UPDATE 1-Clean Energy, Total sign JV for renewable natural gas production

Thu, March 4, 2021, 4:30 AM·

March 4 (Reuters) - U.S. alternative fuels supplier Clean Energy Fuels Corp and its largest shareholder, European oil and gas producer Total SE, announced terms of a new joint venture on Thursday focused on renewable natural gas (RNG) production.

Clean Energy's shares rose 7.5% to $13.15 in pre-market trading.

The joint venture, owned equally by both firms, will have an initial firm commitment of $100 million to build renewable gas production facilities. That amount could be increased to $400 million later as "development opportunities progress", Clean Energy said in a statement.

Clean Energy said Total will also provide credit support to the joint venture for building so-called 'downstream' infrastructure, which includes refineries and fuel stations.

Carbon-negative RNG is produced when carbon emissions are captured from dairies and turned into a transportation fuel, reducing the harmful effects of long-term climate change.

Major energy firms have set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or are exploring investments in renewable energy and green technology amid rising pressure from investors and activists.

Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne said in January his company will keep up its renewable energy investments this year, as it tries to reduce its dependence on oil and shift towards electricity and renewable energy.

U.S. oil major Exxon and Chevron are also investing in carbon-removal technology, as traditional global oil and gas firms attempt to invest more in green energy and tackle climate change.

(Reporting by Arundhati Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

The juggling act for oil majors: pleasing investors, environmentalists, and customers, while innovating too

Kyle Bakx CBC

© Kyle Bakx/CBC A pumpjack pulls oil out of the ground in central Alberta. Oil prices across North America have recovered to pre-pandemic levels.

As vaccination rates rise everyday around the world and economic lockdown measures are gradually eased, leaders in the oil and gas industry aren't shy about their optimism for the rest of the year.

They are expecting a bounce back after a brutal 2020. Oil prices hit record lows last year, but are now back above where they were before the pandemic struck.

The industry can feel the recovery underway and are excited see demand pick up as economic activity rebounds. Some expect the world's demand for oil to surpass pre-COVID levels by the end of 2021.

Yet, that hopefulness is clouded by competing priorities for the sector as it picks itself off the ground and tries to position itself for a world increasingly focused on mitigating the impacts of climate change.

It's an ongoing theme at the CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference, one of the world's largest energy conferences, as industry leaders discuss the juggling act of appeasing investors, environmentalists, and customers, while trying to come up with the critical technologies they believe the world will need to have abundant energy without the heavy emissions.

The competing priorities are evident in what Calgary-based oilsands producer Suncor calls its purpose: "To provide trusted energy that enhances people's lives while caring for each other and the earth."

That's easier said than done.

Chief executive Mark Little said a company can't slash its shareholder returns to invest in cutting emissions, since the industry needs the support of investors. Suncor is allocating about 10 per cent of its capital spending on reducing its emissions and providing cleaner energy.

Little said he is trying to figure out the timing of the energy transition and when the world will be ready to rely on low-carbon sources of energy.

"We can actually create quite a challenge to the globe in not providing enough energy, driving prices up and countering this economic drive," he said, during the CERAWeek event.

"But … we don't want to be the other way and have all these excess emissions and not do the transition."

Pre-COVID, many energy companies were spending a lot of money to grow production, but now they're pulling back on that strategy.

Little doesn't seem to have the answer on the perfect strategy. That's why the Suncor CEO said he, along with many others, will be watching how the industry balances the business amidst so many often competing forces on the sector.

The forecasts for this year are remarkably better compared to 2020, when companies like BP cut 10,000 jobs and the industry accumulated debt.

"Our economists at IHS Markit keep raising their forecast for economic activity in 2021, and certainly that will be reflected in demand in the second half of the year," said Dan Yergin, IHS Markit vice chairman, during the event.

Some even predict significant growth for the sector.

