Washington –
Business Roundtable (BRT), an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies, today released
Taking Action on Energy: A CEO Vision for America’s Energy Future,
a detailed, comprehensive national energy strategy to capitalize on
U.S. strengths and accelerate economic growth and job creation.
“America’s energy economy is firing on all cylinders – efficiency,
renewable power, oil and gas production, and advanced coal and nuclear
power technology,” said David M. Cote, Chairman and CEO of Honeywell
International, Inc., and Chair of BRT’s Energy and Environment
Committee. “North American energy self-sufficiency is within reach, but
the missing piece is an effective strategy to capitalize on U.S.
advantages.
Taking Action on Energy is that strategy.”
In
Taking Action on Energy, CEOs, who lead major U.S.
companies that operate in every sector of the economy – and represent
energy producers, consumers and technology suppliers – offer a vision
for America’s energy future that is more affordable, more secure and
more sustainable.
“Driven by private sector innovation and investment, the United States
is poised to regain its status as an energy superpower,” said John S.
Watson, Chairman and CEO of Chevron Corporation. “The dramatic rise in
U.S. oil and natural gas production is creating jobs and economic growth
across America, but our ability to take full advantage of the historic
opportunity in front of us depends upon the right policy framework.”
“Reliable, affordable energy makes the United States the location of
choice for manufacturing,” said Andrew N. Liveris, Chairman and CEO of
The Dow Chemical Company. “We have outlined a strategy to ensure America
stays on top.”
“America’s electric power infrastructure has long delivered value to
consumers and enhanced industrial competitiveness,” said Nicholas K.
Akins, President and CEO of American Electric Power. “To preserve that
value, sound energy strategy must maintain fuel diversity for power
generation, support investment in our nation’s transmission system,
provide a long-term solution for storing spent nuclear fuel and consider
the economic consequences of energy and environmental regulation.”
In
Taking Action on Energy, BRT CEOs call on Congress and the
Administration to adopt policies that will enhance U.S.
self-sufficiency, boost economic growth and promote environmental
stewardship. The plan includes detailed and specific recommendations in
each of four areas – energy efficiency; traditional energy production;
renewable energy production; and electric power generation, transmission
and distribution – including measures to:
-
Foster innovation by sustaining public investments in
a diverse portfolio of pre-commercial research and development
(R&D) activities, including:
-
R&D on cost-effective technologies that have the potential to
improve energy efficiency while diversifying energy sources;
-
Projects to demonstrate the commercial viability of carbon capture,
utilization and storage, provided that such funding is offered for a
finite timeframe and limited in scope; and
-
R&D and demonstration projects for pre-commercial renewable
electricity generation and transportation fuels, with an emphasis on
performance, emissions reductions and technology neutrality.
-
Drive increased energy efficiency by:
-
Ensuring that state legislatures and public utility commissions
consider policies that promote investment in cost-effective energy
efficiency measures, and ensure that such investments are as profitable
for utilities as generation and distribution assets;
-
Expanding the use of Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs)
and Utility Energy Services Contracts (UESCs) in the federal government,
as well as training and education for federal energy managers,
policymakers and procurement/legal staff regarding the use and benefits
of these contracts; and
-
Encouraging energy efficiency measures at the state level based on
effective federal policy guidelines that can be cost-effectively
implemented; and giving states the flexibility to account for local
differences in regulatory approaches.
-
Improve access to promising energy resources by:
-
Increasing access to onshore and offshore federal lands to ensure reliable supplies of coal, oil and natural gas;
-
Streamlining the permitting and approval processes to expedite critical infrastructure projects;
-
Respecting the role that states have traditionally played in
regulating oil and natural gas activity on non-federal lands, and
ensuring that new regulations for federal lands are developed in
consultation with states and are consistent with state regulations; and
-
Ensuring that EPA regulations are based on sound science, undergo
thorough net cost-benefit analysis, and take into consideration the net
cumulative impact these regulations have on energy costs, economic
growth and job creation, while being protective of human health and the
environment.
-
Reform incentives for renewable power technology deployment by:
-
Providing wind-powered electricity generation with a smooth
transition to an era of unsubsidized competitiveness by extending the
wind production tax credit so that the benefit is gradually reduced and
ultimately eliminated;
-
Ensuring that decisions regarding tax incentives for renewable
resources are designed to address well-documented market inefficiencies,
applied only to those fuels and technologies with a credible path to
unsubsidized competitiveness and finite in duration and eventually
phased out in a predictable fashion;
-
Accounting for regional variations in renewable energy resource availability when developing legislation and regulation; and
-
With respect to the renewable fuel standard, policymakers should
consider the limitations of the current vehicle fleet, fuel distribution
infrastructure and actual production capacity, and adopt targeted
modifications as needed.
-
Encourage accelerated modernization of the electric power sector by:
-
Carefully evaluating the timing and cumulative impact of EPA
regulations on the electric utility industry and, as appropriate,
modifying these regulations to ensure continued reliability, avoid
unreasonable rate impacts, and maintain a diverse, market-driven
portfolio of baseload electricity generation fuel options;
-
Devising a long-term solution to remove and manage nuclear spent fuel;
-
Providing transparent rate incentives for cost-effective upgrades to
the nation’s transmission infrastructure in order to facilitate grid
modernization and support competitive wholesale electricity markets;
-
Improving coordination among federal agencies, such as the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), state
commissions and other stakeholders, to address the complexity,
unpredictability and inefficiency of transmission planning, siting and
cost allocation decisions for interstate projects;
-
Supporting DOE and National Institute of Standards and Technology
efforts to accelerate and coordinate the development of “smart grid”
standards; and
-
Requiring actionable and timely cybersecurity threat intelligence
sharing from government to critical infrastructure owners and operators.
“America’s energy future is bright, but it is not certain,” concluded
Cote. “A diverse portfolio of energy efficiency and supply options is
the best way to preserve and extend America’s significant energy
advantages.”
Click
here to view the
full report.
Click
here to view a one-page
overview of the full report.
Click
here to view a one-page overview of the CEO recommendations on
energy efficiency.
Click
here to view a one-page overview of the CEO recommendations on
traditional energy production.
Click
here to view a one-page overview of the CEO recommendations on
renewable energy production.
Click
here to view a one-page overview of the CEO recommendations on
electric power generation, transmission and distribution.
Business Roundtable (BRT) is an association of chief executive officers
of leading U.S. companies with more than $7.3 trillion in annual
revenues and nearly 16 million employees. BRT member companies comprise
nearly a third of the total value of the U.S. stock market and invest
more than $150 billion annually in research and development – equal to
61 percent of U.S. private R&D spending. Our companies pay $182
billion in dividends to shareholders and generate nearly $500 billion in
sales for small and medium-sized businesses annually.
BRT companies give more than $9 billion a year in combined charitable contributions.
Please visit us at
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