FILE PHOTO: US President Joe Biden delivers remarks about Russia in the East Room at the White House in Washington, US, April 15, 2021. REUTERS / Tom Brenner / File Photo
A group of US electric utilities wrote to President Joe Biden this week saying it will work with his administration and Congress to design a wide range of policies to meet the short-term goal of reducing the sector’s carbon emissions by 2030. .
Washington should implement policies, including a clean energy standard, or CES, to ensure that the electricity industry reduces carbon emissions 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 was seen by Reuters, did not mention Biden’s goal of fully decarbonising the energy sector by 2035 as part of his strategy to combat climate change. But it said the 2030 timeline is consistent with Biden’s broader goal of decarbonising the entire economy by 2050.
“A federal policy framework can be designed to support the application of strategies by the energy industry that are technically feasible to ensure reliability and affordability for customers,” said the letter sent to Biden on Friday.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 2030 target was consistent with Evergreen Action, an advocacy group that proposed a CES in February. Sam Ricketts, a co-founder, said utilities should worry less about the 2035 goal and focus on early wins, as the latter part of emissions cuts are the hardest to achieve. read more
Several lawmakers, including US Democratic Representative Frank Pallone and Senator Tina Smith, have introduced legislation that includes a CES.
The standard would set gradually increasing targets for the energy sector to reduce emissions until they reach net zero, using a range of methods, from applying wind and solar power, using existing and advanced nuclear power, or sucking up carbon from coal and natural gas power plants. before they reach the atmosphere.
The White House included a CES in its $ 2.3 trillion infrastructure package this month, without explaining how it would work.
Some plans for a CES include flexibility, such as allowing utilities to earn cashable credits for early years overperformance that can be used for compliance in later years when progress in reducing emissions becomes more difficult.
Our Standards: Thomson Reuters Principles of Trust.