President Biden claimed Friday that coal facilities are too expensive to operate and that “we’re going to be closing these plants down throughout America” to transition to wind power, prompting condemnation from the Republican National Committee.
“I was in Massachusetts about a month ago on the site of the largest old coal plant in America,” Biden said at an event in Carlsbad, California, on Friday. “Guess what? It cost them too much money. They can’t count. No one is building new coal plants because they can’t rely on it. Even if they have all the coal guaranteed for the rest of the existence of the plant.
“So it’s going to become a wind generation. And all they’re doing is it’s going to save them a hell of a lot of money and using the same transmission line that they transmitted the coal-fired electric on, we’re going to be shutting these plants down all across America and having wind and solar power, also providing tax credits to help families buy energy efficient appliances, whether it’s your refrigerator or your coffee maker, for solar panels on your home, weatherize your home, things that save an average, experts say, a minimum of $500 a year for the average family.”
The Republican National Committee’s Twitter account responded to Biden’s remark, saying, “Joe Biden celebrates coal plant workers losing their jobs.”
Biden went on to say that “generating power from wind and solar is cheaper than coal and oil.”
“Literally cheaper,” the president said. “Not a joke.”
The White House did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
Following Biden’s presidential campaign, in which he committed to steer the country away from fossil fuels, a Department of Energy study released this summer revealed huge employment losses in the fuel business.
According to the analysis, the fuel technology sector will lose 29,271 jobs in 2021, a 3.1% year-over-year decrease, with the majority of the employment losses occurring in the fossil fuel business. Onshore and offshore petroleum firms dropped 31,593 jobs, a 6.4% decrease; the coal industry shed 7,125 jobs, an 11.8% decrease year on year; and positions in fossil fuel extraction fell by 12%.
“The DOE jobs report is not only reflective of the broader pandemic slowdown, but also highlights an Administration that has worked overtime on restricting American natural gas and oil production,” Independent Petroleum Association of America spokesperson Jennifer Marsteller said.