For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
May 24, 2006

Fact Sheet: The Advanced Energy Initiative: Ensuring a Clean, Secure Energy Future

      President Discusses Energy During Visit to Nuclear Generating Station in Pennsylvania
      Advanced Energy Initiative
      In Focus: Energy

Today, President Bush Discussed The Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI) – A Comprehensive Vision For A Clean, Secure Energy Future.  The President's Advanced Energy Initiative promotes America's four main sources of electricity: coal, nuclear, natural gas, and renewable sources.

To Continue Economic Growth In A Competitive World, America Must Find Solutions To Its Energy Needs.  Over the past 30 years, our economy has grown three times faster than our energy consumption.  During that period, we created more than 55 million jobs, while cutting air pollution by 50 percent.  But America’s dynamic economy is also creating a growing demand for electricity; electricity demand is projected to increase nearly 50 percent over the next 25 years. 

As The Global Economy Becomes More Competitive, America Must Find New Alternatives To Oil, Pursue Promising New Technologies, And Find Better Ways To Generate More Electricity.  America faces new energy challenges as countries like China and India consume more energy – especially oil.  Global demand for oil is rising faster than global supply.  As a result, oil prices are rising around the world, which leads to higher gas prices in America. 

The President Is Working To Meet America’s Energy Demands And The Challenges Of The Global Economy By Developing Clean, Domestic, Affordable Supplies Of Energy.  We must safeguard the environment, reduce our dependence on energy from abroad, and help keep prices reasonable for consumers.

Nuclear Power

Nuclear Power Is Abundant And Affordable. Nuclear power is America’s second-leading source of electricity.  Today, more than 100 nuclear plants operate in 31 states.  Once a nuclear plant is constructed, its fuel and operating costs are among the cheapest forms of energy available today.

Nuclear Power Is Clean. Nuclear power produces no air pollution or greenhouse gases, and there is a growing consensus that it is an environmentally responsible choice.  Without nuclear energy, carbon dioxide emissions would have been 28 percent greater in the electricity industry in 2004, America would have an additional 700 million tons a year of carbon dioxide, and nitrogen-oxide emissions would rise by the equivalent of 58 million passenger cars.

Nuclear Power Is Safe. Advances in science, engineering, and plant design have made nuclear power plants far safer than ever before – plant workers and managers focus on security above all else.

President Bush Is Helping Expand America's Use Of Nuclear Power In Four Important Ways:

1.   The Energy Bill The President Signed In 2005 Provides Loan Incentives, Production Tax Credits, And Federal Risk Insurance For Builders Of New Nuclear Plants.  Loan incentives will give investors confidence that the Federal government is committed to the construction of nuclear power plants.  Production tax credits will reward investments in the latest in advanced nuclear power generation.  Federal risk insurance for the first six new nuclear power plants will help protect builders of these plants against lawsuits, bureaucratic obstacles, and other delays beyond their control.

2.   The Bush Administration Has Launched The Nuclear Power 2010 Initiative – A $1.1 Billion Partnership Between The U.S. Government And Industry To Facilitate New Plant Orders.  At this time last year, only two companies were seeking to build nuclear power plants.  Now, 16 companies have expressed interest in new construction – and they are considering as many as 25 new plants.  By the end of this decade, America will be able to start construction on nuclear plants again.

3.   President Bush Has Proposed Legislation That Will Help Complete A Nuclear Waste Repository At Yucca Mountain.  Yucca Mountain is critical to expanding nuclear power in the United States because it will provide a safe geologic repository to store spent fuel and nuclear waste.  Yucca Mountain was selected based on sound science after many years of scientific study.  Making Yucca Mountain fully operational would inspire confidence among builders and entrepreneurs that the government fully supports the expansion of nuclear power.  The President urges Congress to pass this important legislation to move our efforts forward.

4.  Under The Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, America Will Work With Nations That Have Advanced Civilian Nuclear Energy Programs, Such As France, Japan, And Russia.  The President's budget includes $250 million to launch this initiative.

• GNEP Will Use New Technologies That Effectively And Safely Recycle Spent Nuclear Fuel. Re-processing spent uranium fuel for use in advanced reactors will allow us to extract more energy.  It also has the potential to reduce storage requirements for nuclear waste by up to 90 percent.  With re-processing, Yucca Mountain could hold America’s nuclear waste through the end of the 21st century.

• Working With Other Nations Under The Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, America Can Provide The Cheap, Safe, And Clean Energy That Growing Economies Need, While Reducing The Risk Of Nuclear Proliferation. We will help developing countries meet their growing energy needs by providing them with small-scale reactors that will be secure and cost-effective.  We will also ensure that developing nations have a reliable nuclear fuel supply.  In exchange, these countries would agree to use nuclear power only for civilian purposes and forego uranium enrichment and re-processing activities that can be used to develop nuclear weapons.

Coal

President Bush Is Encouraging The Research And Development Of Clean-Coal Technologies.  Coal is by far America’s most abundant and affordable energy resource.  America has enough coal to last about 240 years at current rates of consumption.

• In 2000, President Bush Promised To Invest $2 Billion Over Ten Years To Promote Clean Coal.  The Administration is several years ahead of schedule in keeping that promise. 

• By 2012, Under The FutureGen Initiative, America Will Build The World’s First Power Plant To Run On Coal And Remove Virtually All Pollutants. 

Natural Gas

The Energy Bill President Bush Signed In 2005 Addressed The Increasing Demand For Natural Gas.  Natural gas is the most versatile fuel, but demand for it has increased, and the price has more than doubled between 2001 to 2005.  The Energy Bill President Bush signed last year expands our ability to receive liquefied natural gas – a super-cooled form of natural gas that can be transported from overseas on tankers.  The bill clarifies Federal authority to license new sites, reduces bureaucratic obstacles to open new terminals, and streamlines the permitting process for onshore development.

Alternative And Renewables

President Bush's FY2007 Budget Proposes $44 Million In Funding For Wind Energy Research.

• About Six Percent Of The Continental United States Has Been Identified As Highly Suitable For Construction Of Wind Turbines.  This area alone has the potential to supply up to 20 percent of our Nation’s electricity.  Our goal is to expand the use and lower the cost of wind turbine technology – so that our country can get more electricity from clean, renewable wind power.

The President Has Proposed A New Solar America Initiative To Accelerate Research And Development In Solar Technology.  Solar technology has the potential to change the way all Americans live and work.  President Bush's FY2007 budget proposes nearly $150 million in funding for government and private research into solar technology – an increase of more than 75 percent over current levels.  This support can help make solar power competitive by 2015.

The President Is Working To Boost Oil And Gas Supplies To Relieve High Gas Prices.

In April, President Bush Directed The Strategic Petroleum Reserve To Defer Filling The Reserve This Summer.  In addition, he has directed EPA Administrator Steve Johnson to use all his available authority to grant waivers that would relieve the restrictions on getting fuel delivered to the pump.  The President has also called on Congress to simplify the process for building new refineries and to make it easier for refiners to make modifications to increase production.

We Need More Access To The Domestic Resources On The Outer Continental Shelf, While Respecting The Concerns Of Nearby States.  In the long term, America must find alternatives to oil and the way we power our cars.

It will take time for America to move from a hydrocarbon economy to a hydrogen economy.  In the meantime, there are billions of barrels of oil and enormous amounts of natural gas off the Alaskan Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico. 

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