What Does the Division of Vitality Do?

The Division of Vitality is a federal company tasked with finishing up U.S. vitality coverage by supporting analysis and growth within the vitality sector, prioritizing safety and bettering vitality entry, amongst different duties. Its mission emphasizes taking a scientific and technological strategy to addressing vitality, environmental and nuclear challenges. The company believes tackling these challenges is vital to the nation’s safety and welfare.

The Vitality Division was established in 1977, quickly after the U.S. skilled its first so-called vitality disaster. In 1973, a struggle within the Center East broke out and oil-exporting international locations arrange an embargo that severely diminished the availability of crude. The expertise sparked new federal insurance policies geared towards establishing U.S. vitality independence.

However the division additionally has its roots within the Manhattan Undertaking — a authorities analysis initiative that developed and examined the atomic bomb throughout World Struggle II. That’s why, along with setting coverage round fossil fuels and renewable vitality sources, the DOE oversees U.S. nuclear coverage.

In observe, the Vitality Division has a broad vary of duties. For instance, it:

• Performs a task in vitality safety, together with overseeing nuclear security and safety, managing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, stopping assaults on U.S. vitality infrastructure, and responding to emergencies.

• Runs 17 nationwide laboratories that conduct analysis in local weather science, physics, utilized math and pc science. Its supercomputing and different specialised assets are utilized in quite a lot of functions from most cancers analysis to house exploration to synthetic intelligence.

• Sells electrical energy generated at federally owned and operated hydroelectric dams by 4 Energy Advertising Administrations.

• Cleans up waste produced by nuclear weapons growth and vitality analysis.

• Maintains transmission methods to broaden entry to inexpensive, dependable electrical energy.

• Handles permits requesting authority to export liquified pure fuel.

• Units vitality effectivity requirements for sure merchandise, together with shopper items.

• Invests within the analysis and growth of recent expertise and home vitality provide chains.

• Collects, analyzes and shares data on various vitality sources (renewable vitality, petroleum, pure fuel, various fuels and others) below the Vitality Info Administration, a semi-independent company.

The Vitality Division is presently headed by Chris Wright below the Trump administration. On his first day in workplace, President Donald Trump signed a number of govt orders outlining his agenda to “unleash” home vitality manufacturing to attain U.S. vitality dominance and decrease costs for shoppers. Most notably, Trump declared a nationwide vitality emergency, which permits his administration to make use of sure emergency authority to chop by purple tape and broaden home vitality manufacturing and transportation.

Within the first weeks of the brand new administration, the DOE rolled again a number of Biden-era insurance policies by:

• Resuming allowing for liquified pure fuel exports to international locations that don’t have a free commerce settlement with the U.S. 

• Eradicating different regulatory obstacles for pure fuel.

• Suspending implementation of rules that may have set harder vitality requirements for dwelling home equipment. 

• Withdrawing conservation requirements on different merchandise, together with electrical motors, ceiling followers, dehumidifiers, and exterior energy provides.

In March, the Vitality Division additionally reissued a name for candidates who would use a $900 million DOE grant to construct and deploy new nuclear reactor applied sciences. The company says nuclear energy is without doubt one of the few sources that might produce sufficient vitality to fulfill rising demand within the U.S.

The Vitality Division primarily interacts with shoppers trying to economize on vitality prices. Be taught extra:

Vitality saver: Discover suggestions to assist in the reduction of on vitality utilization in your house, together with heating and cooling methods, water utilization, weatherization and home equipment.

Get extra vitality saving data: You’ll be able to contact the DOE’s vitality saver program to submit feedback, report points or ask questions by emailing [email protected]. It’s price noting, although, that the DOE doesn’t assist with shopper complaints. These needs to be submitted to the Federal Commerce Fee.

One of the best ways to make particular complaints, feedback or reviews is thru the hyperlinks above. Listed below are just a few extra normal methods to contact the DOE.

DOE telephone quantity: 202-586-5000

1000 Independence Ave., SW