The American Council on Renewable Energy, the American Wind Energy Association, the Biomass Power Association, the Energy Storage Association, the Geothermal Resources Council, the National Hydropower Association and the Solar Energy Industries Association sent a joint letter to Congress urging consistent funding for energy innovation in the Department of Energy’s FY 2020 Budget and opposing the Administration’s proposed deep cuts.
In the letter, the organizations stated their “strong support” for the vital work being done by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Advanced Research Programs Agency – Energy (ARPA-E), and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
“The work done by EERE, ARPA-E and NREL fills a critical gap in research and development at a time when the United States is desperately in need of grid modernization, and at risk of falling behind other countries, like China, that are racing to develop the next generation of energy technologies,” the organizations wrote. “We respectfully urge you to continue, at a minimum, current funding levels for these important clean energy innovation programs, and to oppose the Administration’s proposed cuts to the DOE’s FY 2020 Budget.”
The Administration has proposed cutting more than $2.4 billion from programs supporting energy innovation and deployment, an 88 percent decrease from current funding levels. The proposed budget includes a $2.04 billion (86 percent) cut to EERE and the elimination of ARPA-E.
News item from the American Council on Renewable Energy
David says
I know that some people think that the government shouldn’t “put their finger on the scale” or “pick winners and losers” by spending money funding these types of projects.
But what these people fail to understand is that currently the US government gives seven dollars in tax breaks to the fossil fuel industry for every one dollar they give to renewable energy:
http://priceofoil.org/2017/10/03/dirty-energy-dominance-us-subsidies/
So the scales are already being tilted. Without these subsidies, what would the current price of gasoline be? If it was $10/gallon, how many more people would be shopping for electric vehicles? And would that many converts drive gas prices even higher?
RE is a (relatively) new technology, offering many possibilities for improvements. Contrast that with FF, where people have been working on improvements for decades. Since the government is already a player in the energy industry, research money for what is clearly the next generation of generation makes sense. What kind of idiot keeps dumping money into outdated tech without preparing for the new?