PHOTO OF THE FILE: US President Joe Biden comments on Russia in the East Room of the White House in Washington, USA, on April 15, 2021. REUTERS / Tom Brenner / File Photo
A group of U.S. power companies wrote this week to President Joe Biden saying he will work with his administration and Congress to design a broad set of policies to achieve a short-term goal of reducing the sector’s carbon emissions for 2030.
Washington should implement policies, including a clean energy standard, or CES, to ensure that the electricity industry reduces carbon emissions by 80% below 2005 levels by 2030, the group of 13 energy interests, including generators Exelon Corp (EXC.O), PSEG (PEGPP .UL) and Talen Energy Corp, said in a letter to Biden.
The letter, a copy of which saw Reuters, did not mention Biden’s goal of completely decarbonising the electricity sector by 2035 as part of its strategy to combat climate change. But he said the 2030 timeline is consistent with Biden’s broader goal of decarbonizing the entire economy by 2050.
“A framework of federal policies can be designed to support the deployment of power sector strategies that are technically feasible, ensure reliability, and maintain affordability for customers,” the letter sent to Biden said Friday.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 2030 goal was consistent with Evergreen Action, a advocacy group that proposed a CES in February. Sam Ricketts, co-founder, said utility companies should worry less about the 2035 target and focus on early wins, as the last part of emissions cuts is the hardest to achieve. Read more
Several lawmakers, including Democrat Rep. Frank Pallone and Sen. Tina Smith, have introduced legislation that includes an ESC.
The standard would set gradually increasing targets for the electricity industry to reduce emissions to zero, with a number of methods, from the adoption of wind and solar power, the use of existing and advanced nuclear power. , or the uptake of carbon from coal and natural gas plants before they reach the atmosphere.
The White House this month included a CES in its $ 2.3 trillion infrastructure package, without detailing how it would work.
Some plans for an ESC include flexibilities, such as allowing utility companies to obtain bank loans to overcome the early years that could be used to meet them in later years, when progress in reducing the costs becomes more difficult. emissions.
Our standards: the principles of trust of Thomson Reuters.