"We don't think peak oil is around the corner — we see oil demand growing for the next 10 years," said John Hess, the chief executive of Hess Corp., a New York-based oil company.

"We're not investing enough to grow oil and gas in the future."

The financial outlook will be welcomed by investors, who have put increased pressure on the oilpatch in recent years to produce profits and return that money to shareholders. Previously, investors were content with companies growing operations, but the focus is now on producing cash.

"That's what you've got to deliver as a business, first and foremost," said Ryan Lance, chief executive of ConocoPhillips.

"Then you have to do it sustainably."

Lance describes how investors are demanding more of the industry. Besides profits, companies need to have a credible plan to deal with greenhouse gas emissions, or else "you don't deserve investors interested in your business."© Kyle Bakx/CBC Suncor is committing about 10% of its capital spending toward clean fuels and reducing emissions.

Of course, it's not just investors concerned about carbon emissions. There's mounting pressure from governments, regulators and environmentalists who want to address climate change.

ExxonMobil, for instance, has changed its position to support a carbon tax in the U.S. and also embraced carbon capture and storage as a way to reduce emissions.

This week, the company added two new board members amidst pressure from some of its largest investors to disclose more about its carbon emissions and to publicize a long-term energy transition plan.

Like many in the industry, chief executive Darren Woods said there is a "dual challenge" in providing more energy, with less emissions. At the same time, there's pressure to innovate. That includes finding ways to reduce the cost of carbon capture and storage, hydrogen production, biofuel production, and other low carbon technologies.

Exxon says it has spent about $10 billion US on emission reductions research and will invest a further $3 billion by 2025.

One area of focus is on reducing methane emissions from its operations.

Plenty of work is needed toward developing better technologies in surveillance and mitigation of fugitive methane, he said.

"I think the industry, with time, will close [those emission leaks] down and that will be much less of a concern, going forward."

Global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions were two per cent higher in December 2020 than in the same month a year earlier, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday, pointing to the economic recovery and a lack of clean energy policies.

"Our numbers show we are returning to carbon-intensive business-as-usual. This year is pivotal for international climate action — and it began with high hopes — but these latest numbers are a sharp reminder of the immense challenge we face in rapidly transforming the global energy system," said IEA executive director Fatih Birol, in a statement.

Recent electricity outages in Texas and California are being held up as examples of the value of dependable energy and how much the world still relies on fossil fuels.

Some environmentalists may want the world to rapidly reduce the production of oil and gas, but those in the industry warn the energy transition can't happen too quickly.

"We need to be sure that we've got reliable grid management and reliable power supply to that grid and natural gas should play a very, very important role," said Chevron chief executive Michael Wirth.

Society's reliance on oil and gas has been evident during the pandemic. Even with government lockdown measures, travel restrictions and an increased level of people working from home, the global demand for oil and gas only dropped about nine per cent in the last year, Wirth said.

"I think it actually, in a way, demonstrates how important our industry is to the world economy," he said.

Chevron learned first hand that the sector can't move too quickly. About 15 years ago, the company built a series of hydrogen fuelling stations in California, but found little success, even with the support of the state's government.

It serves as a cautionary tale about moving at the right pace during the energy transition.

"As an industry, we can't give the market what it doesn't want," said Wirth.

Exxon Mobil to Cut Jobs

in Singapore as Big Oil 

Retrenches

Andrew Janes and Sharon Cho

Tue, March 2, 2021, 

(Bloomberg) -- Exxon Mobil Corp. expects to cut about 300 jobs in the Asian oil-trading hub of Singapore by the end of 2021, part of a global retrenchment that was announced last year.

The planned lay-offs equate to about 7% of its 4,000-strong workforce in the city-state, the company said in a statement. It follow similar announcements in recent months from fellow oil majors Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Chevron Corp., which are also cutting positions in Singapore.

