Efficiency First

According to a report by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the United States is losing its competitive advantage in clean energy technology to many European and Asian countries. As a result, several foreign companies have moved to the U.S. to penetrate the American clean energy market and to expand their market opportunities in the energy efficiency industry. Companies which now have offices in the U.S., such as Iderdrola (Spain), Goldwind (China) and Enercon (Germany), are beginning to dominate the industry and out-compete American manufacturers.

Partly because of debates over climate change and concerning the use of fossil fuels in the U.S., clean technology industries are growing much faster in Europe, Asia and Latin America. The U.S. is one of the few nations that offers relatively few federal resources for encouraging energy conservation; for example, the British government provides tax incentives, government loans and investments and caps on emissions which are hailed by both conservative and liberal sides of Parliament. British companies like the Mark Group have received substantial government subsidies for energy retrofits and by 2010 the majority of older homes in the U.K. were upgraded for energy efficiency. These measures have encouraged clean energy innovation for commercial industries throughout the country.

As a result of bipartisan political debate in Congress, foreign companies have been able to exploit the available market here. Only California has adopted strict energy standards for commercial technology that are on par with many European countries. Consequently, European companies rather than those in the U.S. have more rapidly and effectively developed innovative clean energy technology to lower costs and mitigate environmental damage. According to an article from The New York Times, the relative lack of effective government subsidies in the U.S. for retrofitting and research in renewable energy technology has prevented it from keeping up with other countries whose governments fund home energy upgrades, as well as a significant percentage of the costs for alternative energy sources.

Despite the Obama administration’s aggressive attempt to encourage clean energy technology, the 2009 stimulus did not fully allow the U.S. to compete effectively with other countries. However, Efficiency First and many other energy efficiency and clean energy companies are working to overcome this development gap. Bipartisan political conflict makes effective change more difficult, but with innovative contributions from many energy efficiency groups, as well as a political presence from those industries, the United States can meet the challenges of clean energy while remaining competitive on a global market.

To see the Pew Charitable Trusts report click here.

To see The New York Times article from June 8, 2011 click here.