S&P Global quoted AEE's Amisha Rai on Governor Newsom's $8 billion proposal for new investments in clean energy and transportation. Read snippets below and the full article here.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Jan. 10 pitched more than $8 billion in new investments into clean energy and transportation as part of California's budget, citing the need to decarbonize the Golden State's economy and keep climate change in check while developing new business opportunities.
The investments feature a two-year, $2 billion funding package for a variety of clean energy projects. The largest of the proposed clean energy expenditures is $962.4 million to wean buildings off fossil fuels with rebates and retrofit programs for electric appliances and energy efficiency, with a focus on low-income areas.
Newsom also proposed $380 million in incentives for long-duration energy storage, $240 million to increase the capacity at a state-run pumped hydroelectric storage project at Lake Oroville, and $100 million in grants for production of hydrogen using renewable energy.
The proposal also contains $6.1 billion in spending over five years to accelerate the adoption of electric and other zero-emission vehicles. That includes investments in heavy-duty and passenger electric vehicles and their charging infrastructures, and electrification of ports.
The transportation proposals bring the state's investments in zero-emission vehicles to $10 billion over six years, including a nearly $4 billion package in last year's budget...
California helped to fuel a record year of EV adoption around the world last year.
"Investment in zero-emission transportation is critical for Californian's health and economic well-being," Amisha Rai, managing director at trade group Advanced Energy Economy, said in a statement. "Reliable funding streams and strong state incentives are essential for growing this booming workforce in all areas of the state."
The group estimates that California employs more than 40,000 in the EV industry and over a half-million in advanced energy as a whole, mostly in energy efficiency and carbon-free power generation.
Read the full article here.