Acknowledging the field of renewable energies is already a multi-billion dollar

Question

Acknowledging the field of renewable energies is already a multi-billion dollar industry, former Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu stated "the choice is clear; we can either make these technologies here today or import them tomorrow".

Assuming the renewable industry continues to progress and these technologies are needed by every country in the future, how should the United States Department Of Energy push and promote its own renewable technologies over foreign companies to "win" the future of renewable energy manufacturing?

Please detail your answer over 1-2 pages with valid references.

Explanation / Answer

Renewable energy is generally defined as energy that is collected from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale, such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat.

The following is the brief explanation on renewable energies:

Solar energy : Power from the sun—is a vast and inexhaustible resource that can supply a significant portion of our electricity needs. A range of technologies is used to convert the sun’s energy into electricity, including solar collectors and photovoltaic panels.

Wind Power : Wind turbines harness air currents and convert them to emissions-free power. Plentiful and inexhaustible in the United States and around the world, wind power is one of the fastest growing renewable technologies and has the potential to provide a significant portion of our electricity needs.

Geo Thermal Energy : Heat from the earth can be used as an energy source in many ways, from large and complex power stations to small and relatively simple residential pumping systems.

Hydroelectric Power : Using dams to exploit the movement of water for electricity, known as hydroelectric power, is the largest source of renewable power in the United States and worldwide.

The renewable energy industry remains one of the most dynamic, fast-changing and transformative sectors of the global economy. Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicts that renewables will account for about 60 percent of new generating capacity installed over the next 25 years. This market penetration—along with technology advances and reduced production costs that are quickly moving the sector toward grid parity—underscores the important contribution of renewables to economic growth. Presently, we are seeing an intense demand for these technologies in overseas markets, particularly in the Asia Pacific region.Renewable energy overall expanded significantly in terms of capacity installed and energy produced. Some technologies experienced more rapid growth in deployment in 2014 than they have averaged over the past five years. The most rapid growth, and the largest increase in capacity, occurred in the power sector.

Overall, U.S. energy product exports to the world grew by seven percent between 2009-2014. This number could be even higher, but the daunting reality of tariffs and service barriers have dampened demand for products such as turbines, solar cells, static convertors, civil nuclear equipment, and high-voltage electric conductors. In some markets, many energy products currently face tariffs as high as 30 percent.

ITA(International Trade Administration)'s Industry and Analysis division recently produced the Renewable Energy Top Markets Report, a market assessment tool designed to help U.S. companies identify markets of opportunity and inform their export strategies related to renewable energy products and services. The report ranks top export markets, features case studies on key markets and identifies areas of opportunity and challenges faced when exporting to TPP partner countries including Canada, Japan, Chile, and Mexico.

Canada ranks No. 1 on ITA’s list of top renewable energy export markets for the second year in a row. During the next two years, Canada will account for nearly one-fourth of all U.S exports in the sector. Canada’s national commitment to greenhouse gas reduction suggests significant clean energy investment through at least 2020. This means more opportunities for U.S exporters. This has undergone dramatic changes in its energy sector during the past few years, and is expected to rank sixth in installed renewable energy capacity through 2016.

Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RE&EE) Working Group, these efforts are being led by the Department of Commerce International Trade Administration and the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The RE&EE Working Group is a component of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC), an interagency group established by Executive Order in 1993.

The RE&EE Working Group also includes the State Department, Export-Import Bank, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Trade and Development Agency, U.S. Agency for International Development. Each of these agencies has a specific role and resources to support clean energy exporters.

The RE&EE Working Group’s major accomplishments over the last two years include:

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