Energy secretary touts US announcements at UN climate conference

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm touted U.S. announcements at the United Nations’s COP27 climate summit on a press call Thursday, striking an optimistic note ahead of what is likely to be a contentious negotiation process on a final agreement.

The secretary ran down Energy Department announcements made at the conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, including plans for three new “Earth Shot” energy summits in 2023. These meetings, Granholm said, will concern enhanced geothermal, industrial heat and floating offshore wind energy projects.

Granholm also touted the department’s Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund capitalization grant program, which will provide $250 million in grants to finance energy efficiency projects, as well as $350 million for long-term energy storage projects.

Granholm acknowledged the disruption Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused for the transition to renewables, particularly in Europe, where the U.S. has stepped up its natural gas exports significantly since the war began.

“I think these countries are very much committed to the transition to clean energy and they see the economic opportunity as well as the climate opportunity in that. But we also recognize, for example in Europe, that people are paying through the roof for natural gas [and] that it’s beginning to get cold, that people are deciding not to turn on the heat, that people may be in danger,” she said. “And so we’re trying to do our part to make sure that we can manage the transition in a smart way as we accelerate toward clean energy.”

Granholm has previously sought to ensure fuel exports to Europe do not leave the U.S. shorthanded as winter weather begins, writing to several domestic refiners in August requesting they limit exports ahead of both winter and hurricane season.

The Energy secretary’s remarks came shortly after the release of the first draft of the proposed agreement for the summit, which omitted a proposed fossil fuel drawdown that India’s delegation has pushed for. The agreement is likely to be the subject of intense debate as the conference closes in the coming days.