Laurie Buckhout: The One Big Beautiful Bill Gutted Clean Energy Tax Credits, Threatening $328 Million In Clean Energy Investments In NC-01, Risking More Than 20,000 Jobs In North Carolina, And Raising Energy Costs For North Carolina Households By $490

The One Big Beautiful Bill Gutted Clean Energy Tax Credits

The House-Passed Republican Reconciliation Bill Gutted Clean Energy Tax Credits. “The multitrillion-dollar tax breaks package passed by House Republicans early Thursday would gut clean energy tax credits that Democrats approved three years ago while supporting increased mining, drilling and other traditional energy production. A marathon session that began Wednesday resulted in 1,100-plus page legislation that curbs billions of dollars in spending across food assistance, student loans, Medicaid and action to address climate change.” [AP, 5/22/25]

The House-Passed Republican Reconciliation Bill Would Dismantle Clean Energy Incentives. “A Republican push to dismantle clean energy incentives threatens to reverberate across the US by costing more than 830,000 jobs, raising energy bills for US households and threatening to unleash millions more tonnes of the planet-heating pollution that is causing the climate crisis, experts have warned. A major tax bill passed by the Republican-held House of Representatives on Thursday morning will, as currently, demolish key components of climate legislation signed by Joe Biden that has spurred a record torrent of renewable energy and electric vehicle investment in the US. Under the reconciliation bill, tax credits for cleaner cars will end this year, with incentives for wind, solar and even nuclear energy projects scaled down and then eliminated by 2032. Clean energy manufacturing tax credits will be axed by 2031, while Americans seeking to upgrade their homes to cleaner or more energy efficient appliances will get no further subsidy after the end of this year. ‘This bill is worse than what people envisioned – it pulls the rug out from facilities banking on these incentives, it raises everyday household costs by hundreds of dollars and undercuts any sort of action on climate change,’ said Robbie Orvis, senior director at Energy Innovation, a non-partisan climate policy thinktank.” [The Guardian, 5/22/25]

The Atlantic: Future Clean Energy Projects Would Cost About 50% More Than Those That Received Tax Credits

The Atlantic: Future Clean Energy Projects Would Cost About 50% More Than Those That Received Tax Credits. “The Senate version of Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill repeals the clean-energy tax credits in the IRA for all wind and solar projects that don’t begin construction within a year of the bill’s passage or become fully operational by 2028. (And even if a project begins construction in the first half of 2026, it will need to meet extremely onerous domestic-sourcing requirements that many experts believe will be nearly impossible to satisfy.) As a result, future clean-energy projects, including many that have been announced but not yet built, will cost about 50 percent more than those that received the credits, according to an analysis by Jesse Jenkins, who leads the Princeton ZERO Lab. The inevitable result is that far fewer will come into existence. ‘It’s hard to think of a bigger self-own,’ Jenkins told me. ‘We’re effectively raising taxes on the country’s main sources of new power at a time when electricity prices are already rising.’” [Atlantic, 7/3/25]

The One Big Beautiful Bill Threatened $328 Million In Clean Energy Investments In NC-01

May 2025: There Was $522 Billion In Outstanding Clean Energy Investment From The Inflation Reduction Act That Remained To Be Spent. “Since the enactment of the IRA in Q3 2022, $321 billion has been invested in manufacturing, clean electricity, and industrial facilities, and 2,369 new facilities have opened across the US. Looking ahead, $522 billion of outstanding investment remains to be spent on construction and installation for announced or under-construction facilities. This pipeline includes 2,217 facilities that have yet to come online.” [Clean Investment Monitor, accessed 4/24/26]

May 2025: $2.5 Billion In Clean Energy Investments Had Been Announced In NC-01 By Companies, With $1.7 Billion Still Pending. According to the New York Times, in NC-01, $2.5 billion in clean energy investments had been announced by companies. As of May 2025, $767 million was already spent, and $1.7 billion was still pending. [New York Times, 5/21/25]

Image: see original report, p. 14

[New York Times, 5/21/25]