See also: Exxon to Cut 14,000 From Global Workforce Due to Oil Slump

Exxon said in October that it would slash its global workforce by 15%, or about 14,000 people, by the end of 2022. The oil industry was hit hard by the collapse in prices last year due to the coronavirus, while it also faces longer-term challenges as fossil fuels are gradually replaced by cleaner alternatives. Southeast Asian refiners, meanwhile, may also come under pressure from massive plants being opened in China.

Shell said in November that it would cut oil-processing capacity at the Pulau Bukom complex in Singapore by half, resulting in hundreds of job losses over the next three years. Chevron may cut 10% of its workforce in the city-state, the Business Times reported in November, citing an unidentified spokesman.

Big Oil is shedding thousands of jobs globally. BP Plc plans to slash 10,000 positions, Shell will cut as many as 9,000 roles, and Chevron has announced about 6,000 reductions.

The job losses in Singapore are due to a reorganization that was accelerated by the pandemic, and the changes will enhance long-term competitiveness, Exxon said in the statement. A spokesperson in Singapore confirmed the plan followed from last year’s announcement of global workforce reductions.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

Exxon is slashing workers and cutting costs, and employee morale has collapsed. 

Here's everything we know.

 Exxon CEO Darren Woods 

Mark Schiefelbein/Getty; Skye Gould/Business Insider

Exxon slashed spending and is shrinking its workforce after a punishing 2020.
Here's everything we know about the cuts, from layoffs to reduced employee benefits.

Exxon Mobil suffered a historic blow in 2020, as the pandemic dried up demand for its products at a time when the company's stock was already in decline. For the first time ever, Exxon reported four straight quarters of loss amounting to more than $22 billion for the full year.

Exxon, the nation's largest oil company, devoted much of its attention last year to slashing costs so it could regain its footing. The company reduced its capital budget by almost $12 billion and lowered its operating expenses by $8 billion, partly by cutting workers and employee benefits.

Exxon's market value fell steeply in 2020, though it's up about 35% from the start of the year. Here's everything we know so far.

 

Exxon was restructuring before the pandemic hit

The firm reorganized its downstream division in 2018 and the upstream division in 2019. That year, Exxon also established a new business unit - Global Projects - focused on project development.

When the price of oil crashed, Exxon said those changes helped, but further cuts would be needed.

"I wish I could say we were finished, but we are not," Woods said in an email to employees in October. "We still have some significant headwinds, more work to do and, unfortunately, further reductions are necessary."

Today, Exxon is organized into nine business divisions. It's not clear to what extent the company's core structure changed in response to the spending and workforce cuts, though Exxon formed a new business this year focused on low-emissions technologies after investors pressured the company to do more to address climate change.

We mapped out those divisions, in addition to seven other core areas of the company, in an exclusive org chart. It includes 136 of Exxon's top employees.

Read more: We mapped out the power structure at Exxon and identified 136 of the oil giant's top employees. Here's our exclusive org chart.
Exxon is trimming its global workforce by 15%, which includes steep cuts in the US and Europe

As Business Insider first reported, Exxon is slashing its global workforce by 15%, or 14,000 people, through 2022, relative to the company's headcount in 2019. The cuts include both contractors and employees. 

US: Up to 1,900 of the job cuts will be in the US, including at least 723 from the Houston area. Click here for a timeline of the reductions and insight into how Exxon will decide which workers to lay off, as revealed by leaked documents we obtained.

Europe: Another 1,600 jobs or so could be cut in Europe. We explain which roles are at risk here, and you can read the letter the firm's CEO, Darren Woods, sent employees following the cuts here. 

Canada: Exxon also said it would lay off about 300 workers in Canada, starting in December, according to a public press release and an internal memo we obtained. The cuts are involuntary and most of them will take place by February of 2021, per the memo. 

Singapore: The company said it will cut about 300 roles, or 7%, of its workforce in Singapore. (Previously, the government of Singapore was probing Exxon's labor practices related to cuts, as Insider reported.)

