New act seen as setback for green energy

The renewable energy industry in the United States is set to face a major setback after President Donald Trump signed his "One Big Beautiful Bill" into law on July 4.

The law eliminates many of the measures in former president Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, which supported the nation's clean energy projects and led to significant growth in the industry.

Since August 2022, at least 160 clean energy manufacturing facilities or expansions have been announced, including 47 last year alone, according to the American Clean Power Association. These developments, supported by tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act, were projected to create 100,000 new manufacturing jobs and bring in more than $500 billion in investment.

The "One Big Beautiful Bill" accelerates the expiration or eliminates many of the IRA's clean energy tax credits. It also places strong restrictions on projects using foreign entities.

The American Clean Power Association estimates that this will increase consumer electricity costs by 8 to 10 percent and raise taxes on clean energy businesses by $4 billion to $7 billion by 2036. Research conducted by Princeton University, led by Jesse Jenkins, a professor, concludes that the loss of federal support is projected to increase annual household energy costs by $165.

Trump called the industry a "scam", and said he would rather have the funds used elsewhere.

Trump's bill received support from several major oil companies, as well as from legacy energy groups. Supporters argue that prioritizing traditional fossil fuel energy will enhance long-term energy security while boosting domestic investment and production.

"Passing this bill is essential to secure America's energy dominance through smart, durable reforms," said Anne Bradbury, chief executive officer of the American Exploration and Production Council.

The reversal of renewable energy has also raised concerns about environmental issues. The US government aimed to reduce emissions by 40 percent under the Paris Agreement, which Trump exited on his first day back in office. Now the US will only see a 3 percent reduction, said Carbon Brief, a UK-based website. Meanwhile, the US will add an extra 7 billion metric tons of emissions under the new law.

Bob Keefe, the executive director of E2, a nationwide nonpartisan group representing over 10,000 business leaders committed to promoting policies that benefit both the economy and the environment, said, "We're going to be going backward on protecting the air that you and I breathe, in the water that we drink, and the planet that we live on."

'Science is clear'

"We need to end our reliance on fossil fuels and invest in alternative sources of energy that are clean, accessible, affordable, sustainable, and reliable," said the United Nations on its website. "The science is clear: to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, emissions need to be reduced by almost half by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050."

The bill will take away tax credits on electric vehicles effective Sept 30. Princeton University research says the loss of EV credits will lead to 8.3 million fewer battery electric and plug-in hybrid light vehicles on US roads in 2030. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, called it "utterly insane and destructive".

Sourabh Gupta, a senior fellow at the Institute for China-America Studies in Washington, told China Daily: "The rollback of the clean energy credits is more or less a death knell against America's ability to compete at the commercial end of the green and clean energy products race. The administration's focus on legacy products, not frontier technologies, in the clean energy space will have serious and damaging long-term consequences."