U.S. to double wind, solar power capacity in 5 years: official

The United States is expected to double wind and solar power capacity in the next five years, during which bases with more than 100 gigawatts of wind and solar power will be installed, a senior official said here on Wednesday.

"With long-term extensions of the renewable energy tax credit, Congress is pretty much assured that renewables will continue to dominate the marketplace," Gina McCarthy, administrator of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), told energy leaders at the ongoing IHS CERAWeek, a leading energy forum.

The increase in renewables has added more than 250,000 jobs nationwide, and the U.S. solar industry is now creating jobs 10 times faster than the rest of the economy, McCarthy noted, adding that all major U.S. automakers now offer electric vehicles.

McCarthy said that in 2015, renewable energy costs plummeted and clean energy technologies accounted for well over half of the country's newly installed power-sector capacity.

The country added 8.6 gigawatts of wind power capacity in 2015, up 65 percent from the 2014 level, she said.

"Not only does it make sense to further policies that ensure we harvest the rich economic opportunities of clean energy, it helps make sure we are establishing policies that honor the value that Americans are placing on clean air, and on tackling climate change," she stressed, adding that renewable energy also promotes innovation.

Plans for clean energy continued to hit milestones despite the U.S. Supreme Court's narrow decision on Feb. 10 that temporarily halts implementing the EPA's Clean Power Plan, which would have placed first federal limits on carbon emissions from power plants.

McCarthy noted that there have been great national and international movements toward reducing greenhouse gases, including plans for setting historic, cost-effective greenhouse gas emission standards, and clean energy plans enacted on a voluntary basis within 30 U.S. states.

She said that these accomplishments, along with the Paris global pact reached by nearly 200 nations on Dec.12, 2015 on curbing greenhouse gas emissions, mean that the world is pushing for clean energy despite some temporary political setbacks.

"Going from fossil fuels to renewables is a transition to cleaner energy," she said. "The clean energy train has left the station." Endi