DOE's Sensible Reversal: Cutting $83 Billion in Loans to Prioritize Real Energy Solutions
In a move that’s long overdue and refreshingly pragmatic, the Department of Energy (DOE) under Secretary Chris Wright has announced a major overhaul, slashing or restructuring a staggering $83.6 billion in loans and conditional commitments. Far from just bureaucratic housekeeping, it’s a direct repudiation of the Biden administration’s frantic push to subsidize intermittent renewables at the expense of grid reliability and taxpayer dollars.
I’ve chronicled the absurdities of America’s energy policies for decades now, and no set of policies came close to matching the absurdity levels achieved by Joe Biden and his autopen presidency. Wright and his fellow Trump appointees understand that, and are working to move the government back to a policy footing soundly based in energy reality. That means shifting focus to baseload power sources like natural gas, nuclear, and even coal—energies that actually keep the lights on without bankrupting the nation.
Make no doubt about it, it’s a huge mess to clean up. The Biden era’s Loan Programs Office became a veritable candy store for green energy enthusiasts, doling out over $104 billion in principal obligations, with a whopping $85 billion rushed through in the lame-duck period after Election Day. These weren’t carefully vetted investments; they were political fire sales, propping up solar and wind projects that have repeatedly proven unreliable in real-world conditions.
The DOE’s review exposed this wasteful haste, and the result? About $9.5 billion in subsidies for wind and solar - poof, gone. Instead, funds are being redirected to six key sectors: nuclear, coal, oil, gas and hydrocarbons, critical materials and minerals, geothermal, grid and transmission, and manufacturing and transportation. Notice what’s missing? Renewables and battery storage. That’s no accident; it’s a recognition that these technologies, while trendy, aren’t ready to carry the load without massive government crutches.
