Tag Archives: EV charging infrastructure

FACT SHEET: The American Jobs Plan Supercharges the Future of Transportation and Manufacturing

The White House Briefing Room

Increasingly, the global market is shifting to electric vehicles (EVs) – tapping into EVs’ potential to save families thousands of dollars, lower carbon pollution, and make the air we breathe cleaner. Yet, despite pioneering the technology, the United States is behind in the race to manufacture these vehicles and the batteries that go in them.

Today, the U.S. market share of plug-in electric vehicle (EV) sales is only one-third that of the Chinese EV market. And in 2020, China had approximately 800,000 public charging points compared to just 100,000 in the U.S. President Biden believes it is time for this to change and for the U.S. to lead in EV manufacturing, infrastructure, deployment, and innovation. Continue reading here.

Additional Recommended Reading

Photo Credit: Autoweek

Remarks by President Biden at the Virtual Leaders Summit on Climate Session 5: The Economic Opportunities of Climate Action

The White House Briefing Room

We’ve made great progress, in my view, so far. And I’m grateful to all the leaders who have announced new commitments to help us meet the existential threat of climate change. This summit is a start — a start of a road that will take us to Glasgow for the U.N. Climate Change Conference in November where we’re going to make these commitments real, putting all of our nations on path to a secure, prosperous, and sustainable future.

Today’s final session is not about the threat of climate change poses; it’s about the opportunity that addressing climate change provides. It’s an opportunity to create millions of good-paying jobs around the world and innovate — in innovative sectors — you know, jobs that bring greater quality of life, greater dignity to the people performing those jobs in every nation. Read more here.

MORE WHITE HOUSE RELEASES

SOLAR ENERGY INDUSTRIES ASSOCIATION 

Tackling the Climate Crisis Means Smart Solar Solutions, by President & CEO Abigail Ross Hopper 

The American Jobs Plan is a massive step toward meeting our clean energy goals, but Congress must first deliver legislation and then pass it into law. Earth Day is a reminder of the urgency to act. Investing in solar + storage and clean energy infrastructure can generate hundreds of billions of dollars in private investment and hundreds of thousands of family-supporting jobs to help America build back better.

This includes using the tax code to encourage long-term clean energy growth, modernizing the electric grid, prioritizing domestic manufacturing, and investing in a strong, diverse workforce. SEIA is leading a campaign to ensure that Congress seizes on this opportunity and passes meaningful policies that will accelerate an equitable clean energy transition. But we cannot do this alone. We need you to send a message to your elected representatives in Washington, urging them to prioritize clean energy in upcoming infrastructure legislation.

AMERICAN CLEAN POWER ASSOCIATION

American Clean Power Association Applauds Biden Administration on Successful Leaders Summit on Climate, ACP News Release

“This has been a groundbreaking summit for climate action, shining a light on the growing global marketplace for clean energy. The Summit showcased a powerful global demand signal for clean energy. The American clean power industry congratulates the Administration for restoring American global leadership on the road to Glasgow and COP 26. But the hardest work begins now, and it begins at home. Ambitious commitments demand even more ambitious actions to drive progress. Our industry has rolled up our sleeves ready to move the country forward towards a more sustainable energy future, harnessing American ingenuity, investment, and innovation to deliver economic and jobs benefits to communities nationwide.” – Heather Zichal, ACP CEO

FACT SHEET: The American Jobs Plan

The White House Briefing Room

The President’s American Jobs Plan is a historic public investment – consisting principally of one-time capital investments in our nation’s productivity and long-term growth. It will invest about 1 percent of GDP per year over eight years to upgrade our nation’s infrastructure, revitalize manufacturing, invest in basic research and science, shore up supply chains, and solidify our care infrastructure. These are investments that leading economists agree will give Americans good jobs now and will pay off for future generations by leaving the country more competitive and our communities stronger. In total, the plan will invest about $2 trillion this decade. If passed alongside President Biden’s Made in America corporate tax plan, it will be fully paid for within the next 15 years and reduce deficits in the years after. Read more here. 

Additional Recommended Reading & Viewing

Here’s how Biden’s infrastructure package will likely tackle climate change

By Emma Newburger, CNBC


The president is expected to introduce up to $3 trillion in spending on efforts to boost the economy, including rebuilding aging infrastructure like highways, bridges and rail lines, and investing in technologies to reduce planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.


Some of the policies on the table include:

  • Installing thousands of new electric vehicle charging stations
  • Funds to build energy-efficient homes
  • Constructing new electric power lines

Read more here.

Additional Recommended Reading

Build America Bonds may be key to financing Biden’s infrastructure, by Thomas Frank, CNBC 
The bonds allow states and counties, which manage the majority of U.S. infrastructure, to float debt with interest costs subsidized by the federal government. Build America Bonds entered U.S. markets more than a decade ago as the Obama administration sought ways to finance capital projects across the country and jumpstart the economy in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

President Biden Invites 40 World Leaders to Leaders Summit on Climate, The White House Briefing Room, March 26, 2021. Today, President Biden invited 40 world leaders to the Leaders Summit on Climate he will host on April 22 and 23.  The virtual Leaders Summit will be live streamed for public viewing.

