U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm recently addressed attendees at the CERAWeek 2023 S&P Global conference in Houston.
Granholm highlighted the need for companies to increase investments in climate-friendly sources related to their core businesses. Granholm also stressed the importance of transforming the American energy industry to secure the energy grid, lower costs and tackle climate change. She emphasized the need to make traditional energy sources cleaner, develop renewable energy sources, and build transmission infrastructure to deliver power to American homes and businesses.
"The department has been investing in methods to minimize carbon pollution from heavy industry for years," she said. "The amount of funding we’re pouring in now is unprecedented."
According to a Department of Energy press release, Granholm said, "We need to advance the technologies for abating fossil emissions, and we need to advance the technologies for clean sources. We need both traditional and new energy. As this transition progresses, our energy mix will change. And that means we all have to play a part to make sure this is a managed transition. One that keeps us ready and able to meet consumer energy demand today, while expanding into more and more diverse sources for tomorrow. And one where we’re able to send energy from where it’s generated to where it needs to go."
Granholm continued by stating, "When I visited CERAWeek last year, I spoke of the $62 billion that the Department of Energy is overseeing, as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, for grid upgrades, supply chains, demonstration projects for high-potential technologies, and more. And since then, we’ve added to that pot with the Inflation Reduction Act."
According to another press release by DOE, Granholm said, "To make this all work, we need the private sector stepping up—we often say these investments are private sector led, government enabled. So perhaps most of all, we need the energy sector stepping up. And that certainly includes the oil and gas industry. You have the skillsets and knowledge to build some critical technologies at scale. Your expertise in offshore drilling gives you a leg up on offshore wind. Your breakthroughs in fracking give you a massive advantage in geothermal. Your practices around natural gas transport and infrastructure development could lend themselves to clean hydrogen. And, of course, few are better positioned to crack open cost-effective carbon management."
Granholm also tweeted, "To secure our grid, lower costs, and tackle climate change, we need to transform American energy. Traditional energy needs to cleaner. Renewable energy must be developed. And transmission has to be built to get that power to American homes and businesses."
