President Joe Biden boasted that there will be no more new coal-fired power plant developments in the U.S. during a Wednesday speech in Chicago, Illinois, even as the U.S. continues to grapple with energy problems.Biden bragged that his economic and energy policies have disincentivized any future development of coal-fired power plants while touting the merits of green energy technology his administration’s policies favor, according to video of his speech. His remarks come about one month after a May 2023 grid assessment report from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which warned that the power grids serving most of New England and a large majority of Americans who live west of the Mississippi River face “elevated risk” of rolling blackouts this summer if weather conditions are hotter than normal.
“You know, it’s already cheaper. Wind and solar are already significantly cheaper than coal and oil. You’re not going to see anybody building a new coal-fired plant in America, not just because I’d like to pass a law to say that. It’s too expensive. It doesn’t work anymore,” Biden said during his speech. “Solar power is not just here, but around the world. And we used to be the center of building these solar panels. We’re coming back and doing it again. America is going to lead again.”
“Working with our global partners, America’s investments in clean energy technology are going to reduce carbon emissions, continue to lower the cost of wind,” Biden said.
The Biden administration has allocated hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars towards green energy initiatives and subsidies, while aggressively regulating fossil fuel infrastructure. (RELATED: Top EPA Official Pushing EVs Can’t Say How Much Electricity America Uses In A Year)
Coal, natural gas and petroleum combined provided nearly 80% of the energy consumed by Americans in 2021, while solar and wind energy combined to source less than 5% of the energy consumed that year, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. A top Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) official warned earlier in June that “dire” and “catastrophic consequences” may arise if the Biden administration does not stop forcing the retirement of fossil fuel infrastructure before green energy alternatives are capable of adequately feeding the U.S. power grid system.
Biden delivered a personal “guarantee” that his administration would “end fossil fuels” as a presidential candidate in 2019.
The White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
