Letter to Ernest Moniz, Secretary of Energy - Increase Investments in Community Wind Projects

Letter

The Honorable Ernest Moniz
Secretary
United States Department of Energy

Dear Secretary Moniz:

We are writing to express our strong support for distributed wind power systems, which generate clean energy, create jobs, and stimulate local economic development. We hope that as the Department of Energy (DOE) allocates this year's renewable energy technology program funds, it will increase its investment in this important energy industry.

As long-time supporters of renewable energy, we are encouraged by the significant progress that renewable energy systems are now making in our energy economy. The rapid increase in wind power and solar energy capacity over the past several years is especially notable, confirming renewable energy's substantial and growing role in electric power generation for the nation. We commend the DOE for the part that its renewable energy technology programs have played in enabling these successes. DOE's wind and solar programs have made major contributions for these technologies across the full value chain spectrum, from basic and applied research to technology development, testing, systems development, applications analysis, and commercialization support.

We support continuation of strong federal renewable energy programs, especially in areas with significant potential for expanding our use of clean, renewable power systems. In particular, we believe distributed wind power systems deserve sustained, and increased support. Distributed wind power systems, spanning a wide variety of applications across communities, businesses, and farms and ranches nationwide, clearly have the potential to contribute many gigawatts of electricity similar to other renewable technologies. Moreover, the distributed wind power industry appears to be at the threshold of rapid commercialization.

Increased DOE investments in such areas as cost-shared technology development and performance verification, permitting process improvements, interconnection processes, and financing options can lead to rapid acceleration in the deployment of distributed wind systems. The result would be thousands of new jobs and increased local economic development across the nation. This latter point is, we believe, especially noteworthy. Distributed wind systems have exceptionally high domestic content-exceeding 90 percent-and the broadly dispersed nature of this technology, in terms of applications, manufacturers, and installers, means that the expansion of distributed wind will create jobs and stimulate local economies in nearly every region of the country.

Given these potential benefits, we urge the Department to provide at least $6.4 million to distributed wind as you plan the detailed allocations of renewable energy program funds for FY15. DOE should also consider additional funding increases for distributed wind in the future commensurate with this technology's potential energy and economic benefits.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter, and please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions.

Sincerely,