UAW win highlights concerns over risks for workers in clean energy transition  

Nov 13, 2023
The UAW fought for protection if factories shut down. But workers in other carbon-intensive industries could find themselves displaced.
With an eye toward the eventual electrification of vehicle production, the United Auto Workers worked with GM to bring battery manufacturing under its contract. 
Scott Olson/Getty Images

The Biden administration is investing in hydrogen hubs, but roadblocks remain

Oct 24, 2023
The promise of hydrogen fuel is that it could cut emissions in industries that have proven difficult to decarbonize. It’s a lot of pressure for an industry that’s barely off the ground.
Inflation is pushing the costs of infrastructure, like production plants, to support the hydrogen fuel economy. Above, a hydrogen production plant in Germany.
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Biden administration announces $7 billion for hydrogen hubs

Oct 13, 2023
It's part of the White House's plan to accelerate the domestic market for low-cost, clean hydrogen.
The Biden administration says the proposed seven hubs across 16 states will eliminate 25 million metric tons of CO2 emissions each year.
Morris MacMatzen/Getty Images

The clean energy revolution needs green workers, fast

Oct 9, 2023
If there aren’t people ready to build, install, and maintain the solar panels and electric cars that money is paying for, billions in federal funding dollars could go to waste.
A Qcells employee takes part in hands-on training with Georgia Quick Start. To make the transition to green energy, new workers will need to be trained for specialized manufacturing jobs.
Courtesy Georgia Quick Start.

Fossil fuels built Houston into an energy capital. Can it lead the clean energy transition?

Sep 13, 2023
With the aid of workers, technology and cash from the oil and gas industry, new companies offer a glimpse of a post-fossil fuels future.
An oil refinery in operation with the Houston skyline in the background. Fossil fuels continue to enrich the Texas economy, but some see the need to respond to the climate crisis.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

The clean energy transition is underway. But where will the workers come from?

Aug 29, 2023
Finding and training workers to install solar panels and maintain electric vehicle charging stations is a massive undertaking.
Language written into the Inflation Reduction Act prioritizes trades with apprenticeships for subsidies. This means  worker scarcity is unlikely in higher-paid, higher-skilled fields.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Nonprofit lenders compete to distribute $27 billion for greenhouse gas reduction projects

Aug 14, 2023
The money, mandated by the Inflation Reduction Act, will be invested in heat pumps, electric vehicle infrastructure and other systems.
Grants from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund can go toward initiatives like boosting electric vehicle infrastructure.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Clean energy industry faces economic headwinds

Aug 1, 2023
Inflation and rising interest rates are making it harder for some projects to get off the ground.
A ship carries wind turbine components to the Port of New Bedford.
Daniel Ackerman/Marketplace

Wyoming, long known as a top coal producing state, makes a big move into wind energy

Jul 31, 2023
A new power line project will transfer Wyoming wind to supply parts of the Southwest with electricity. Wyoming’s focus on renewable energy is a shift from its history with fossil fuels.
Wyoming’s Republican Governor Mark Gordon attended the ground breaking ceremony. Despite the state’s fossil fuel history, he said this project is needed to address climate change.
Caitlin Tan/Wyoming Public Media

New energy projects are coming to small towns. Where will workers live?

Jul 11, 2023
The Biden administration is eyeing nuclear as one solution to ‘clean’ energy, but as a new nuclear plant moves into a rural community in Wyoming, there's another challenge — housing shortages for workers.
Kemmerer, Wyoming is known for both its prehistoric fossils and its fossil fuel industry.
Caitlin Tan for Marketplace