US White House backs aggressive power grid emissions cuts: Report

Requiring power utilities to reduce use of coal and natural gas is a key part of US President Biden’s climate plan.

The White House hopes to capitalise on growing support from United States utilities, unions and green groups for a national clean energy mandate by backing efforts to require the US power grid to get 80 percent of its power from emissions-free sources by 2030, a senior administration official tells the Reuters news agency. A 2030 target would be a milestone on the way to achieving US President Joe Biden’s stated ambition of net-zero carbon emissions in the grid by 2035. It could also potentially be passed without Republican support through a process called budget reconciliation. “Our goal is to enact this into law,” Deputy White House Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi told Reuters which reported the news on Tuesday, speaking of the administration’s push for a so-called clean energy standard (CES) to decarbonise the power sector.