NOTE: The above data was calculated before the NCGA redistricted North Carolina.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Threatened More Than 20,000 Future Clean Energy Jobs In North Carolina

May 2025: 20,332 Future Clean Energy Jobs Were At Risk In North Carolina. According to the Rhodium Group Clean Energy Monitor, in North Carolina, 20,332 future clean energy jobs were at risk. [Clean Investment Monitor, accessed 4/24/26]

Cuts To Clean Energy Tax Credits In The One Big Beautiful Bill Contributed To The Cancellation Of A $1.4 Billion Battery Plant In NC-01, Costing More Than 1,000 Jobs In The District

September 2025: Natron Energy Announced It Was Going Out Of Business, Ending The Company’s Previously Announced Plan To Build A $1.4 Billion Plant In NC-01

September 2025: News & Observer Headline: “Natron Energy, Company Behind $1.4 Billion NC Project, Is Going Out Of Business.” [News & Observer, 9/2/25]

September 2025: Natron Energy Went Out Of Business Due To “Funding Issues.” “‘Natron Energy, the sodium-ion battery startup that last summer promised to create 1,000 jobs at a future $1.4 billion factory in Eastern North Carolina, will stop operating as a company Wednesday due to funding issues. ‘We appreciate our customers and partners support though our journey,’ John Schmidt, Natron’s chief commercial officer, wrote Tuesday in an internal staff email provided to The News & Observer. ‘And this is not how we or anyone at Natron wanted this to end.’ Natron’s largest shareholder, Sherwood Partners, plans to sell the company’s assets, Schmidt said.’” [News & Observer, 9/2/25]

August 2024: Battery Maker Natron Energy Announced Plans Invest $1.4 Billion Into Building The First Sodium Ion Battery Gigafactory In The Country In Rocky Mount. “A $1.4 billion investment is coming to Edgecombe County. Battery maker Natron Energy is building the first sodium ion battery gigafactory in the country at the Kingsboro Megasite off Hwy 64 in Rocky Mount.” [CBS 17 WNCN, 8/15/24]

• 2024: Rocky Mount Was Located In NC-01. “North Carolina’s 1st congressional district, redrawn by Republican state lawmakers last year, stretches from the border of Virginia to south of Kinston. It’s the largest congressional district in the state. It’s a primarily rural district with significant farmland, but it does include the cities of Rocky Mount and Goldsboro. Democrat congressman Don Davis is in his first term representing the district. He’s a former state senator, and mayor of Snow Hill, who’s now up for re-election to Congress. ‘To continue to fight for the families of eastern North Carolina to deliver on health care, education, building a stronger economy,’ Davis told Spectrum News 1 in Snow Hill where he lives.” [Spectrum News 1, 10/9/24]

Natron Energy’s Battery Plant In NC-01 Would Have Employed More Than 1,000 People And Paid Them $64,000 A Year, $17,000 More Than The County’s Average

CBS 17 WNCN: Natron Energy’s Planned Battery Factory In Rocky Mount Would Have Employed More Than 1,000 People. “Natron Energy said the clean energy battery factory will be 40 times the size of its Michigan one. The company will hire more than 1,000 people with an average salary of $64,000. Some of uses for the batteries include data centers and electric vehicle chargers. ‘North Carolina is becoming the heart of the booming battery belt,’ Gov. Roy Cooper said. ‘This emerging clean energy economy means more good paying jobs in our state and more money in the pockets of families across eastern North Carolina.” [CBS 17 WNCN, 8/15/24]

Clean Economy Tracker: The Average Wage For Jobs At The Rocky Mount Plant Was Expected To Be 64,071, Which Was $17,000 More Than The County’s Average. “Natron’s factory is expected to add 1,000 jobs, with the average wage for those jobs expected to be $64,071 – $17,000 more than the county’s current average. The resulting annual payroll of nearly $77 million could have economic effects as those wages are spent in and around the county. Natron will begin training programs at Edgecombe Community College to prepare the county’s workforce for new employment opportunities.” [Clean Economy Tracker, 6/3/25]