How infrastructure is banking on green banks

By Heather Clancy, Editorial Director, GreenBiz Group

Quick, what do Alaska, Maine and South Carolina have in common? 

All three U.S. states are seriously evaluating the creation of green banks — financing institutions created with the explicit mission of combining public and private funds to invest in climate solutions and green infrastructure. They would join roughly 20 other U.S. jurisdictions that have used this mechanism to drive more than $5 billion in clean energy investments as of the end of 2019, including Connecticut, Florida, Michigan and Washington, D.C. 

Alaska is so invested in the idea that Rep. Don Young, a Republican who championed Deb Haaland’s nomination as Interior Secretary, last week stepped across the aisle again to become a co-sponsor of the latest legislation to create a national-level green bank. The bill would make $100 billion of public funds available for a nonprofit organization that would provide financing and other support to regional, state and local green banks — an amount the sponsors say could catalyze $884 billion in green infrastructure investments over the next decade and help create 4 million clean economy jobs within the next four years. Continue reading here.

LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION

ALSO OF POTENTIAL INTEREST

Coal community leaders release historic platform for national economic transition

Appalachian Voices News Release, June 29, 2020

NATIONWIDE – Today, 80 local, regional, and national organizations and leaders unveiled their National Economic Transition (NET) platform to give federal and national leaders and policymakers the framework for an ambitious national transition program that supports the people and places hit hardest by the changing coal economy.

This NET platform was crafted by local, tribal, and labor leaders living and working in coal communities, along with non-profit sector partners, during a year-long collaboration led by the Just Transition Fund. Amid the sharp decline of the coal sector over the past decade, these community leaders have already developed and implemented local policy solutions that help tackle the climate crisis and spur inclusive, equitable, and sustainable economic growth in places that once relied on coal. Read more here.

Just Transition Fund (JTF)
As the only national philanthropic initiative focused solely on coal community transition, the Just Transition Fund is uniquely positioned to serve as a hub to build, connect, and sustain the transition movement. Based on our experience in the field, we’ve discovered that communities need both investment and technical assistance to advance transition efforts.

Where JTF Works
The Fund focuses on coalfield and power plant communities. Geographic priorities include key states in Appalachia, the West, and the Midwest. The Fund gives preference to states experiencing the largest numbers of plant retirements and to regions that contain both plants and mines.

FINANCIAL STRATEGIES FOR TRANSITIONING FROM COAL TO RENEWABLES

New Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal Plants, North American Windpower
New renewable energy is already cheaper than continuing to operate coal plants in much of the world, according to a recently released report by the Rocky Mountain Institute, Carbon Tracker Initiative and Sierra Club. The report, How to Retire Early: Making Accelerated Coal Phase-Out Feasible and Just, lays out specific financial strategies that utilities and policy makers can use to engineer a faster phase-out of coal in various regions of the world.

NEW GREEN BIZ REPORT & WEBINAR

How Corporations are Managing Risk, Resiliency and Sustainability Report, GreenBiz
Download the report and register for the GreenBiz webcast on July 14th to hear directly from both the research sponsor, NRG Energy, and several participants: How Businesses Can Overcome Barriers to Achieving Climate Goals.

ELECTRIC VEHICLES

As much as $125 billion needed by 2030 to support EV growth: Brattle report, American Public Power Association. An investment of between $75 billion and $125 billion in the electric power system will be needed by 2030 to serve 20 million electric vehicles, according to a report by The Brattle Group. There will be 10 to 35 million electric vehicles in the United States by 2030, a steep rise from the 1.5 million electric vehicles on U.S. roads in 2020, Brattle economists estimate. Factors driving the proliferation of electric vehicles include decreasing vehicle and battery costs, an expanding variety of electric vehicle models, more widespread charging infrastructure, as well as favorable federal and state policies and incentives, they say.

Perdue Farms Becomes the First Poultry Company in the United States To Create a Pollinator-Friendly Habitat Throughout its Solar Installation

Perdue Farms News Release, PR Newswire

“Given Perdue Farms’ long-standing commitment to being good stewards, having the area at our 5-acre solar field at our headquarters become a pollinator-friendly habitat was a no-brainer for us,” said Steve Levitsky, vice president of sustainability for Perdue Farms. “There is a growing body of research that shows pollinator habitat can help increase yields of a variety of fruits and vegetables, including soybeans – one of the key components of a chicken’s diet – so we wanted to do something that has the potential to benefit the environment as well as the farmers near our headquarters.” Read more here.

Resources for pollinator-friendly solar development are available from the Center for Pollinators in Energy nonprofit, a Fresh Energy program: www.BeesLoveSolar.org

Photo: Pollinator-friendly habitat at the Perdue Farms’ solar installation located at their headquarters in Salisbury, Maryland.

OCEANS AND CLIMATE 

To Save the Climate, Look to the Oceans, Scientific American
It offers major opportunities to abandon fossil fuels, sequester tons of carbon, and create a sustainable food system. I’m talking about renewable offshore energy and algae biofuel, about coastal ecosystems and regenerative ocean farming.

