Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Bill Gates pledges $1.5 billion for infrastructure bill’s new climate projects

Bill Gates pledges $1.5 billion for infrastructure bill’s new climate projects

Gates says his fund could spend money on projects aimed at slowing greenhouse gas emissions

Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates said his climate investment fund will commit $1.5 billion for joint projects with the U.S. government if Congress enacts a program aimed at developing technologies that lower carbon emissions.

A roughly $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by the Senate this week would give the Energy Department $25 billion for demonstration projects funded through public-private partnerships, part of more than $100 billion to address climate change. The House hasn’t yet approved the legislation.


Mr. Gates, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, said a fund run by his Breakthrough Energy could spend the money over three years on projects aimed at slowing the greenhouse-gas emissions that cause climate change. The Breakthrough projects, which would have to compete with other applicants for the funds, could include emissions-free fuel for planes and technology to suck carbon-dioxide out of the air.

"Critical for all these climate technologies is to get the costs down and to be able to scale them up to a pretty gigantic level," Mr. Gates said. "You’ll never get that scale up unless the government’s coming in with the right policies, and the right policy is exactly what’s in that infrastructure bill."

Breakthrough will likely shift funding for the biggest projects to Europe and Asia instead if the package doesn’t become law, he added.

The Energy Department program hasn’t been a flashpoint in debate over the legislation, but some Republicans have criticized the overall bill for what they see as excessive spending and an increase in federal powers. The bill passed the Senate in a 69-30 vote Tuesday, with only Republicans opposed. "Washington must learn to live within its means," said a statement this week from Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the top Republican on the Senate Energy Committee.

To address climate change, the bill includes more than $100 billion for programs that improve the electrical grid, harden infrastructure against natural disasters and subsidize a transition to emissions-free cars, trucks and buses.

The public-private partnership program is one way the bill embraces industrial policy, the idea that governments direct critical industries rather than leaving things to the market.

Gregory Nemet, a University of Wisconsin professor who has written a book about recent innovation in solar power, said the policy shift will put pressure on government officials who will have to sort through complex market dynamics while managing demands from companies seeking profits and lawmakers pushing for home-state handouts.

Industrial policy "is really a good way of accelerating innovation, but it’s risky because it goes beyond anything we’ve done in the last four decades," Mr. Nemet said, referring to the U.S.

Public-private partnerships have helped commercialize nascent energy technology before, going back to the U.S. nuclear-power industry in the mid-20th century. But the results were mixed and politically controversial when financial-crisis recovery funds went to similar efforts at the Energy Department a decade ago.

Some of those funds guaranteed a loan to Solyndra LLC, a solar panel maker that later went bankrupt, turning the deal into a political attack point for the Energy Department’s critics. The agency also loaned funds to Tesla Inc., the electric car maker that is now one of the world’s most valuable companies.

"Our political leaders have to accept that there’s going to be some failure," said David Hart, senior fellow at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a science and technology policy think tank. "Ultimately there has to be a climate policy that creates this market."

Mr. Gates hopes that in addition to federal funds, the $1.5 billion will attract other investors to raise as much as $15 billion for various projects. Mr. Gates will provide some of the initial funds through a Breakthrough program called Catalyst, which is also in the process of raising money from others, he said.

After Tuesday’s Senate vote, a coalition of the biggest auto and utility trade groups and several environmental groups made an announcement similar to the one by Mr. Gates. Their joint National EV Charging Initiative would spur and coordinate investments in projects that become part of the legislation’s $7.5 billion program to install more charging stations for electric vehicles.

The fact that these pledges are being announced even before Congress approves the funding is a sign of support in the business community for these programs, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a joint interview with Mr. Gates.

