Biden Meets with U.S. Utility Executives to Push for Rebuilding Better Act

Washington, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- President Biden held talks at the White House on Wednesday afternoon with representatives of public utility executives across the Country, including Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, White House National Economic Council Director Brian Deese, White House Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy and Duke Energy, DTE Energy, and Duke Energy. Representatives of Exelon Nuclear Power, Edison Electric Research Institute and other companies and institutions attended the meeting.

Biden said at the meeting that the devastating wildfires that have occurred frequently in the western region in recent years are caused in part by climate change, and that carbon emissions from fossil fuels, including electricity generation, are among the main culprits. To effectively address the climate crisis facing the United States, he has proposed a massive spending plan that includes a comprehensive clean energy transition.

"The bill I'm proposing will help American households reduce their energy bills while addressing climate change, while protecting the grid from extreme weather, making electricity supplies more reliable and creating more jobs," Biden said. This will make us more economically competitive while reducing pollution and improving public health. ”

Representatives of public utilities attending the meeting welcomed Biden's proposal for the clean energy tax credit included in the bill, but they also pointed out that it is difficult to obtain Senate approval until the framework of the Rebuild better act is further compressed, so the clean energy tax credit is still in an embarrassing state of "paper talk".

The clean energy tax credits in previous versions of the Rebuild better act covered innovative technologies such as solar, wind, nuclear and carbon dioxide emitted by power generation using stored, transmitted and captured fossil fuels.

While the bill is lagging behind opposition from moderate Democrat Joe Manchin, Manchin has recently expressed openness to the "climate part" of the bill, particularly the tax credits for clean energy.

On the other hand, White House press secretary JenPsaki said at a briefing wednesday that the White House had reached an agreement with senators from both parties, including Manchin, on some of the renewals of the Rebuild better act. Asked if he would consider a change to the bill's name, Psaki responded: "Absolutely. Our goal is to work with representatives of both parties to confirm the president's economic agenda. Whatever the name of this agenda, we hope that it will be finally implemented. ”