Australia: In addition, the company launched a voluntary redundancy program in Australia. It's not clear how many roles the program will impact.

Part of Exxon's approach to shrinking spending is sending jobs overseas to cheap centers of labor, we reported

.

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

The firm used its employee-ranking process to cut workers in the weeks after oil markets crashed

Last April, Exxon quietly made a change to the way it ranks employees, forcing managers to dub a larger chunk of employees as poor performers, putting them at risk of being cut.

Leaked audio from an internal meeting suggests not all employees placed in that category were, in fact, poor performers. That's why workers we spoke to called the change to the ranking system a layoff in disguise.

Exxon's performance-based cuts, initiated last summer, put as much as 10% of the company's workforce at risk of losing their jobs. You can find all the details of the ranking system and the April change here. 

Other changes to curb spending

Last year Exxon made a handful of other changes to cut costs. 

Over the summer the company suspended a handful of employee benefits including its matching program for retirement savings, as Insider first reported. 

The company slashed its capital spending budget for 2020 by almost $12 billion, down to $21.4 billion. This year Exxon plans to spend even less. 

Exxon has lowered its annual operating expenses by $8 billion, the company said. $3 billion of that was from "structural reductions," indicating that it's likely tied to workforce cuts. The firm plans to cut an additional $3 billion in structural expenses by 2023. 

Morale has taken a hit

Insiders say Exxon mishandled communication around job cuts, which has led to a drop in morale. That could slow the oil giant's recovery in 2021, as we reported. 

Executives were not forthright with employees about the toll the downturn would take on its workforce and, at times, came across as insensitive when they did communicate about job cuts, current and former employees told Insider.

Experts who study worker sentiment said that unhappy workers produce lower quality work and could make it harder for the company to recruit top talent in the future.


This story was originally published on November 6. We updated it on March 3 to include new information about job cuts in Singapore.

A massive murder of crows in a snowstorm can't be a good sign, can it?

Duration: 00:34

 This large murder of crows gathered in this Cornwall, Ontario parking lot, bringing with them a cold and ominous feeling.

U.S. will review impact of SK Innovation ruling on Biden green transportation goals


FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: The logo of SK Innovation is seen in front of its headquarters in Seoul

Wed, March 3, 2021

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Transportation Department will analyze the impact of an electric vehicle battery trade ruling against SK Innovation Co Ltd on President Joe Biden's green transportation goals, the nominee for the department's No. 2 position said.

Deputy Transportation secretary nominee Polly Trottenberg said at a hearing the department would analyze the International Trade Commission's Feb. 10 ruling siding with LG Chem Ltd that accused SK of misappropriating trade secrets related to EV battery technology.

U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock said the ruling "seriously threatens" the viability of SK Innovation's $2.6 billion Georgia plant with 2,600 planned workers, currently under construction.

The Georgia Democrat called the ruling "a severe punch in the gut" for Georgia workers and Biden's push for electric vehicles.

Biden has 60 days to reject or allow the ruling to stand.

SK Innovation told the White House on Feb. 23 Biden's disapproval "is necessary to support the administration's policy on tackling the climate crisis."

The ITC issued a limited 10-year exclusion order prohibiting U.S. imports of some lithium-ion batteries by SK Innovation, but permitted SK to import components for domestic production of lithium ion batteries and other parts for Ford Motor Co's EV F-150 program for four years, and for Volkswagen of America's MEB electric vehicle line for the North American region for two years.

Biden has vowed to replace the U.S. government’s fleet of roughly 650,000 vehicles with electric models as the new administration shifts its focus toward clean energy.

SK Innovation said in its presentation to the White House the ruling would force it to shut its Georgia plant, resulting in the loss of nearly 50% of the "country's non-captive EV production capacity."

SK plans to invest $5 billion by 2025 in the plant and have 6,000 workers. SK said the carve-out periods "do not provide a solution."

