Market Forces Are Driving a Clean Energy Revolution in the US - by Bill Ritter, Jr., Colorado State University

Transforming U.S. energy systems away from coal and toward clean renewable energy was once a vision touted mainly by environmentalists.  Now it is shared by market purists.

Today, renewable energy resources like wind and solar power are so affordable that they’re driving coal production and coal-fired generation out of business.  Lower-cost natural gas is helping, too.

I direct Colorado State University’s Center for the New Energy Economy, which works with states to facilitate the transition toward a clean energy economy.  In my view today’s energy market reflects years of federal and state support for clean energy research, development and deployment.

And, despite the Trump administration’s support of coal, a recent survey of industry leaders shows that utilities are not changing their plans significantly.

Even if the Trump administration succeeds in repealing the Clean Power Plan, U.S. electric utilities are expected to continue investing heavily in renewable generation.

Transforming Energy Markets
Over the past 24 years — under Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama — the United States made substantial investments to promote research, development and deployment of clean energy technologies.

Federal agencies provided funding for research and development as well as tax incentives.  States used renewable portfolio standards, which typically require that power providers supply an increasing percentage of renewable energy to their customers, to promote deployment of green energy.

This one-two punch led to innovations that have transformed U.S. energy markets.  In the last eight years, utility-scale solar costs have declined by 86 percent and wind energy prices have fallen by 67 percent.

Natural gas prices, which were highly volatile and often spiked in the early 2000s, have now stabilized at much more affordable levels.  They are likely to remain so as production methods improve and sources expand.

The Trump administration is resisting this trend, repealing the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan and proposing subsidies for coal-fired power plants.  In doing so, it has also eliminated programs that were designed to help coal-dependent communities weather the energy transition.

But these reversals can do little to change underlying market forces, which are driving innovation, closing coal plants and promoting investment in clean technologies.

Read more at Market Forces Are Driving a Clean Energy Revolution in the US