Exelon CEO Outlines Top Five Energy Policy Imperatives for the Next President

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In a major energy policy address delivered at Harvard University’s Center for the Environment last night, Exelon Chairman and CEO John Rowe outlined the five elements he believes are imperative to the next U.S. president’s energy policy. Rowe’s speech, part of the university’s “Future of Energy” series, provided recommendations for development of the nation’s energy policy framework, an issue that will define the success of the next administration and this nation in the next four years and beyond.

“Our nation has not had an energy policy in 30 years—except to passively enjoy low-cost fossil fuels,” Rowe said. “The demand for energy must be met, and it must be met with the least impact on our climate and the U.S. economy.”

A successful national energy policy, Rowe said, should include the following five elements:

1. Federal, mandatory, economy-wide climate legislation
2. Support for energy efficiency and conservation across the entire economy, including new standards as well as programs and investment by utilities
3. Longer-term extensions of production tax credits for renewable energy sources
4. Financial support for new low-carbon, base load generation, such as clean coal and next-generation nuclear
5. Continued commitment to competitive electricity markets to spur investment and innovation in new low-carbon solutions

In testimony before Congress Sept. 12, Rowe called for a "Marshall Plan" for energy to galvanize action on these goals. Rowe's Harvard lecture elaborated on how the new administration can develop a long-term plan to reconstruct our nation’s energy infrastructure and secure our energy future without unduly impacting the economy.

“Our next president will inherit a nation with a fragile economy, a war abroad, and a warming climate—and he must deal with all three,” Rowe said. “Each new report on climate changes makes the need to act more urgent.”

In the address, Rowe also explained Exelon’s own comprehensive plan for addressing climate change, Exelon 2020: A Low Carbon Roadmap, which will reduce, offset or displace more than 15 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. This is more than the company’s current annual carbon footprint and the equivalent to taking nearly 3 million cars off the roads.

Rowe is the longest-serving chief executive in the energy industry. He was among the first CEOs in the utility industry to focus on the issue of climate change and testified before Congress on the subject in 1992. Rowe currently serves as chair of the Nuclear Energy Institute and co-chair of the bipartisan National Commission on Energy Policy and has previously chaired the Edison Electric Institute. Exelon is also a member of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership.

Rowe’s speech is available on the Exelon Web site – www.exeloncorp.com.

Exelon Corporation is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities with nearly $19 billion in annual revenues. The company has one of the industry’s largest portfolios of electricity generation capacity, with a nationwide reach and strong positions in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Exelon distributes electricity to approximately 5.4 million customers in northern Illinois and Pennsylvania and natural gas to 480,000 customers in the Philadelphia area. Exelon is headquartered in Chicago and trades on the NYSE under the ticker EXC.