News

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With permitting reform discussions occurring in Congress this week and debt ceiling negotiations continuing, leading national renewable energy organizations sent a letter to House and Senate leadership urging the enactment of bipartisan transmission permitting legislation that builds on the transformational clean energy policies included in the Inflation Reduction Act.

National business group calls for utilities to switch to more affordable advanced energy solutions 

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 11, 2023 – Today, Advanced Energy United, the national association of businesses working to achieve 100% clean energy and electrified transportation in America, expressed support for the new emissions regulations announced today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding new and existing power plants.

"These new regulations constitute an important step towards building a decarbonized energy grid in the United States, alongside federal legislation and policies in states across the country,” said Heather O’Neill, President and CEO of Advanced Energy United. “Within legal constraints, the Agency has proposed the best system for reducing emissions from fossil fuel-fired power plants. What the debate around this rule also makes clear is that advanced energy presents the most affordable path to decarbonizing our energy system. At every opportunity, utilities and power providers should be looking to wind, solar, geothermal, energy efficiency, demand flexibility, energy storage and other clean and cost-effective solutions for providing reliable and affordable electricity today and in the years ahead.” 

Phoenix Business Journal published Shelby Stults’ opinion piece on Governor-elect Katie Hobbs’ unprecedented opportunity to accelerate advanced energy growth in the state. Read snippets below and the full article here.

Katie Hobbs will take office as Governor with an enormous opportunity to lower energy costs and improve the landscape for clean energy businesses in Arizona. Arizona is projected to receive $11 billion for clean energy investments thanks to the federal Inflation Reduction Act and last year’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — and these dollars have the potential to transform Arizona’s economy. The investments will create more than a million new jobs in Arizona and spark a whopping $162 billion in economic impact for the state, a 15-fold return on investment...

The Department found imports of certain solar panel components circumvented existing U.S. tariffs on China.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2022 – Today, national business association Advanced Energy Economy reacted to the Department of Commerce’s preliminary determination that Chinese solar companies were circumventing U.S. trade restrictions. The investigation found that a number of Chinese solar companies were dodging existing tariffs by routing products through Southeast Asian nations. President Biden previously extended a 24-month pause on new solar tariffs, which is expected to forestall the immediate impacts of this determination on the solar industry. 

Detroit News published Michael Weiss and Laura Sherman's opinion piece on how Gov. Whitmer has a once-in-a-generation chance to revolutionize the state’s energy and automobile sector. Read snippets below and the full article here.

With the reelection of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan has a once-in-a-generation chance to revolutionize the state’s energy and automobile sector. Whitmer should use her second term to maximize federal funding and incentives from the Inflation Reduction Acts and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to reduce energy costs for Michigan residents and fulfill the goals of the MI Healthy Climate Plan.

Bloomberg detailed how the midterm election results could push climate issues to the states, quoting J.R. Tolbert on the role utilities and state regulators play in the energy transition. Read snippets below and the full article here.

In former President Donald Trump and current President Joe Biden, the US had a climate-change denier followed immediately by the greenest White House yet. Many states responded to the Washington whiplash with moves of their own. Under Trump, more than a dozen adopted ambitious decarbonization targets, while, under Biden, others have put anti-green laws on the books.

WASHINGTON, DC, October 19, 2022 – Today, the Department of Energy announced it is awarding $2.8 billion to 20 companies using investments made in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The projects will go towards building and expanding commercial-scale facilities in 12 states to extract and process lithium, graphite, and other battery materials, manufacture components, and demonstrate manufacturing components from recycled materials. 

Advanced energy industry jobs growing nearly twice as fast as the national average so far this year 

WASHINGTON, DC, October 13, 2022 – National business association Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) published an analysis of job opportunities in the advanced energy industry – which includes renewables, electrified transportation, and energy-saving technology solutions – and found that advertised positions grew nearly twice as fast as the national average (up 46% versus 27%) during the first eight months of 2022.

The study, produced in partnership with The Burning Glass Institute, a nonprofit labor market analytics center, also identified a wide range of high-growth occupations in the advanced energy industry for people with varying educational and training backgrounds, including a large percentage not requiring a bachelor’s degree.