As we follow the evolution of this largely imaginary energy transition, driven by government subsidies and activist fantasies, the question is: Where will the money and metals needed to make this grand plan a reality come from? often annoys the audience.

This is a difficult question that transition advocates hate being asked, largely because there are no easy answers. (Related: David Blackmon: Democrats' Natural Gas Revelation)

Still, this question and its final answer are extremely important. Because without it, it cannot become reality. This question often arises after the release of new reports by leading analyst firms such as: wood mackenzie, Envers, S&P Globaland Rystad Energy We detail the expected cost of one of the thousands of expensive aspects of this migration.

The folks at Rystad provided a great example this week. publication of research They found that $3.1 trillion in new global grid investment will be needed to keep the world on track to keep global warming below 1.8 degrees Celsius by 2050. . The problem is that governments around the world have to spend that $3.1 trillion not by 2050, but by 2030, just six years from now.

And those trillion dollars must be raised at the same time as trillions more must be found to fund all the other myriad moving parts and needs of this fanciful plan.

Here's some background: President Joe Biden loves to boast about green energy subsidies and tax breaks offered in policies with Orwellian names. inflation control law as biggest expense government dollar promote green energy in world history. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the nominal value of these subsidies was more than $350 billion, or about one-eighth of that.^th Rystad says $3.1 trillion of that must be spent on the grid over the next six years.

So where will these eight additional IRAs come from? All the Allied nations of Europe were nearly suffocated. EU Green Deal Plan That's only a fraction of that number, so you probably shouldn't count on them. Normally, we would expect that huge sum to come out of China, but this is also a little off the mark, as the media these days is full of horror stories about the impending collapse of the Chinese economy.

Rystad predicts that investment in global power grids will reach $374 billion in 2024, with China accounting for one-third of that.

What about the US? Well, the purchasing power of the US dollar has already been significantly devalued by IRA-induced inflation over the past few years, so Biden's public approval ratings are all but down. stuck in a quagmire in sub 40 level Since last summer. That reality, plus the persistent gridlock in the US Congress, makes the prospect of passing another IRA-style monster feel like the stuff of science fiction.

Additionally, there are issues with sourcing all the metals needed to expand the power grid. The most important of these is copper, which is essential for the expansion of power transmission lines.

Rystad estimates that an additional 18 million kilometers (approximately 11.2 million miles) of expansion will be needed globally by 2030, including an additional approximately 30 million tonnes of copper, a metal that is already in short supply. It becomes necessary. In a recent interview, S&P Global Chairman Daniel Yergin said that “permitting and building a new copper mine takes about 15 to 20 years,” so we should expect new mining operations to fill the additional reserves. It reminded me that it wasn't.

And what will happen to the thousands, if not millions, of new transformers? These transformers must be procured and installed as essential equipment over a distance of 18 million kilometers. Additional sending? I have previously pointed out here that there is currently a near-crisis situation with transformers, with lead times to procure new high-capacity models currently reaching up to four years.

So where does all the money come from? Where do all metals come from? Where will the necessary equipment such as transformers come from?

These are all difficult questions that the proponents of this subsidized energy transition hate being asked. Because there are no easy answers.

David Blackmon is a Texas-based energy writer and consultant. He spent his 40 years in the oil and gas business, specializing in public policy and communications.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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