LG Chem did not immediately comment.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)

Asia Hege Funds Pare Bets on Green Energy After 2020 Surge

TSLA-7.14%

Bei Hu and David Ramli
Wed, March 3, 2021




(Bloomberg) -- Asia hedge funds that rode a green investing wave for double-digit returns last year are starting to reduce bets on the sector given the lofty valuations.

Apeiron Capital has cut Tesla Inc. to a small position after the electric vehicle maker’s eight-fold surge sparked a 98% return for the $400 million hedge fund in 2020, said founder Yao Wanyi. York Capital Management also trimmed investments in electric vehicle, battery and solar glass makers, according to Mark He, co-portfolio manager of its $3.4 billion Asia funds.

“Clean energy remains one of the most important investment themes for years to come, it’s just that it ran a bit too much last year,” said He, adding the firm may buy the dips later.

Electric vehicle makers and their suppliers were among last year’s star stock performers as the new vehicles start to win over consumers with better technology and lower prices. Meanwhile, cleaner sources of energy, from solar to nuclear, were bolstered by pledges from China and other countries to curb emissions over the next few decades.

Those investments, together with shifting consumer behavior amid the pandemic, helped Asia managers beat peers in the best year for global hedge funds in at least seven years. A Bloomberg global hedge fund index gained 10% in 2020.

Though many Asia hedge fund managers still like the long-term outlook for sustainable investments, valuations look stretched. Apeiron began to “actively” cut its Tesla holdings for the first time this year, after buying convertible bonds and shares in 2019 when the market was divided on the company.

Tesla Tumble

Tesla’s stock price has tumbled 22% since a Jan. 25 high, as rising global bond yields compounded concerns about runaway stock valuations. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. has lost 14% since Jan. 8, after the Tesla battery supplier more than tripled in the last 14 months.

“This valuation, even though we are a long-term believer, has baked in a lot of optionality other than the automobile business,” Yao said, referring to Tesla. “The premium of such optionality has become too demanding.”

Yao’s Apeiron team has instead identified parts suppliers with large global market share that can gain from the “multi-decade” EV trend that’s just beginning, she added, declining to identify them.

“The problem is, Tesla is expensive, the whole supply chain is not cheap either,” Yao said. “We are not there to pull the trigger. We may need to wait.”

LyGH Capital Pte, a Singapore-based firm with about 40% of its investments in clean energy, last year boosted holdings of EV parts suppliers where competition is less intense, said Grace Lu, chief investment officer of the company overseeing $500 million. More than two-thirds of the 7.5% January return for its hedge fund came from themes ranging from electric vehicles to solar power, adding to a 32% gain last year, Lu said.

CATL Bets

Her top picks include thermal management equipment maker Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls Co. and Contemporary Amperex, also known as CATL. She also likes lithium miners.

“We are overweight those sectors based on their long-term prospects,” she said. “We don’t think the recent turbulence in the market or a rebound of rates from very low levels will derail the growth.”

York Capital’s Asia team added Chinese hydrogen fuel cell maker Beijing Sinohytec Co. even as valuation concerns prompted it to cut other clean technology holdings, including CATL.

“China wants a national champion in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, not just in electric vehicles,” He said. The team is spinning out into separate firm later this year.

Uranium Rebound

Other hedge funds are turning to uranium as a green investment. Tribeca Investment Partners has put about a quarter of its flagship hedge fund into uranium assets, betting that prices will more than double in the coming year, Asia Chief Executive Officer Ben Cleary said.

The metal is trading about 80% off a 2007 peak, or about $30 a pound, prompting manufacturers to halt unprofitable mines. Global uranium inventory has dwindled to about a year’s usage, against the norm of about three years, he said.

Hedge fund manager Michael Burry of the “Big Short” fame and billionaire Bill Gates have touted nuclear as the carbon-free source of limitless energy that can operate 24 hours a day.

