Deese, a Harris advisor, calls for a Marshall Plan on clean energies

Brian Deese is an adviser to Vice President Kamala's presidential campaign. He called for a program that would lend money to allies to purchase green energy technologies in the United States as part of an overall strategy to combat climate change.

Deese - who served as an adviser to President Joe Biden, and then President Barack Obama - referred to it as a "new version" of the Marshall Plan. The Marshall Plan was a system of grants created by Harry Truman and George Marshall in order for Europe's recovery after World War II. Deese said that the plan should be generous with our allies and unapologetically in America's interest.

Deese's promotion of the plan is independent of his role as Harris' adviser. However, it may provide insight into possible policies for her presidency if she wins on November 5. The Harris campaign declined to comment immediately.

Deese was instrumental in the creation of Biden's landmark Inflation Reduction Act. This legislation contains billions to support clean energy and combat climate change. He said that the IRA, along with other pieces of legislation, created the greatest opportunity to accelerate clean energy. But the effort needed a way to get technologies to allies.

Deese, in an article published in Foreign Affairs earlier this week, said that the U.S. could create a Clean Energy Finance Authority to support the plan. This authority would have the power to issue both debt and equity in clean energy projects. The plan may be part of the U.S.'s alternative to China’s “Belt and Road” infrastructure initiative and ensure U.S. Leadership in a time of global tension.

Deese stated that the new U.S. Agency could use the expertise of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office to assess the risks and benefits of developing technologies such as advanced nuclear energy and hydrogen power. The LPO offers low-interest loans and loan guarantees to companies that have promising technologies but are unable to get financing from commercial banks.

Deese called for tariffs to favor imports of products from countries which reduce emissions when making steel, as well as the creation of a strategic reserve.

The U.S., along with its allies, would hold such reserves to protect themselves against the supply chain shortages of materials critical to clean technologies as well as the dominance of China's trade in minerals.

Deese was instrumental in establishing a record-breaking sale of oil to the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. This helped moderate gasoline prices for U.S. motorists. He said that his experience made him realize the importance of mineral reserves.

Deese: "I hoped we would move beyond the idea stage into the opportunity to test and then build" such reserves.

Jennifer Granholm, the U.S. Energy Secretary, said in an interview with the International Energy Agency in June that she had been in contact with other allies about the possibility of a collective reserve for essential minerals. (Reporting and Editing by Margueritachoy)

(source: Reuters)