McKinley demands answers from Secretary Granholm regarding unrealistic move to 100% “green” energy, putting U.S. energy system at risk
Washington, D.C. — Congressman David B. McKinley, P.E. (W.Va.-01), who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke during the Energy Subcommittee hearing with Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
Excerpts and highlights from his prepared remarks:
Madam Secretary: The U.S. is sanctioning Russia over its aggression in Ukraine. We’re not buying Putin’s gas or oil, but we are acquiring his uranium. Thanks to Hilary Clinton’s 2010 Uranium One deal, Russia now controls 20% of U.S. uranium production.
To counter the loss, Congress appropriated $75 million to establish a strategic uranium reserve in 2020.
Yet, according to an article by Sen. Barrasso in the Wall Street Journal, DOE hasn’t purchased a single ounce of uranium since then. Is Sen. Barrasso wrong?
And President Biden has signed an executive order requiring a zero emissions grid by 2035, but the head of global research at General Electric in New York told Paul Tonko and me, unequivocally, that such an ideologically-drive goal of going to 100% renewables by 2035 will cause the grid to collapse.
Robert Blohm, a member of NERC, said “an all-renewables power grid is destined to collapse.”
They aren’t talking about a blackout over the weekend, this is long-term grid failure, possibly years. Schools and stores would close, and commerce would cease we’d be virtually thrust back to the 1800s.
We know that only 10% of PJM’s grid is renewables. They would have to replace 90% of their power.
Researchers at Harvard said permitting issues “put the Biden goal of……2035 out of reach.”
Therefore, streamlining permitting should be a priority for the grid. Yet the administration issued new NEPA rules last week, making it even harder to permit projects.
Do you agree that achieving 100% emissions free energy by 2035 is scientifically possible?
And for the materials for batteries……in the last three years:
- The cost of nickel has gone up 85%; and
- The cost of lithium has gone up 670%
- And copper is the highest it’s been in 10 years
- And the Congo uses child labor to mine cobalt
The Center for Strategic and International Studies expects we’ll see a 500 to 1000% jump in demand by 2050.
Has this administration granted any new permits for mining critical minerals in the U.S.?
Mr. Chairman: this committee has been known for trying to incorporate science into its decisions.
But in the past year, evidence overwhelmingly suggests that Democrats are keen on using artificial, ideologically-drive timelines and not reality, in fact DOE advocates for:
- Buying uranium from our adversaries
- Setting regulatory roadblocks for our grid
- And continuing to rely on foreign countries for critical minerals
Original source can be found here.