Tribeca’s $100 million dedicated uranium fund has returned 55% already this year after a 195% gain in 2020 on investments in the metal and in companies. Its bullish bets include U.S. producer Energy Fuels Inc. and Australia’s Boss Energy Ltd.

“We expect the price needs to move to at least $60 per pound over the next 12 to 18 months to incentivize new production to be financed,” he said. “Because there has been such an under investment in new supply in recent years, there is the potential for prices to blow off toward $100 per pound.”

(Adds Burry and Gates support for nuclear power in third-last paragraph)

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

New Zealand tsunami warning withdrawn after thousands told to evacuate following powerful earthquake


Verity Bowman
Thu, March 4, 2021


The earthquake was felt across New Zealand's North Island

A strong 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck off the east of New Zealand's North Island on Friday, prompting a tsunami warning that was later withdrawn, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) said, although residents were asked to stay alert.

"There is no longer a tsunami threat from this earthquake," PTWC said in a statement.

There were no immediate reports of damage, but the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) advised people in some coastal areas to move immediately to high ground.

Local civil defence authorities said the tsunami threat would continue for several hours.

"Coastal inundation (flooding of land areas) is expected in areas under Land and Marine threat," NEMA said in a tweet.

The closest major city to the epicentre is Gisborne with a population of about 35,500. People near the coast from Cape Runaway to Tolaga Bay were told to evacuate.

Gisborne Mayor Rehette Stoltz said many of people had already left their homes for higher ground.

"Hope everyone is ok out there - especially on the East Coast who would have felt the full force of that earthquake," Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern posted on Instagram.

There was threat to the capital Wellington and other regions, but civil defence authorities asked residents across the country to stay away from beaches and marine areas as there could be strong and unusual currents.

More than 60,000 people reported feeling the quake on GeoNet's website, with 282 describing the shaking as "severe" and 75 saying it was "extreme". Most others described it as light.

"Strong and unusual currents and unpredictable surges near the shore are expected in all other coastal areas of the North Island, Great Barrier Island, the South Island, Stewart Island and the Chatham Islands," a statement on the GeoNet site said.

Aftershocks were still being recorded in the area.

THE Q ANON SHAMAN WILL BE PISSED

Man accused of QAnon vandalism at 'America's Stonehenge'


FILE - This Sept. 15, 2015, file photo shows a rock formation called America's Stonehenge in Salem, N.H. Police arrested Mark Russo, of Swedesboro, N.J., and charged him with defacing the stone grouping in September 2019 by carving into rock a motto affiliated with the QAnon conspiracy theory. A lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf Tuesday, March 2, 2021. 

(AP Photo/Jim Cole, File)

Wed, March 3, 2021, 

SALEM, N.H. (AP) — Police have made an arrest following a 15-month-long investigation into vandalism at a group of rock configurations in New Hampshire called “America's Stonehenge."

Mark Russo, 51, of Swedesboro, New Jersey, has been charged with one count of felony criminal mischief, accused of defacing the stone in Salem in September 2019. A lawyer entered a not guilty plea on his behalf Tuesday.

Police said the rock tablet appeared to have been damaged by a power tool. It was carved with “WWG1WGA” and “IAMMARK." Police said the first stands for “Where We Go One, We Go All," a motto affiliated with the QAnon conspiracy theory.

An 18-inch (45-centimeter) tall wooden cross was found suspended between two trees, and attached to the cross were several photographs and hand-drawn images.

Police arrested Russo after finding images of the stone and Russo online and linking to him an “iammark" Twitter account with a reference to “a few improvements" made to the site. Images on the cross also were linked to Russo.

Bail was set at $3,000 cash for Russo, who is scheduled for a hearing on April 21. An email seeking comment from Russo's lawyer was sent Tuesday.

America’s Stonehenge, which features cave-like, granite enclosures, has drawn believers who say it’s 1,000 or more years old, and skeptics who say the evidence suggests it was the work of a 19th century shoemaker.