The One Big Beautiful Bill’s Cuts To Clean Energy Tax Credits Helped Push Natron Energy Out Of Business, Ending Their Plans To Build A $1.4 Billion Plant In NC-01

Punchbowl News: Republican Cuts To Clean Energy Tax Credits Under The Republican Reconciliation Law Contributed To Natron Energy Pulling Out Of Building A Battery Plant In NC-01. “E2, which supports these initiatives, has been tracking project announcements and cancellations since the 2022 enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act, which provided tax and spending incentives for clean energy production. Since the beginning of 2025, Republican congressional districts have lost nearly $12.4 billion in investments, while Democratic districts have lost around $7.5 billion. The Trump administration has been phasing out the Biden-era $7,500 EV tax credit, which companies believed would drive up demand for electric cars. The Trump administration is also cancelling federal funding for other energy projects. And more renewable energy-related tax credits will start to be scaled back soon under the GOP reconciliation law. Republicans opposed the Inflation Reduction Act and have mostly been supportive of the effort to end its energy policies. The rollback. In September alone, four major battery, storage and EV facility projects were abandoned. Some Republican lawmakers had lauded those efforts when they were announced years ago. Now, without the EV incentives attached to these projects, companies are backing out. […] Natron Energy is also pulling out of a planned $1.4 billion investment in Rep. Don Davis’ (D-N.C.) current district in North Carolina. Republicans are hoping to pick up Davis’ district under a new redistricting plan for 2026.” [Punchbowl News, 10/23/25]

• The Reconciliation Bill Was Dubbed The One Big Beautiful Bill Act. “On July 4, 2025, US President Donald Trump signed into law a budget reconciliation bill known as H.R.1: the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). The OBBBA generally accelerated phase-outs to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) energy tax credits, dictated shortened deadlines for project credit qualification (particularly targeting solar and wind facilities), broadened domestic content restrictions, and most prominently, restricted credit availability to ‘prohibited foreign entities’ of concern (FEOCs) – all of which raises important project planning considerations for developers, energy producers, and investors in the US renewables energy space.” [McDermott Will & Emery, 7/7/25]

Gov. Roy Cooper Said Natron Failed Due To Republican Attacks On Clean Energy Tax Credits

The Daily Reflector Headline: “Cooper Says Natron Failed Due To Attacks On Clean Energy; Leaders Express Dismay About Pull-Out.” [Daily Reflector, 9/10/25]

• Roy Cooper: Attacks On “Low-Cost Clean Energy” In Washington, D.C. “Helped Push Natron Out Of Business, Causing The Cancellation Of A Thousand Good-Paying Jobs For Rural Eastern North Carolina Families.” “Former governor and current U.S. Senate candidate Roy Cooper blamed the collapse of a battery maker that had planned a $1.4 billion plant near Tarboro on ongoing attacks on clean energy. Cooper and other area candidates seeking office in the 2026 elections were asked about the decision last month by Natron Energy to cease all operations, including plans to operate the 1,000-job facility at the Kingsboro Business Park in Edgecombe County. Cooper’s campaign released a statement on Friday in response to questions from the Rocky Mount Telegram. He said that attacks on ‘low-cost clean energy led by big oil lobbyists in Washington, D.C., helped push Natron out of business, causing the cancellation of a thousand good-paying jobs for rural eastern North Carolina families.’ ‘Unfortunately, these are not the only jobs that may be lost because of these disastrous energy policies that must be changed,’ he said.” [Daily Reflector, 9/10/25]
• News & Observer: North Carolina Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley Blamed Trump Administration Energy Policy For Contributing To Natron’s Failure. “Sherwood Partners had made ‘several attempts’ to sell its stake in Natron, Schmidt told staff Tuesday, but the investment firm ultimately placed Natron into a debtor process known as Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors, or ABC. Sodium-ion is an emerging battery material, and Natron has received nearly $20 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to fund its initial commercial efforts, including a smaller manufacturing site in Michigan. This money was part of a broader Biden administration initiative to help scale ‘high-risk and potentially disruptive new technologies’ in the energy sector. On Tuesday, North Carolina Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley blamed Trump administration energy policy for contributing to Natron’s failure. ‘Today’s news about Natron Energy is disappointing because it stood to create 1,000 good paying jobs in a growing industry,’ Lilley, who was appointed by Democratic Gov. Josh Stein, wrote in an email to The N&O. ‘Instead, federal energy policy is hurting rural jobs unless you happen to have oil or gas in your state.’” [News & Observer, 9/2/25]

