Released December 20, 2021 | SUGAR LAND
en
Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. government spends hundreds of billions of dollars per year to purchase goods and services. Uncle Sam is the largest property owner and landlord in the country. The federal government is the largest single purchaser of energy in North America if not the world. It buys untold amounts of cement, steel and building materials each year, and it owns an estimated 600,000 cars and trucks, some portion of which are replaced every year.
As a consumer, the federal government is the proverbial 800-pound gorilla. And when an 800-pound gorilla decides it wants something, it generally gets it.
That's the thinking behind the Biden administration's announcements earlier this month to use the federal government's power as a consumer -- not as a regulator -- to transform the U.S. economy and put it on a more sustainable path.
In a lengthy executive order issued December 8, followed a few days later by an even deeper dive into electric vehicle infrastructure, the Biden administration will try to accomplish through federal procurement rules what it is unlikely to achieve through Congressional action or agency rulemaking: make the federal government a consumer of sustainable products and services.
"The federal government faces broad exposure to the mounting risks and costs already posed by the climate crisis," the president said December 8 in an executive order designed to catalyze clean energy industries and jobs. "In responding to this crisis, we have a once-in-a-generation economic opportunity to create and sustain jobs, including well-paying union jobs; support a just transition to a more sustainable economy for American workers; strengthen America's communities; protect public health; and advance environmental justice."
"As the single largest land owner, energy consumer, and employer in the nation," the president continued, "the federal government can catalyze private sector investment and expand the economy and American industry by transforming how we build, buy, and manage electricity, vehicles, buildings, and other operations to be clean and sustainable."
Joshua Freed, senior vice president for climate and energy at Third Way, a centrist Democratic research group, told The New York Times the plan would "leverage the purchasing power of their government to create demand that markets can meet. The federal government in so many areas is one of, if not the largest, purchaser. "Having the certainty the government is going to purchase cleaner products, materials and vehicles enables companies to move in that direction."
As a candidate and again as a president, Biden has emphasized his desire to decarbonize the electric power industry by 2035 as a milestone to achieving a net-zero carbon economy by mid-century. In his December 8 executive order, he said he will use a whole of government process, focused mainly on procurement, to:
"Through a whole-of-government approach," Biden said, "we will demonstrate how innovation and environmental stewardship can protect our planet, safeguard federal investments against the effects of climate change, respond to the needs of all of America's communities, and expand American technologies, industries, and jobs."
Consider it industrial policy built around sustainability. Biden wants to use the power of the market, not its regulatory bodies, to create jobs and induce system-wide economic changes that will protect the environment while advancing at-risk and underserved communities.
U.S. Senator Mike Barrasso (R-Wyo.) blasted the Biden plan as "another backbreaking move to build bigger bureaucracy" that would destroy the livelihoods of those who work in energy extraction. Biden's plan also was slammed by some environmental organizations for not going far enough fast enough.
Days after the executive order, on December 13 the White House took steps to try to solve the "chicken and egg" problem of how to refuel non-emitting vehicles by announcing the formation of a task force to guide the deployment of infrastructure to refuel electric vehicles (EVs) and other vehicles that are not powered by hydrocarbons. The administration wants EVs to account for 50% of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030.
The task force will be co-led by Department of Energy and Department of Transportation to guide EV infrastructure deployment. The task force will "collect input and guidance from industry leaders, manufacturers, workers, and other stakeholders that will ensure the national (EV charging) network provides convenient charging for all. The initial focus will be building a convenient, reliable public charging network that can build public confidence, with a focus on filling gaps in rural, disadvantaged, and hard-to-reach locations."
In announcing the EV task force, the White House said, "The current network of over 100,000 public chargers operates with different plug types, payment options, data availability, and hardware hookups. (The task force) will establish a more uniform approach, provide greater convenience for customers, and offer increased confidence for industry. ... A ubiquitous charging infrastructure targeted to meet different consumers' needs will provide equitable benefits to all Americans and provide flexibility for future investments, effective integration with a clean power system, and support a growing and diversifying fleet of electrified vehicles."
The recently enacted bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure law set aside $7.5 billion to support deployment of infrastructure to refuel EVs and other forms of alternate transportation. For more on the contents of that new law, see November 9, 2021, article -- Power, Industrial Manufacturing Industries to See Billions of Dollars from $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Legislation. The new law includes about $5 billion to build out the nation's network of EV charging stations. A further $2.5 billion in federal grant funding could go toward EV charging stations or hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Several billion dollars also were set aside to purchase electric and hybrid-fueled school buses.
"This is the largest-ever U.S. investment in EV charging and will be a transformative down payment on the transition to a zero-emission future," the fact sheet said. "President Biden, American families, automakers, and autoworkers agree: the future of transportation is electric. The electric car future is cleaner, more equitable, more affordable, and an economic opportunity to support good-paying, union jobs across American supply chains as automakers continue investing in manufacturing clean vehicles and the batteries that power them."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn.
As a consumer, the federal government is the proverbial 800-pound gorilla. And when an 800-pound gorilla decides it wants something, it generally gets it.
