Manufacturers Urge Congress to Pass Clean Energy Tax Incentives to Boost U.S. Production

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today over 100 manufacturers and producers sent a letter to President Biden, Leader Schumer, Speaker Pelosi, and committee chairs stating their strong support for long-term clean energy tax incentives in federal budget reconciliation legislation.

The signatories, which includes members of the Coalition for Clean Energy Jobs and Innovation, produce components and equipment that are essential to energy generation, storage, transmission, and efficiency, They range from producers of steel, silicon, solar modules, heat pumps, fuel cells, and other key materials and goods. The letter states how the legislation will help grow existing production, revive jobs and production in key sectors, restart idled facilities, and lead to investment in significant production and manufacturing in the United States.

Ongoing geopolitical issues have energized the debate around how the United States sources its electricity and the opportunity for Congress to support clean energy production and deployment in the United States.

“The pandemic and recent global conflicts have thrown energy markets and supply chains into turmoil, making it even more important to grow America’s energy manufacturing base,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association. “The clean energy deployment and manufacturing incentives being considered by Congress are the blueprint to solving our energy security issues and would drive historic growth in domestic manufacturing and production. Manufacturers need policy certainty to make these capital investments.”

Long-term tax incentives will unlock significantly more manufacturing capacity to meet growing demand for clean energy, including U.S. steel production. The solar industry alone will need 2.5 million tons of steel annually by 2030.

The letter highlights the abundance of available tools and natural resources in the U.S. to grow domestic production, and with the right policies in place, the companies that signed the letter are prepared to make investments that will benefit state and local economies across the country.

“Passage of the clean energy tax package being considered by Congress would dramatically ramp up private investment and domestic manufacturing of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies and will be critical to reaching the nation’s decarbonization goals,” said Frank Wolak, president and CEO of the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association. “With passage of policies like this clean energy tax package, the U.S. hydrogen industry has the potential to create 3.4 million jobs, generate $750 billion in revenue, and supply 14% of national energy demand by 2050.”

“We have a generational opportunity to quickly create tens of thousands of high-quality solar manufacturing jobs in America and strengthen our energy security,” said Scott Moskowitz, director of market strategy and public affairs at Q CELLS America, a solar module manufacturer. “With these policies we can lower energy costs and grow our manufacturing base, but without them our supply chains will remain strained and our clean energy future will be at risk. It’s imperative that that we pass this legislation as soon as possible.”

“The 1-2 punch of pandemic and war have underscored the need for a robust domestic supply chain here in America. It’s not just energy independence. It’s also manufacturing independence,” said Nextracker CEO Dan Shugar, a solar tracker manufacturer. “We’re helping forge that new reality by re-shoring our manufacturing and de-risking our company’s supply chain in the process. Congress can encourage more companies to do the same by enacting manufacturing tax credits as part of a fiscally balanced energy bill.”

“Enacting the clean energy tax reconciliation package will support a robust clean energy economy driven by American innovation and manufacturing,” said Ryan Dougherty, president of the Geothermal Exchange Organization. “Geothermal heat pumps are made in the United States and the industry’s manufacturing is poised to expand significantly if given the tax certainty of this package. This will create thousands of jobs, lower consumer prices, and relieve stress on the electric grid in the process of creating a more sustainable energy future for our country.”

“The passage of clean energy tax credits will enable Solectria to immediately expand PV inverter production in the U.S. and solidify our position as a leading PV inverter supplier,” said Mark Goodreau, general manager at Solectria Renewables, LLC, a solar inverter manufacturer. “For the industry overall, this will guarantee robust long-term growth, more new jobs for American workers, and a faster transition to renewable energy.”

“Congress should quickly extend tax incentives for clean energy technologies such as Combined Heat and Power (CHP) and Waste Heat to Power (WHP),” said David Gardiner, executive director of the Combined Heat and Power Alliance. “Because CHP and WHP use heat that would otherwise be wasted, these tax incentives will make America’s manufacturers more competitive by cutting energy costs, help them meet their own goals to cut carbon pollution, and reduce dependence on foreign energy.”

Download a copy of the manufacturers letter.

Additional Resources:

SEIA whitepaper on the Solar+ Decade and American renewable energy manufacturing

SEIA blog on the potential for tax incentives to grow U.S. solar manufacturing

SEIA video highlighting case studies of U.S. solar manufacturers

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About SEIA®: 

The Solar Energy Industries Association® (SEIA) is leading the transformation to a clean energy economy, creating the framework for solar to achieve 30% of U.S. electricity generation by 2030. SEIA works with its 1,000 member companies and other strategic partners to fight for policies that create jobs in every community and shape fair market rules that promote competition and the growth of reliable, low-cost solar power. Founded in 1974, SEIA is the national trade association for the solar and solar + storage industries, building a comprehensive vision for the Solar+ Decade through research, education and advocacy. Visit SEIA online at www.seia.org and follow @SEIA on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. 

Media Contact: 

Morgan Lyons, SEIA’s Director of Communications, mlyons@seia.org (202) 556-2872