reneweconomy.com.au/2012/...ch-can-the-us-lead-the-world-59869
By Tim Buckley on 16 February 2012
United States of cleantech: Can the US lead the world?
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US Government Initiatives
The Obama administration has made a concerted effort to improve American energy security, reduce dependence on foreign oil, stimulate the US economy and encourage the RD&D (research, development and deployment) of renewable energy technologies. In doing so, the US has, by any reasonable measure, made progress in the task of addressing climate change. Several key initiatives that the Administration has deployed and are worthy of understanding in some detail include:
1. The “1705 DOE loan guarantee program” – which gives a Department of Energy (DOE) endorsement allowing a firm to secure a long-term loan guaranteed by the DOE. Importantly, the loan can be raised to help fund construction, whereas most long-term loans are commercially available only post commissioning of a particular plant. The 1705 program leverages both the endorsement of the DOE, but just as importantly, relies on the credit rating of the Federal government, allowing very commercial rates to be locked in for 10-20 years.
2. ITC Cash grants – Renewable energy projects approved by the US Treasury during the period 2009-2011, and which have construction commencing before 1 October 2012, have been eligible for a cash grant equal to up to 30% of the total project cost (under section 1603 of the ARRA, otherwise known as the Recovery Act). To-date, US$10.4bn in grants have been awarded on projects worth US$35bn. The later amount covers projects across all renewable technologies, that is wind, thin-film solar, solar modules, solar thermal, geothermal heat pumps, shallow geothermal, CHP, landfill gas, biomass and small hydro (refer here).
3. Mandatory renewable energy targets (RET) – while there is no Federal US RET target, 29 US States have set their own targets. The most demanding of these is in California, where there is a requirement to produce 33% renewable energy by 2020. This is followed by Nevada at 25 per cent by 2025 and Hawaii at 40 per cent by 2030 (refer here). These mandatory RETs mean that in the main renewable projects in America have been able to find electric utilities willing to sign power purchase agreements (PPA) over the life of a project, which are typically 20-25 years in duration (by comparison, Australian renewable projects are lucky to get a 15 year PPA).
4. PURPA – The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, passed in 1978, mandates that electric utilities must interconnect with renewable power production facilities. This is similar to Germany, although there is no equivalent in Australia.
5. Production Tax Credit (PTC) – The PTC is a corporate tax credit which credits 2.2c per kWh for electricity produced by wind power. The PTC was extended by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, but is due to expire at the end of 2012.
6. Electric Vehicles (EV) – A target of 1 million EV by 2015 (refer here).
7. Passenger vehicle emission standards – On November 16, 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the National Program of harmonised greenhouse gas and fuel economy standards applying to passenger vehicle model years 2017 through 2025. Delivered under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), this sets what is otherwise known as the CAFE standard (refer here).
As is common in Australia, the US Congress has been very effective in undermining President Obama’s initiatives, much to enthusiasm of the fossil fuel industry.
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