Why We Can't Have it Both Ways

Is Trump going to turn off the power?

On Monday January 20, the White House issued what was billed as a big blow to offshore wind. But in nice (verbose) language, it was actually called the “Temporary Withdrawal of All Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf from Offshore Wind Leasing and Review of the Federal Government’s Leasing and Permitting Practices for Wind Projects.”

The lead paragraph certainly sounded like it would appeal to environmentalists as well as to energy consumers. It noted principals of “responsible public stewardship” and the importance of marine life, impacts on ocean currents and wind patterns, effects on energy costs for Americans –- especially those who can least afford it –- and to ensure that the United States is able to maintain a robust fishing industry for future generations and provide low cost energy to its citizens…”

However, the edict included some curious language a couple of paragraphs later.

This withdrawal does not apply to leasing related to any other purposes such as, but not limited to, oil, gas, minerals, and environmental conservation…

Huh? This is probably where anyone who is open-minded about energy matters threw their hands up in the air.

Regulating Wind and Renewable Energy is Smart

Folks, we’ve said it for years: the wind industry could benefit from some oversight and standardization. And especially in the US, those citizens (mentioned above!) who need reliable, affordable energy will only get it if the government manages the process to protect the environment and to ensure development of cleaner energy. We needed that 30 (50!) years ago.

The demand for electricity is only going to increase, slowly, and then all at once. But can the electricity produced get to where it is needed? That is the purview of the federal government because transmission line cross state lines. The constant barrage of transmission bottleneck complaints is directly tied to federal bureaucratic oversight and regulations. And yet there has been little incentive to speed up the process or to expand the transmission infrastructure.

Transmission infrastructure is about as exciting as dry toast. But what happens when we - suddenly - don’t have access to the electricity we need? Ah, then, people get excited.

Grid Lockout: You’re Not Going to Like It

Let’s look at the hot topic of AI data centers because it is emblematic of the future grid lockout. All the big Silicon Valley names are in a heated battle to onramp massive new data centers using the latest NVDIA chips. Where will these new facilities be built? Where there is access to electricity. But as Silicon Valley quickly learned, you can’t pull a couple Gigawatts off the existing grid. It’s not designed to handle that kind of load. So what happened next? Silicon Valley investors purchased manufacturing slots for big gas turbines and grabbed land in Louisiana and Texas where they could plug those bright, shiny new turbines into the natural gas pipelines.

Ask yourself why are the environmentally conscious, granola-eating Silicon Valley folks purchasing billions of dollars worth of gas turbines and creating their own off-grid power systems?

Because America is not ready for the electricity prime time.

Is the US Already Behind?

The AI data center debacle is ripping the blinders off many Americans. It is not the government’s job to protect the oil and gas industry. Nor is it the job of government to protect wind and solar. It is the government’s job to create a foundation for a growing economy that provides for its citizens.

Electrification is coming to the whole world. Wind, solar, hydro, nuclear and natural gas will be the fuels.

But if the political climate doesn’t change, it may not come to the US at a fast enough pace.

The counter argument may be “we have plenty of oil and gas” and for a time, that’s true. But as the rest of the world electrifies, and we don’t use all types of energy - we will fall further behind in many ways - manufacturing, then trade, then economically….and it’s not a good look. We are in a battle for electricity dominance. It’s time to face the challenge.

Tell us what you think by contacting the Uptime Wind Energy Podcast (we may respond to comment in a future show) or on our LinkedIn page.