Energy powerhouse to Republicans: Don't ‘take renewables off the table'
The head of the one of the nation's largest power providers said he agrees with Republicans on the need for the United States to bring back domestic manufacturing and to win the AI race. But the GOP bid to repeal clean energy tax credits, attack China using trade rules and boost the nuclear and coal industry will make their goal to dominate in energy impossible.
NextEra Energy Chair and CEO John Ketchum told the POLITICO Energy Summit on Tuesdaythat the anticipated surge in power demand over the next 20 years could make the country vulnerable to energy shortages and reliability problems if 'we take renewables off the table.'
'We cannot afford to do that. If we do that, we will lose the AI race, and we will bring this economic expansion in the United States to a screeching halt,' said Ketchum, whose FPL utility subsidiary is the power provider for President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida.
High costs and long timelines to build new natural gas and nuclear plants — both of which GOP members have championed — mean neither source will be able to meet the growth in demand until 2032 or later, Ketchum said, so policy needs to companies like his can tap into a variety of energy sources.
'Our job at NextEra is to get electrons on the grid, I don't care what flavor they are,' he added. 'I don't care if it's renewables, gas or nuclear, I have to get electrons on the grid to accommodate all of the demand that we see in this country and do it at a reasonable cost.' NextEra is the nation's biggest owner of natural gas-fired power plants and the world's leading generator of electricity from wind and solar power.
On the House Republicans' megabill, he said that the "foreign entity of concern" provisions that disqualify projects from receiving any tax credits if they have ties to China are 'unworkable' and impossible to comply with. When it comes to meeting America's needs, Ketchum said Republicans need to focus on equipment at a 'component level' and design a policy that is feasible for manufacturing companies to abide by.
Relying on coal is not the answer either, Ketchum said. Trump has signed sweeping executive orders to try to boost coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, including drawing on emergency powers to reinvigorate a coal industry that has been struggling for decades because of tightening environmental regulations and competition from less-expensive natural gas and renewables.
For Ketchum, Trump's bid to revive coal is 'not going to make a dent.' He pointed out how many coal facilities have already been retired and how costly it is for consumers and utility companies to depend on coal for energy.
'The train has already left the station on coal,' he said.
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