Taiwan pledges $32bn on clean energy; US allocates $3bn to make homes energy efficient

Countries have slowly started shifting focus away from the war between Russia and Ukraine as they consider their energy policies.

Taiwan and the US are investing significant sums to meet climate targets and to shield consumers from soaring utility bills.

Moreover, Spanish firm Cepsa SA is setting new strategies as part of its clean energy transition.

However, firms such as Germany’s BASF are still facing uncertainties amid war repercussions.

Looking at the bigger picture:

• Taiwan has pledged to spend NT$900 billion ($32 billion) between 2022 and 2030 in an attempt to double climate efforts as the country is projected to miss its 2025 target. The amount will be spent on renewable technologies, grid infrastructure, and energy storage, Bloomberg reported, citing a report by the National Development Council.
• The US is planning to allocate as much as $3.16 billion to renovate thousands of homes in low-income areas into becoming more energy-efficient, while simultaneously lowering utility bills, CNBC reported. This comes as part of a bigger $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill which President Biden signed into law in 2021.

Through a micro lens:

• Spanish multinational oil and gas company Cepsa SA — which is controlled by Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund — has announced a new clean-energy centric strategy worth up to $8.9 billion as it seeks to secure new fuel sources to shift its operations to low carbon energy by 2030, Bloomberg reported. As part of the new strategy, the Madrid-based corporation will focus on developing energy such as green hydrogen and biofuels for heavy transportation including trucking, shipping, and airlines, Bloomberg reported, citing CEO Maarten Wetselaar.
• The second largest chemical producer in the world, BASF, has announced that production would have to come to a halt if natural gas supplies drop to less than half its requirements, Reuters reported. Headquartered in Germany, the firm cautioned that any shortage in supply will have a dual effect on chemical production as it will disrupt both the production process as well as the manufacturing of products.