Biden gives $2.8 billion to battery companies that commit to ESG agenda

[mystery-ak]

October 20, 2022 10:42am EDT
Biden gives $2.8 billion to battery companies that commit to ESG agenda
The administration said committing to diversity, equity and other goals was a condition of receiving the money
 
By Peter Kasperowicz FOXBusiness

The Biden administration awarded $2.8 billion this week to 20 companies after they pledged to honor Democratic goals like diversity, equity and inclusion as they hire people to build batteries and related components to be used in electric vehicles.

The conditional grants are the latest attempt by the Biden administration to push its diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) agenda into the private sector. Last month, DEIA leaders from several agencies met and agreed to extend their efforts in this area "across the federal government and our society."

It is also part of a broader trend of companies following environment, social and governance (ESG) principles as a way of earning a "responsible" brand among investors.

On Wednesday, President Biden and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced the $2.8 billion "investment" in EV battery companies and said explicitly that their decision to provide federal funding for these projects was conditioned on a promise to advance the DEIA agenda.

"The companies submitted plans for engagement with local stakeholders, Tribal nations, environmental groups, and labor unions to ensure the funded projects create high-quality jobs; advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility; and contribute meaningfully to the Justice40 initiative to provide 40% of the overall benefits of federal clean energy investments to disadvantaged and underrepresented communities," the Department of Energy said.

Of the 20 companies that won awards, five said they would boost production in "disadvantaged communities," and 13 agreed to negotiate workforce and community agreements aimed at engagement with "host communities, labor unions and/or Tribal entities to agree on community benefits and implementation plans."

Fifteen of the companies said they would collaborate with "minority serving institutions, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to hire and train workers."

more
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/biden-2-8-billion-battery-companies-esg-agenda

[mountaineer]

Granholm hands out money to China, too, all in the name of going green.

December 6, 2022
DoE's Granholm hands out $200 million greenie grant to lithium battery company -- controlled by the Chinese
By Monica Showalter

So what does "American-made" mean to the Biden administration as it hands out huge chunks of "free" taxpayer cash for its "green" infrastructure schemes?

As Donald Trump used to say: "Chiii-na."

According to Alana Goodman at the Washington Free Beacon:

    President Joe Biden's Department of Energy is touting a grant to a lithium battery company as a move that would help herald the shift to green energy and ensure the United States is cultivating domestic sources of energy. It did not say, however, that the Texas company receiving the grant operates primarily from China and is under scrutiny from American financial regulators.

    The DOE announced in October that it would give the $200 million award to Microvast Holdings to build a battery separator facility in Tennessee, using funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. At the time, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the grant would "supercharge the private sector to ensure our clean energy future is American-made."

While the DOE described Microvast as a "majority U.S.-owned company, traded on NASDAQ" and "headquartered in Stafford, Texas," financial records show the company operates primarily out of China.  ...

American Thinker