"It shows that the private sector is ready to lead the fight to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and achieve [an emissions-free] economy in partnership with government," she said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
China Criticizes US for Vetoing UN Ceasefire Resolution in Gaza
Saudi Arabia ranks first in UN index for e-government services in MENA
Israel Records 20% Drop In GDP, War In Gaza Is The Reason
Saudi Arabia's FDI Inflows Grow with New International Standards
Venture Capitals Power Up Across MENA Region
PM Modi Announces Opening Of New CBSE Office In Dubai
January Funding for MENA Startups Totals $86.5 Million
Saudi Arabia accelerates digital economy growth through Nvidia partnership
Israel unveils tunnels underneath Gaza City headquarters of UN agency for Palestinian refugees
Israel deploys new military AI in Gaza war
Egypt threatens to suspend key peace treaty if Israel pushes into Gaza border town, officials say
Saudi Arabia Warns Of A "Humanitarian Catastrophe" If Israel Moves On Rafah
US University To Shut Qatar Campus Due To "Heightened Mideast Instability"
Facebook and Instagram Ban Iran's Supreme Leader
Defense Technology Showcase Held in Riyadh
Saudi Arabia’s non-oil exports rise 2.5% to $6bn in November 2023: GASTAT
Rolls-Royce Executive Encourages Saudi Women to Tap into Their Inner 'Superhero' for Success in Defense Industry
Saudi Arabia launches National Academy of Vehicles and Cars
Saudi Tourism Minister Reveals Plan for 250,000 New Hotel Rooms by 2030
SAR to more than double eastern network passenger capacity with new trains deal
Saudi Arabia Enhances National Defense with New Partnerships
Saudi Aramco Maintains Arab Light Crude Pricing to Asia for March
NEOM Establishes New York Office to Support Investors
Saudi Wealth Fund Draws in Over $25 Billion Worth of Investments in Three Years, Al-Rumayyan Reveals
The Saudi Kingdom's Ultimatum to Israel: A Win-Win Peace with Saudi Arabia and the Arab World, or a Lose-Lose Continued Occupation and Endless Conflict
Biden condemns anti-Arab hate after WSJ opinion piece calls Dearborn ‘jihad capital’
Turkey Releases Seven Hostages Captured by Pro-Gaza Gunman
Arab Parliament Commends Women's Contributions to Societal Development
British and Hungarian Foreign Ministers visited Lebanese leaders to stress the importance of enacting UN Resolution 1701
Yemen's Houthis Say They Targeted British Merchant Vessel In Red Sea
Donald Trump Nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for 'Historic' Middle East Policy
US lawmakers approve F-16 jet sale to Turkey following NATO expansion support
Saudi Arabia Climbs 25 Places in World Bank's National Statistics Indicator
Tourism Growth in Saudi Arabia Fuels Advancements in the Hospitality Industry," Says Rotana Official
Houthi Rebels Request Departure of UN Staff from Yemen, Including US and UK Personnel, within a Month
Modi Inaugurates Hindu Temple on Site of Demolished Mosque in India
Over 25,000 Deaths in Gaza Amid Israeli Offensive
Escalating Clashes in Gaza as Israel Distributes Leaflets to Assist in Locating Hostages
Turkey's First Astronaut Set to Launch for International Space Station Today
Head of Palestinian Investment Fund Warns More People May Die of Hunger Than War in Gaza
Palestinian Envoy Criticizes UK for Alleged 'Double Standards' in Policies Toward Israel
Morocco to Lead UN Human Rights Council in 2024
Is artificial intelligence the solution to cyber security threats?
Egypt has been identified as the leading military force among Arab nations and ranks 15th globally
The AI Revolution in the Workforce: CEOs at Davos Predict Major Job Cuts in 2024
Iranian Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi Receives Additional Prison Sentence
"Gazans Urge Israeli Forces to Target Hamas in Leaked Audio"
Biden States US and UK Airstrikes on Houthis Were a 'Defensive Action
Large Pro-Palestine Rally in London as Gaza Conflict Hits Day 100
South Africa Urges World Court to Halt Israeli Actions in Gaza
×