President Barack Obama proposed on Monday to boost funds for clean energy research and deployment in his 2012 budget by slashing subsidies for fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal.
The budget provides the Department of Energy with $29.5bn (£18.4bn) for the fiscal year 2012, up 4.2% from the proposed 2011 budget, and up 12% from the enacted 2010 budget. Some $8bn would support research in clean energy like wind, solar and advanced batteries.
“Whomever leads in the global, clean energy economy will also take the lead in creating high-paying, highly skilled jobs for its people,” the administration said in the budget.
The budget would also provide $853m to support new nuclear energy technologies, such as small modular reactors. The White House asked for $36bn in federal loan guarantees to help finance the building of nuclear power plants, as it did last year. The loan programme already has $18bn in authority.
To help pay for the clean energy initiatives, the White House is asking Congress to repeal $3.6bn in oil, natural gas and coal subsidies, a move that would total $46.2bn over a decade. In addition, the budget cuts funding for oil and gas research and for hydrogen fuels programmes. But many Republicans oppose cutting subsidies for fossil fuels, saying it would hurt industries that provide jobs while the economy is still fragile.
The budget would double the number of energy innovation hubs to six to bring scientists to work on topics like rare earth elements, energy storage and batteries and development of smart grid technologies designed to make electricity transmission efficient
