On March 31, 2021, President Biden released his $2 trillion infrastructure plan intended to aid the nation’s economic comeback from the COVID-19 pandemic by raising employment in jobs for necessary projects, such as energy efficiency, renewable energy growth, and grid modernization. This is also part of the government’s strategy to achieve a net-zero emissions power sector by 2035, and a net-zero economy by 2050.
In response to the recent power crisis in Texas, the proposed Infrastructure Plan would invest $100 billion to modernize the electric grid with at least 20 GW of high-voltage capacity power lines. The Plan also proposes creation of a Grid Deployment Authority at the Dept of Energy to manage this effort.
The proposed Infrastructure Plan also promotes the retrofitting of existing residential, commercial, and municipal buildings to be more energy efficient and electrified and a $27 billion Clean Energy and Sustainability Accelerator to mobilize private investment.
The Infrastructure Plan proposes creation of Energy Efficiency and Clean Electricity Standard (EECES) aimed at improving energy efficiency, promoting cleaner energy, and incentivizing efficient use of existing infrastructure and carbon-free energy from nuclear and hydropower. The Infrastructure Plan proposes to invest $174 billion in electric vehicle (EV) development, including building a network of 500,000 EV chargers by 2030, replacing 50,000 diesel transit vehicles, and electrifying at least 20% of the school bus fleet. The Plan also includes a 10-year extension of an expanded direct-pay investment tax credit and production tax credit for clean energy generation and storage.
The Infrastructure Plan proposes both a $10 billion investment in public land and water conservation, community resilience, and environmental justice through a new Civilian Climate Corps and a $5 billion investment in remediation and redevelopment of Brownfield and Superfund sites in disadvantaged communities.
The Infrastructure Plan rebuilds research in climate areas that was decimated under the previous administration, setting aside $35 billion for research and development of new, beneficial technologies, such as energy storage, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, EVs, floating offshore wind, and biofuel products.
One of the criticisms of the Plan is what will happen to the industries that will be harmed or ruined by the switch to clean energy, such as coal and oil & gas. The Plan proposes to address this by training fossil-fuel industry workers to apply their skills for clean energy and for employment to plug oil and gas wells and clean abandoned mines.
As one sees in the news, the Infrastructure Plan faces political hurdles, as many feel it is too expensive for a government already high in deficit spending. Democrats believe that the economic benefits and savings to the private sector will lead to economic growth that would raise revenues and eventually would pay it back plus some. It is likely some compromise (cutting back) of some of the ambitious goals (clean energy and others) will occur before it is promulgated.
CCES has the experts to help your firm manage energy (yes, manage this important resource), assess your energy profile, and move toward cheaper, cleaner energy choices and energy efficiency to reduce your energy waste, save you significant costs, and improve productivity. With the likelihood of financial incentives from the federal and many state governments, even the initial investment to reduce your energy and carbon profile can be quite affordable. Contact us today at karell@CCESworld.com or at 914-584-6720.