The One Big Beautiful Bill Was Estimated To Raise Energy Costs For North Carolina Residents By $490 Per Year On Average

CNBC: Annual Energy Costs For Households In North Carolina Were Projected To Rise By An Average Of $490 Due To The One Big Beautiful Bill. “Electricity prices are expected to surge higher throughout the next decade due to energy policy changes in President Donald Trump’s ‘big beautiful’ bill, according to a new analysis from Energy Innovation, a non-partisan energy and climate think tank. Signed July 4, the bill mandates expanded oil and gas leasing, caps clean energy subsidies and rolls back tax credits that helped to make wind, solar and other clean power cheaper for manufacturers and more affordable for consumers, says Robbie Orvis, senior director for modeling and analysis at Energy Innovation. When the clean energy tax credits phase out at the end of 2025, that will bump up electricity costs for ordinary Americans, Orvis says. That’s largely because higher costs for clean energy development will slow the pace of new supply, just as U.S. energy demand hits record highs, he says, resulting in higher electricity bills and increased reliance on natural gas, which will also become more expensive with rising demand. […] Overall, household energy costs will rise by $170, on average, by 2035, researchers found. And that estimate may be conservative. A report from Princeton University’s Rapid Energy Policy Evaluation and Analysis Toolkit pegs the average increase at $280 a year by 2035.” [CNBC, 7/14/25]

[CNBC, 7/14/25]

Americans Would Pay Higher Energy Costs From The One Big Beautiful Bill’s Elimination Of Clean Energy Tax Credits

The One Big Beautiful Bill Would Raise Electricity Prices For Consumers

Rhodium: The House-Passed Republican Reconciliation Bill Would Raise Households’ Energy Costs. “Work is underway in Congress to construct and pass a budget reconciliation bill or bills to meet an array of priorities and policy objectives set by President Trump. Most of these priorities focus on increasing spending on defense and border security as well as extending and possibly expanding the tax cuts enacted in Trump’s first term. In this note, we estimate how much energy costs could rise for households and industry if Congress chooses to partially pay for these priorities through the rollback and repeal of key pollution regulations and energy tax credits. We find that on a national level, households see an increase in annual energy costs of $184 in 2030 and $371 in 2035. However, households in many states see much higher cost increases than the national average. This includes Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas, which, at the upper bound of our estimates, see annual cost increases of $250-$326 per household in 2030. In 2035, California, Oregon, and Washington all see estimated annual cost increases of over $800 per household. The rollback and repeal of regulations and tax credits also increase costs for industrial manufacturers. We estimate an increase of $8-14 billion in total energy spending across the industrial sector in 2030 and 2035. We provide impacts for each of the 50 states on the ClimateDeck as part of this analysis.” [Rhodium Group, 3/20/25]

CEBA: Repealing The Federal Clean Energy Technology -Neutral Investment And Production Tax Credits Would Raise American Consumers Costs By More Than $110 Per Year. “The Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA) today released a study conducted by NERA Economic Consulting showing that repealing the federal clean energy technology-neutral investment (§48E) and production tax credits (§45Y) would raise average U.S. residential electricity prices by nearly 7% by 2026 – equating to an average yearly increase of more than $110 for the average American residential customer. For American businesses, electricity bills would increase by about 10% by 2026 if the tax credits are repealed, with costs likely passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices for goods and services. Additionally, repealing the credits would decrease available capacity on the grid by 167 gigawatts (GW) at a time when generation is critical to supporting the 21st century industries of America such as artificial Intelligence and advanced manufacturing, to win the economic race against China.” [Clean Energy Buyers Association, 2/25/25]

