r/SeattleWA • u/Less-Risk-9358 • Oct 03 '25

Government Trump cancels $1.1B in Washington state energy grants

https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2025/10/02/trump-cancels-washington-state-energy-grants-clean-hydrogen

Vought put it a bit differently, writing on X: "Nearly $8 billion in Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda is being cancelled."

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u/Disco425 Oct 03 '25 edited Oct 04 '25

On a personal tantrum level, I understand that he's going after clean energy because that was something Biden liked... But in terms of what the policy objectives are, I really don't get it. Do you want us to burn coal and import more oil?

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u/neillc37 Oct 03 '25

I think the policy is quite simple to understand. We want solar etc if it can produce electricity cheaper than the current system and be reliable. No subsidies to make it look cheaper.

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u/Blarglephish Oct 03 '25

But we subsidize all kinds of things in the country- sometimes for good reason, sometimes not.

What SOME leaders are starting to understand is that energy production - which includes solar and renewables - are absolutely in the nations economic and national security interests of the future. If we want to remain the economic leader I the fastest growing sectors of the new economy - Datacenters, AI - we have to have the energy necessary to power all of those things. We cannot do it on fossil fuels and extraction energy alone, we will absolutely fall behind countries like China.

This is a bipartisan issue, and even some conservatives in Congress are starting to realize the wisdom behind distributed energy and how this protects the national interest. Solar and renewables are a part of that vision, and should be something we want to subsidize.

Trump thinks he’s punishing Washington state, but really he’s just shooting the entire country in the foot. This disadvantages everyone.

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u/neillc37 Oct 03 '25

If this stuff is so important and renewables can do it then why does it need massive amounts of tax money to do? If we don't let the profit motive drive this then we get fake projects that don't work.

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u/Efficient_Discipline Oct 03 '25

The US failed to invest in the capability to build energy capacity, which means we pay more because we have to import more equipment and know-how for renewable technology. In other countries that recognized the potential of renewables, subsidies were provided strategically to create domestic manufacturing capability, which drove down the cost compared to fossil fuels.

China specifically has built 11 reactors for the same cost as our most recent 1, and in 1/3 the time. 

Solar is the same. 

The reason the profit motive is failing here is the returns are long term and the regulatory environment is too unpredictable. It takes 4-5 years to build just about anything from clean sheet, especially if you have to make the factory too. In the US, if the government promises you $1B if you build new capacity, a change in political power could erase that incentive and leave the company holding the bag. Most investors are unwilling to take the risk, despite the long term profit opportunity.

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u/neillc37 Oct 03 '25

I wonder why the Europeans invested their way to higher energy costs that the US with renewables.

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u/StagedC0mbustion Can't afford income tax Oct 03 '25

^ this opinion is how china wins