That's the thinking behind the Biden administration's announcements earlier this month to use the federal government's power as a consumer -- not as a regulator -- to transform the U.S. economy and put it on a more sustainable path.
In a lengthy executive order issued December 8, followed a few days later by an even deeper dive into electric vehicle infrastructure, the Biden administration will try to accomplish through federal procurement rules what it is unlikely to achieve through Congressional action or agency rulemaking: make the federal government a consumer of sustainable products and services.
"The federal government faces broad exposure to the mounting risks and costs already posed by the climate crisis," the president said December 8 in an executive order designed to catalyze clean energy industries and jobs. "In responding to this crisis, we have a once-in-a-generation economic opportunity to create and sustain jobs, including well-paying union jobs; support a just transition to a more sustainable economy for American workers; strengthen America's communities; protect public health; and advance environmental justice."
"As the single largest land owner, energy consumer, and employer in the nation," the president continued, "the federal government can catalyze private sector investment and expand the economy and American industry by transforming how we build, buy, and manage electricity, vehicles, buildings, and other operations to be clean and sustainable."
Joshua Freed, senior vice president for climate and energy at Third Way, a centrist Democratic research group, told The New York Times the plan would "leverage the purchasing power of their government to create demand that markets can meet. The federal government in so many areas is one of, if not the largest, purchaser. "Having the certainty the government is going to purchase cleaner products, materials and vehicles enables companies to move in that direction."
As a candidate and again as a president, Biden has emphasized his desire to decarbonize the electric power industry by 2035 as a milestone to achieving a net-zero carbon economy by mid-century. In his December 8 executive order, he said he will use a whole of government process, focused mainly on procurement, to:
- Ensure that all electricity consumed by the federal government will be 100% carbon-free by 2030, up from an estimated 40% today
- Purchase only zero-emission vehicles for the government by 2035 (excluding vehicles used in combat)
- Reduce the use of fossil fuels at federal buildings by 50% by 2032 and have those buildings become net-zero by 2045
- Achieve a 65% reduction in scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions at federal buildings by 2030 compared to 2008 levels
- Use a "Buy Clean" process to procure construction materials that have lower embodied greenhouse gas emissions in them
"Through a whole-of-government approach," Biden said, "we will demonstrate how innovation and environmental stewardship can protect our planet, safeguard federal investments against the effects of climate change, respond to the needs of all of America's communities, and expand American technologies, industries, and jobs."
Consider it industrial policy built around sustainability. Biden wants to use the power of the market, not its regulatory bodies, to create jobs and induce system-wide economic changes that will protect the environment while advancing at-risk and underserved communities.
U.S. Senator Mike Barrasso (R-Wyo.) blasted the Biden plan as "another backbreaking move to build bigger bureaucracy" that would destroy the livelihoods of those who work in energy extraction. Biden's plan also was slammed by some environmental organizations for not going far enough fast enough.
Days after the executive order, on December 13 the White House took steps to try to solve the "chicken and egg" problem of how to refuel non-emitting vehicles by announcing the formation of a task force to guide the deployment of infrastructure to refuel electric vehicles (EVs) and other vehicles that are not powered by hydrocarbons. The administration wants EVs to account for 50% of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030.
The task force will be co-led by Department of Energy and Department of Transportation to guide EV infrastructure deployment. The task force will "collect input and guidance from industry leaders, manufacturers, workers, and other stakeholders that will ensure the national (EV charging) network provides convenient charging for all. The initial focus will be building a convenient, reliable public charging network that can build public confidence, with a focus on filling gaps in rural, disadvantaged, and hard-to-reach locations."
In announcing the EV task force, the White House said, "The current network of over 100,000 public chargers operates with different plug types, payment options, data availability, and hardware hookups. (The task force) will establish a more uniform approach, provide greater convenience for customers, and offer increased confidence for industry. ... A ubiquitous charging infrastructure targeted to meet different consumers' needs will provide equitable benefits to all Americans and provide flexibility for future investments, effective integration with a clean power system, and support a growing and diversifying fleet of electrified vehicles."
The recently enacted bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure law set aside $7.5 billion to support deployment of infrastructure to refuel EVs and other forms of alternate transportation. For more on the contents of that new law, see November 9, 2021, article -- Power, Industrial Manufacturing Industries to See Billions of Dollars from $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Legislation. The new law includes about $5 billion to build out the nation's network of EV charging stations. A further $2.5 billion in federal grant funding could go toward EV charging stations or hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Several billion dollars also were set aside to purchase electric and hybrid-fueled school buses.
"This is the largest-ever U.S. investment in EV charging and will be a transformative down payment on the transition to a zero-emission future," the fact sheet said. "President Biden, American families, automakers, and autoworkers agree: the future of transportation is electric. The electric car future is cleaner, more equitable, more affordable, and an economic opportunity to support good-paying, union jobs across American supply chains as automakers continue investing in manufacturing clean vehicles and the batteries that power them."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn.
