Least-cost energy strategy

42 U.S.C. § 13382
in effect
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(a) StrategyThe first National Energy Policy Plan (in this subchapter referred to as the “Plan”) under section 7321 of this title prepared and required to be submitted by the President to Congress after February 1, 1993, and each subsequent such Plan, shall include a least-cost energy strategy prepared by the Secretary. In developing the least-cost energy strategy, the Secretary shall take into consideration the economic, energy, social, environmental, and competitive costs and benefits, including costs and benefits for jobs, of his choices. Such strategy shall also take into account the report required under section 13381 of this title and relevant Federal, State, and local requirements. Such strategy shall be designed to achieve to the maximum extent practicable and at least-cost to the Nation—(1) the energy production, utilization, and energy conservation priorities of subsection (d); (2) the stabilization and eventual reduction in the generation of greenhouse gases; (3) an increase in the efficiency of the Nation’s total energy use by 30 percent over 1988 levels by the year 2010; (4) an increase in the percentage of energy derived from renewable resources by 75 percent over 1988 levels by the year 2005; and (5) a reduction in the Nation’s oil consumption from the 1990 level of approximately 40 percent of total energy use to 35 percent by the year 2005. (b) Additional contentsThe least-cost energy strategy shall also include—(1) a comprehensive inventory of available energy and energy efficiency resources and their projected costs, taking into account all costs of production, transportation, distribution, and utilization of such resources, including—(A) coal, clean coal technologies, coal seam methane, and underground coal gasification; (B) energy efficiency, including existing technologies for increased efficiency in production, transportation, distribution, and utilization of energy, and other technologies that are anticipated to be available through further research and development; and (C) other energy resources, such as renewable energy, solar energy, nuclear fission, fusion, geothermal, biomass, fuel cells, hydropower, and natural gas; (2) a proposed two-year program for ensuring adequate supplies of the energy and energy efficiency resources and technologies described in paragraph (1), and an identification of administrative actions that can be undertaken within existing Federal authority to ensure their adequate supply; (3) estimates of life-cycle costs for existing energy production facilities; (4) basecase forecasts of short-term and long-term national energy needs under low and high case assumptions of economic growth; and (5) an identification of all applicable Federal authorities needed to achieve the purposes of this section, and of any inadequacies in those authorities. (c) Secretarial considerationIn developing the least-cost energy strategy, the Secretary shall give full consideration to—(1) the relative costs of each energy and energy efficiency resource based upon a comparison of all direct and quantifiable net costs for the resource over its available life, including the cost of production, transportation, distribution, utilization, waste management, environmental compliance, and, in the case of imported energy resources, maintaining access to foreign sources of supply; and (2) the economic, energy, social, environmental, and competitive consequences resulting from the establishment of any particular order of Federal priority as determined under subsection (d). (d) PrioritiesThe least-cost energy strategy shall identify Federal priorities, including policies that—(1) implement standards for more efficient use of fossil fuels; (2) increase the energy efficiency of existing technologies; (3) encourage technologies, including clean coal technologies, that generate lower levels of greenhouse gases; (4) promote the use of renewable energy resources, including solar, geothermal, sustainable biomass, hydropower, and wind power; (5) affect the development and consumption of energy and energy efficiency resources and electricity through tax policy; (6) encourage investment in energy efficient equipment and technologies; and (7) encourage the development of energy technologies, such as advanced nuclear fission and nuclear fusion, that produce energy without greenhouse gases as a byproduct, and encourage the deployment of nuclear electric generating capacity. (e) AssumptionsThe Secretary shall include in the least-cost energy strategy an identification of all of the assumptions used in developing the strategy and priorities thereunder, and the reasons for such assumptions. (f) PreferenceWhen comparing an energy efficiency resource to an energy resource, a higher priority shall be assigned to the energy efficiency resource whenever all direct and quantifiable net costs for the resource over its available life are equal to the estimated cost of the energy resource. (g) Public review and commentThe Secretary shall provide for a period of public review and comment of the least-cost energy strategy, for a period of at least 30 days, to be completed at least 60 days before the issuance of such strategy. The Secretary shall also provide for public review and comment before the issuance of any update to the least-cost energy strategy required under this section.

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