NEW ENERGY GOES TO WASHINGTON

Clean-Energy Execs Take Pitch for Climate Bill to White House
Michael Burnham, October 7, 2009 (NY Times)

"Clean-energy company executives and investors met with White House officials…to make their case for a federal cap on emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases…

"Diplomats will attempt to broker a successor to the Kyoto Protocol at U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen in December. The internationally binding emissions cap expires in 2012…By signing the comprehensive climate and energy legislation in coming months, President Obama would help pressure China, India and other developing countries to agree to binding emissions reductions, the executives contend. Obama would also send a clear signal to U.S. clean-energy companies and investors to make long-term investments and create domestic jobs…"

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"The investor coalition Ceres and the Clean Economy Network organized this week's fly-in of executives from more than 100 companies, representing sectors as diverse as renewable energy, information technology and athletic apparel [including Entergy Corp., A123Systems Inc. and Cree Inc.]…The business leaders ate lunch [October 6] with the Senate's "Gang of 16," which includes industrial-state lawmakers whose support is seen as crucial to passing the emissions cap-and-trade bill (pdf) introduced last week by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)…[and met October 7] with Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy Director Carol Browner.

"…Browner [recently] warned that it is "not likely" Congress would be able to send a climate and energy bill to Obama's desk before the U.N. climate negotiations in Copenhagen…[but] sounded slightly more optimistic…The Kerry-Boxer bill calls for a 20 percent reduction of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 2020; the House-passed bill (H.R. 2454 (pdf)) calls for a 17 percent reduction by 2020. Both bills call for long-term emissions reductions of 42 percent by 2030 and 83 percent by 2050."

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"Chu warned that if Congress fails to pass climate and energy legislation soon, the United States runs the risk of falling behind China as a global leader in producing wind turbines, photovoltaic panels and other clean-energy technologies…[because] China invests some $12.6 million in clean energy every hour…[and] aims to generate 100 gigawatts from wind turbines by 2030…

"…[Secretary Chu] used the occasion to announce that the Energy Department will provide up to $750 million from the stimulus law to accelerate the development of conventional renewable energy generation projects. The funding will cover the cost of loan guarantees, which could support as much as $4 billion to $8 billion in lending to eligible projects from the private sector…The DOE funding announcements cheered the roomful of executives, but some of them are holding out for Congress to place a cap -- and price -- on carbon dioxide to catalyze the nation's clean-energy economy…"