Washington, D.C. — Decarbonizing the power sector through targeted clean energy investments will help keep the U.S. electricity grid working reliably for years to come, according to a new column from the Center for American Progress.
After decades of historic reliability, the electric grid is beginning to show signs of strain under the mounting pressures of climate change, fossil fuel dependence, and underinvestment in transmission. CAP’s new column argues that clean energy technologies—including wind, solar, energy storage, hydropower, and nuclear—are a better alternative for reliably powering the grid. Using clean energy resources will not only slash power sector emissions but also establish redundancy and flexibility in the power system.
“Investing in clean energy will help the U.S. power system to reliably meet electricity demand, reduce the impacts of climate change, and offer consumers lower-cost, pollution-free forms of electricity generation,” said Elise Gout, a policy analyst for the Energy and Environment department at CAP and author of the column.
The column calls on Congress to pass a reconciliation package that will deliver on the critical investments in transmission, renewable energy, energy storage, and more that are currently included in President Joe Biden’s economic plan. This includes:
- A package of clean energy tax credits to decarbonize the power grid by 2035
- An investment tax credit to expand and update the grid
- A production tax credit for existing nuclear energy to prevent the premature retirement of the fleet’s clean generation
- A new investment tax credit for stand-alone energy storage to encourage the adoption of large-scale battery storage
- Investments in rooftop solar, battery storage, and other clean power sources to create more reliability in the power system during extreme weather events
- Investments in building weatherization and energy efficiency to ease the burden placed on the grid during energy emergencies
Read the column: “A Clean Power Grid Is a Reliable Power Grid” by Elise Gout
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected].