Back at work, Biden touts clean energy to investors

Gregory Korte | USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Vice President Biden told a group of investors at the White House on Tuesday that clean energy is a moral and national security issue — but also makes economic sense.

In his first public remarks since the funeral of his son Beau Biden, the vice president addressed the White House Clean Energy Investment Summit, rallying charitable groups and large investors to commit $4 billion toward clean energy technologies.

"To state the obvious, I'm not an investment banker," Biden said. "I wouldn't go long on investments that lead to carbon pollution. I'd bet on clean energy."

Biden said even China was beginning to understand the escalating health effects of carbon pollution.

"In the United States, even the climate deniers are preparing for greater impacts from more extreme weather, from heat waves wildfires, superstorms, droughts — all of which drastically effect local security and local economies," he said.

The White House summit sought to bring together investors in clean energy with climate scientists, engineers and administration officials. The administration announced new executive actions it hopes will make it easier for the private sector to invest in solar, wind and fuel cell technologies. The Treasury Department is releasing new guidance allowing charitable foundations to invest in for-profit companies doing clean energy research as a "mission-related investment."

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz says many investors see the risks associated with climate change are using their investments in clean energy "as a way to reduce risk in other parts of their portfolio."

The Department of Energy is establishing a Clean Energy Impact Investment Center to help provide technical assistance to investors in clean energy companies.

Already, officials said, the White House has gotten $4 billion in commitments from philanthropic groups, pension funds and other institutional investors to fund new energy technologies.

The White House had hoped to tally $2 billion, but "the response over only a couple of months has exceeded even our ambitious expectations," said Brian Deese, a senior adviser to President Obama. He said investments already made solar and wind energy have caused the costs of those technologies to "plummet."

The largest investments come from pension funds and other institutional investors, including $500 million from the University of California, $500 million from Goldman Sachs, $350 million from the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, $200 million from the Alaska Permanent Fund. and $100 million from TIAA-CREF.

That's in addition to $7.6 billion in federal spending on clean energy in Obama's proposed 2016 budget.

Follow Gregory Korte @gregorykorte.