Christine Ho, christine.ho@sierraclub.org
Houston, TX - Today, NextEra CEO John Ketchum said that renewable energy was cheaper and more readily available than fossil fuels. In a response to U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright’s speech, where Wright diminished the importance of renewable energy and praised dirty fossil fuels, Ketchum said, “The cost of gas-fired generation has gone up more than threefold…Renewables are cheaper and available right now.”
In January, John Ketchum announced plans for NextEra to add more gas-fired plants to the utility’s fleet in order to meet Donald Trump’s so-called energy dominance agenda.
In response, Sierra Club Florida Chapter Director Susannah Randolph issued the following statement:
“While we strongly disagree with NextEra’s announcement of plans to add more dirty, expensive gas-plants to its fleet, we are glad to see John Ketchum push back against Secretary Wright and uplift what we’ve been saying all along: Renewable energy is a cheaper, reliable, and available source of power. Numbers, unlike politicians, don’t lie.
“In the past, NextEra has been a leader in the nation—building more renewable energy than any other utility. We hope that John Ketchum will follow through on his words today and uphold the utility’s legacy by delivering clean, affordable energy our communities and businesses deserve.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.