Advanced Energy Perspectives

Making the transition to a 100% clean, fully electrified economy will help cut emissions, lower costs, and increase reliability—but it will require more critical minerals and rare earth elements (REE). As we make this transition, the United States will become more energy secure, but will face a new landscape of commodity exposure. Today, we rely too often on tenuous supply chains, some of which are effectively monopolized by geostrategic competitors, for those resources. Despite record electric vehicle sales in 2023 and solar + storage topping all new energy deployed across the U.S., the advanced energy industry contends with highly concentrated sources for critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper, that power their technologies. Supply chain transparency, coupled with onshoring and friendshoring critical minerals production, diversified sourcing, and recycling play important roles in fortifying supply chains and reducing risk.   

On Earth Day, the Biden Administration marked an important step toward accessible, affordable, and equitable residential and community solar as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the program awardees. Funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, Solar for All is part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a $27 billion set aside to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants, deliver the benefits of greenhouse gas- and air pollution-reducing projects to American communities, and mobilize financing and private capital to stimulate additional deployment of greenhouse gas and air pollution reducing projects.

Last month, the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE) held its annual Energy Policy Summit in Washington, DC. Bringing together leaders across the energy industry, AABE members and other attendees took on the challenge of discussing an ‘Expedient & Equitable Implementation’ of the most recent federal policies aimed at the national energy transition.  

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) contained a variety of incentives, grants programs, and policies to help catalyze not only the growth of clean generation, but also energy efficiency and building electrification. Among the notable measures in the landmark law were a pair of residential rebate programs - the Home Efficiency Rebates and the Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates Programs – for which the IRA provided $8.6 billion.

Yesterday, we had the privilege of sponsoring The Hill’s event Clean Energy Permitting Reform: The Path Ahead, which convened members of Congress, policy leaders, and United member company representatives at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. to discuss permitting reform for clean energy manufacturing, transmission, and the production and recycling of critical minerals.