The writer, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, Ph.D., is a marine biologist, policy expert and Brooklyn native. She is founder of the consultancy Ocean Collectiv and the think tank Urban Ocean Lab.

FITCH SOLUTIONS RESEARCH

US and Spain poised for stellar capacity growth, Wind Power Monthly
Fitch Solutions researchers forecast the US to achieve 174GW of installed wind capacity by 2029, on the back of supportive policies at state level and the rise of corporate energy procurements. 

SOLAR MEDIA PODCAST

Major movements in US solar and greener-than-ever grids, PV-Tech
June 2020 episode of the Solar Media Podcast is now available to listen to, and it’s jam packed with insight and discussion around a flurry of activity in the US and Europe.

EV CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE

House bill includes EV charging infrastructure grant program supported by APPA, American Public Power Association. Section 1303 of the bill authorizes $350 million annually for fiscal years 2022-2025 for a grant program to deploy electric and hydrogen vehicle charging infrastructure along existing Alternative Fuel Corridors, based on the Clean Corridors Act (H.R. 2616), which APPA supports. 

COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION

Community energy utilities in California investigate long duration energy storage, Energy Storage News

A group of 11 community-focused energy utility groups in California have issued a Request for Information on long duration energy storage technologies that could be connected to the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) grid. Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs) are permitted to supply energy to residents in several US states.

What is a Community Choice Aggregation?, EPA Resource

Additional Resources

SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC REPORT 

Report: 60% of Global Professionals Considering Renewables Purchase over Next 3 Years

Smart community projects “a natural” for public power, says Kelly

By Paul Ciampoli, American Public Power Association

Smart community projects are “a natural for public power,” said Sue Kelly, President and CEO of the American Public Power Association on Feb. 11 in remarks made at the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ 2019 Winter Policy Summit in Washington, D.C. Among the things that public power is doing when it comes to smart city activities is converting streetlights to LEDs and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. In addition, public power is working on microgrids and distributed energy installations. Read more here.

ALSO OF POTENTIAL INTEREST

 

Winning in a more distributed energy world: 3 steps to utility success, Utility Dive. A billion-dollar retail opportunity awaits utilities that turn reluctant customers into partners.

 

FEATURED NATIONAL INITIATIVE

Tariffs Hurt The Heartland, a bipartisan coalition launched in
September 2018, represents 150 organizations, including farms, small businesses, and consumer groups.

The coalition has hosted 15 events across the country to showcase stories of individuals, businesses, nonprofits and communities that have been hurt by tariffs.

Previously Posted

From Kaiser To Vail Ski Resorts, Companies Doubled Their Wind And Solar In 2018

By Grace Hood, Colorado Public Radio

Corporate giants like Facebook, Walmart, Microsoft and Apple made big deals in 2018, but now smaller corporate fish have waded into the pond. “We had Etsy do a deal last year, J.M. Smucker Company that makes jellies and jams,” [Kevin Haley, a program manager at the Business Renewables Center at Rocky Mountain Institute] said. “It’s a great way for them to reduce a lot of carbon all at once.”

Colorado-based Vail Resorts has joined the ranks of small companies as well. It inked a 12-year agreement to buy new wind that will be produced from a Nebraska farm starting in 2020. When the wind farm is operational, the purchased power will offset Vail’s fossil fuel use across North America. “This is the way that a company that’s geographically diverse can make a significant impact and bring new renewable resources online,” said Kate Wilson, director of sustainability for Vail Resorts. Read more here.

About Vail Resorts Corporation

Lincoln Clean Energy photo of the partially-completed 230 MW Plum Creek Wind Farm in Wayne County, Nebraska. Once operational, the project will create high-paying local jobs and will result in over $3 million in local community benefits annually in the Wayne County area. This includes much needed property tax revenues, with some of the largest beneficiaries being the Norfolk and Winside school districts.

Previously Posted
Vail Resorts Announces Long-Term Wind Energy Contract, Renewable Energy Magazine
The company’s multimillion-dollar wind energy virtual power purchase agreement enables the development of the Plum Creek Wind Project. It is expected to generate enough renewable energy to power up to 100,000 U.S. homes each year.

Additional Colorado News: More Colorado co-ops announce clean energy goals, Clean Cooperative

HAPPENING IN OTHER STATES

Solar seen as bright career path at Illinois community colleges, Energy News Network

Illinois’ Future Energy Jobs Act included funding to make solar training more accessible to lower-income residents.
 

An infrastructure for charging electric vehicles takes shape

The Economist

A NEW phrase, “range anxiety”—the fear that an electric vehicle (EV) will run out of power before it reaches a charging-point—entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2013. At the time a Nissan LEAF, the world’s best-selling EV, could travel only 120km between charges. A car with a full tank of fuel will travel 650-800km between refills. A motorist relying on batteries has to find a public charger, a rare sight in 2013, or plug in at home to cover the same distance. Range anxiety has not gone away as EVs have advanced. But the problem now feels much more soluble. Read more here.

Illustration by Claudio Munoz