The Republican Reconciliation Bill Would Raise The National Average Retail Electricity Rates By 9% In 2030. “A tax package on track to pass both chambers of Congress would raise electricity prices, accelerate the release of heat-trapping greenhouse gases and undercut low-emission energy investments, according to researchers who have analyzed the legislation. [...] Overall, the bill would raise ‘national average retail electricity rates and monthly household electricity bills by about 9% in 2030,’ researchers at Princeton University concluded.” [NJ Spotlight News, 6/5/25]

• HEADLINE: “Republican Tax Bill Will Raise Electricity Prices, Analysts Say.” [NJ Spotlight News, 6/5/25]

June 2025: Republican Representatives Warned That Gutting The Clean Energy Tax Credits In The Reconciliation Bill Would Lead To Higher Energy Bills For Consumers

June 2025: Thirteen House Republicans Signed A Letter Urging Senate Leaders To Protect Clean Energy Tax Credits In The Reconciliation Bill. “Thirteen House Republicans are urging Senate leaders to ‘substantially and strategically’ improve clean energy tax credit provisions in the House-passed megabill. Led by Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.), the lawmakers said they remain ‘deeply concerned by several provisions’ that would aggressively phase down incentives from the Democrats’ 2022 climate law and add strict new supply chain requirements. [Politico, 6/6/25]

June 2025: Thirteen House Republicans Said They Were “Deeply Concerned By Several Provisions” Of The House-Passed Megabill Regarding Its Impact On Clean Energy Tax Credits. “Thirteen House Republicans are urging Senate leaders to ‘substantially and strategically’ improve clean energy tax credit provisions in the House-passed megabill. Led by Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.), the lawmakers said they remain ‘deeply concerned by several provisions’ that would aggressively phase down incentives from the Democrats’ 2022 climate law and add strict new supply chain requirements.” [Politico, 6/6/25]

Republican Representatives Warned The Reconciliation Bill Could Jeopardize Energy Development, Increase Costs, And Weaken U.S. Competitiveness. “Today, Congresswoman Jen Kiggans (VA-02) and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) led a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership encouraging commonsense reforms to key provisions in the energy title of H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In the letter, Kiggans, Fitzpatrick, and 11 of their colleagues, raised concerns about several provisions in the bill. These include the abrupt expiration of clean energy tax credits, overly burdensome Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) restrictions, and restrictions on credit transferability. The lawmakers warned that these measures could jeopardize energy development, increase costs, and weaken U.S. competitiveness, and urged the Senate to adopt practical refinements that promote fiscal responsibility while supporting business stability and continued investment in American energy.” [Representative Kiggans, Press Release, 6/6/25]

Clean Energy Buyers Association: The One Big Beautiful Bill’s Cuts To Clean Energy Tax Credits Would Increase Energy Costs For North Carolinians By 14.4% As Less Power Was Added To The Grid

Eliminating Tax Credits For Clean Energy In North Carolina Would Increase Residential Energy Prices By 14.4% In 2029

Clean Energy Buyers Association: Eliminating Tax Credits For Clean Energy In North Carolina Would Increase Residential Energy Prices By 14.4% In 2029, The Fourth Most In The Country. According to data from the Clean Energy Buyers Association, without IRA clean energy tax credits, residential energy prices in North Carolina would rise by 14.4% in 2029, which was the fourth highest increase of any state in the country. [Clean Energy Buyers Association, 2/10/25]

• Rhodium Group: Cutting Clean Energy Tax Credits Would Raise Households’ Energy Costs By Hundreds Of Dollars In The Coming Years. “In this note, we estimate how much energy costs could rise for households and industry if Congress chooses to partially pay for these priorities through the rollback and repeal of key pollution regulations and energy tax credits. We find that on a national level, households see an increase in annual energy costs of $184 in 2030 and $371 in 2035. However, households in many states see much higher cost increases than the national average.” [Rhodium Group, 3/20/25]