Summary

Quote of the Week:

“The central component of [the Inflation Reduction Act] is the strong labor standards put in place to ensure that the jobs we’re creating is part of our transition to a clean energy economy of good paying, high-quality jobs, and that those job opportunities are broadly accessible,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “Workers should benefit from the clean energy economy they’re helping to build.”

CLEAN ENERGY

Must Be Equitable

Treasury says clean energy tax credits require strong labor commitments. The Treasury Department released new guidance on how companies can qualify for clean energy tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), stating that qualifying companies must pay prevailing wages and support apprenticeship programs. Of the $369 billion allocated in the law, roughly $270 billion is direct tax incentives. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said the guidance will help ensure that the energy transition is founded on strong labor standards and creates high-quality jobs for workers. (CNBC)

CLEAN ENERGY

Is Affordable

Municipal clean energy plans avoid rising electricity rates. As fossil gas prices continue to rise, investor-owned utilities in Massachusetts are passing on the costs to ratepayers who may see their electricity bills rise by as much as 40 percent in January. But customers of municipal clean energy aggregation plans are avoiding the price spikes. Many municipal energy aggregation contracts in the greater Boston area secured three-year contracts long before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused global gas prices to spike. The higher share of renewable energy sources is also cushioning customers from fossil fuel price volatility and could save ratepayers hundreds of dollars a year. (Boston Globe $)

CLEAN ENERGY

Is A Good Investment

The clean energy economy is winning over red states. Across the U.S., roughly $25.7 billion in clean energy supply chain investments are bringing new factories to some of the country’s most politically conservative areas. Boosted by the IRA’s incentives and subsidies, new domestic solar panel factories and EV battery plants are winning support in communities whose elected leaders have often opposed clean energy and climate investments. As industrial communities continue to benefit economically from the clean energy transition, some historically conservative states have begun offering tax abatements, infrastructure improvements, and other incentives to attract clean energy companies. (Bloomberg $)

CLEAN ENERGY

Has Many Benefits

DOE tests portable wind turbines for disaster relief. A team of public and private labs is beginning testing on a new portable wind turbine technology that the Energy Department says could be deployed to support relief efforts in conflict and disaster areas. The project focuses on extreme cases of complete blackouts, and would combine portable turbines with solar panels and batteries to provide consistent energy with zero emissions. The systems will be tested for reliability at climate monitoring sites in the Arctic and remote communities in Alaska, which historically rely on fossil fuels for their energy needs. (Utility Dive)

CLEAN ENERGY

Is Replacing Fossil Fuels

Major utilities, longtime opponents of clean energy, are embracing climate goals. Thanks in large part to the federal government’s major investments in clean energy technologies, utility giants that once fought against clean energy requirements are finally beginning to align around the energy transition. Utilities and their lobbyists are actively trying to capitalize on the $220 billion in federal tax incentives to build up their clean energy supplies with federal support. Critics contend that the market was already making renewables cheaper than fossil fuels and that the tax provisions are a giveaway to utilities, but analysis shows that the tax incentives are likely to spur a rapid acceleration of clean energy deployment. (New York Times $)

The USPS is the vanguard of the federal EV fleet. With $3 billion in hand from Congress, the U.S. Postal Service is preparing to roll out roughly 34,000 zero-emissions mail trucks next year — making it the largest-ever effort to electrify the federal vehicle fleet. Most of those funds will go to building out the infrastructure, including charging stations, needed to support electric mail trucks en masse. The Postal Service commands more than 217,000 vehicles already, making it the largest share of the federal vehicle fleet, and Postal leaders estimate a fully electric fleet would cost $12 billion. (Washington Post $)

CLEAN ENERGY

Is Challenging

The challenging road ahead for EV charging infrastructure. While a robust network of EV chargers is necessary for a full transition to clean cars and trucks, the buildout effort faces speed bumps: utilities and gas stations are at odds over who will own and operate them, rural charging stations risk operating at a loss for years, and existing chargers face reliability issues. The U.S. is currently home to over 145,000 stations to fuel up with gas, compared to just 11,600 EV charging sites. Despite multi-billion dollar federal and state support to build out charging networks, issues with demand and electricity rate structures for charging stations are challenging their financial viability in the near-term. (Wall Street Journal $)

MULTIMEDIA

Video: A (literal) pie chart of California’s energy sources