This blog article will explore President-Elect Joe Biden’s energy sector goals for his administration.  This is important for us in the Energy industry so we understand what changes can be anticipated and we can make adjustments to our long-term goals and plans as appropriate. 

According to Biden’s campaign website he has a “Plan to Build a Modern, Sustainable Infrastructure and an Equitable Clean Energy Future.”  In his plan, he lists goals, many of which would come to fruition in the decades to come.

Biden’s Administration Immediate Goals

His plan begins with rejoining the Paris Agreement on January 20, 2021, the day the next presidential term begins.  The Paris Agreement entered into force on November 4, 2016, and the United States left the agreement exactly four years later.

Biden’s Administration 2030 Goals

Following his promise to rejoin the Paris Agreement, his next set of goals are set to be established a decade from now in 2030.  By the end of 2030, Biden’s goals for the county include:

• Conserve 30% of America’s lands and waters
• Double offshore wind generation
• Invest $400 billion on clean energy research and innovation
• Deploy at least 500,000 more public electrical vehicle charging outlets

2020 vs 2030

• As of a 2018 Center for American Progress study, 12% of the nation’s land and 26% of the nation’s ocean has been conserved.
• The office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy listed the U.S. offshore wind pipeline creating 25,924 megawatts as of 2018.
• The U.S. Department of Energy lists the United States as currently having 27,611 charging stations (this includes all types of chargers and connectors).

Biden’s Administration 2035 Goal

Biden’s plan states a goal of reducing the carbon footprint of building stock 50% by 2035.

2020 vs 2035

• The Environmental and Energy Study Institute says that 8% of the U.S. carbon dioxide emissions come from the manufacture, transport, and assembly of building materials.  

Biden’s Administration 2050 Goals

Three decades from now, Biden’s plan proposes the U.S. producing net-zero emissions and having a 100% clean energy economy.  To reach net-zero emissions, the U.S. will have to produce the same or less greenhouse gas emissions as they remove from the atmosphere.  For a 100% clean energy economy, the U.S. cannot produce more pollution than it can remove.

2020 vs 2050

• The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects the U.S. energy-related emissions to total 4,543 million metric tons (MMmt) in 2020 (an 11% decrease from 2019).

Investments

As mentioned above, as one of Biden’s 2030 goals is to invest $400 billion on clean energy research and innovation.  Overall, his plan states investing $5 trillion total over the next 10 years.  More specifically, Biden’s plan also mentions making investments in different subsections of the energy sector:

• Infrastructure – rebuild America’s “crumbling” infrastructure: bridges, green spaces, water systems, electricity grids and universal broadband
• Auto Industry – Investing in 21st century manufacturing
• Transit – provide American cities of 100,000 residents with zero-emission public transportation options
• Power Sector – create American-made, clean electricity
• Buildings – Upgrade 4 million buildings and weatherize 2 million homes
• Housing – construct 1.5 million sustainable homes
• Innovation – reduce costs of clean energy technology such as innovating battery storage, negative emission tech, next-gen building materials, renewable hydrogen, and advance nuclear
• Agriculture and Conservation – work toward climate-smart agriculture, including plugging abandoned oil and natural gas wells while reclaiming mineral mines
• Environmental Justice – keep environmental justice in mind when making decisions moving forward

Preparing for the Future

States have been putting their own renewable energy plans into place for years, so the industry has already been adapting.  Large coal-fired plants are being shut down or refitted while technologies in wind and solar generation and energy storage continue to make these aggressive goals more and more realistic. 

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Biden’s climate plan