QAnon Shaman Begs for Leniency: 

I Stopped Muffin Theft During Capitol Riot

Jamie Ross, Pilar Melendez
Thu, March 4, 2021


CBS News

The notorious “QAnon Shaman” has insisted his actions during the Capitol riot were not an attack on the United States—and that he can prove it because he stopped other rioters from stealing muffins.

Jacob Chansley, who became arguably the most infamous Capitol rioter due to his furry and be-horned costume, has given a bizarre interview to CBS News in his latest attempt to beg for mercy. The first glimpse of the 60 Minutes interview was broadcast Thursday morning.

Speaking from jail, Chansley became clearly short-tempered when CBS News reporter Laurie Segall asked him if he considered his actions during the storming of the Capitol to be an attack on the nation.

When he was then asked to describe his actions in his own words, he explained: “I sang a song, and that’s a part of shamanism, it’s about creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber. I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate. I actually stopped people from stealing muffins out of the break room.”

While preventing muffin theft is all well and good, the accusations against Chansley are very serious. On top of storming into the Capitol building, Chansley is also accused of leaving an ominous note for Vice President Mike Pence at his desk in the Senate chamber that read: “It’s only a matter of time, justice is coming.” That day, he was also carrying a spear attached to a flagpole, which prosecutors considered to be a weapon.

Chansley is facing as many as 20 years in prison, but can’t seem to see what he did wrong. In the interview, he went on: “I also said a prayer in that sacred chamber because it was my intention to bring divinity and to bring God back into the Senate.” When reminded that it was illegal for him to even enter the chamber, he described that as a “very serious regret.”

His mother, Martha Chansley, also insisted he did nothing wrong, telling Segall that her son simply “walked through open doors.”

“He was escorted into the Senate. So, I don’t know what’s wrong with that,” she said. “I know that he is sorry but again it all comes back to he walked through open doors.”

Prosecutors haven’t said how Chansley got into the building but there’s no evidence that police guided rioters into the Senate chamber.

She justified her son’s decision to protest the election result by repeating the lie that the election was stolen. “I don’t think it’s right that [the election] was won fraudulently. I don’t believe it was won fairly at all,” she said.


On former President Donald Trump, whom Chansley has repeatedly criticized via his attorney because he was not offered a pardon before Trump left office, it appears he still holds a soft spot for him.

“I developed a lot of sympathy for Donald Trump because it seemed like the media was picking on him,” said Chansley. “I have been a victim of that all my life, whether it be at school or at home, so in many ways I identified with a lot of the negative things he was going through.”

Chansley went on to admit that he was “wounded” by not being offered a pardon, but does not regret his loyalty to Trump. “I [only] regret entering that building, with every fiber of my being,” he said.

While Chansley’s strange jailhouse appearance on national television might be viewed as detrimental to his legal battle, his defense attorney believes it was totally logical and justified. “[Chansley] is the most visible face of this riot. So for the first time in my career, it is not a trepidation to have my client speak out—it’s fully abated,” defense attorney Albert Watkins told The Daily Beast on Thursday.

“If anything, it’s necessary to shift the message and dialogue that I have been pushing for since Jacob Chansley has been taking into custody: The riots were more than a lynch mob, but the result of years of manipulation [from Trump].”

“He believed the president. He believed the words and reacted on those words. So when you have millions of Americans who were embracing over four years of propaganda and lies and misrepresentations daily—we have to have compassion for that. We have to have patience,” Watkins added.

The lawyer added that the more people get exposed to his client, they’ll realize the “gentleman that he is” and remember that the thousands who stormed the Capitol “are our brothers and sisters and neighbors.”

CBS reporter Segall said Chansley ended his interview by shouting “SEE ME! SEE ME!” and insisting that he’s not a violent man. A judge will hear arguments Friday on whether he should be released before his trial.