Grand Forks \u2013 to discuss the importance of finding a viable path forward for coal. To a crowded room, Heitkamp laid out why it is so important for our nation to put in place realistic energy policies and discussed the vital role coal plays in providing affordable energy in North Dakota and around the country.\r\n \r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=36113700-D52C-471C-9906-2D8C5E3B5D86"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.333142165094614, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}