By Kari Williamson

"The United States is competing in a global race for the clean energy jobs of the future," says Energy Secretary Steven Chu.

"The choice we face as a nation is simple: do we want the clean energy technologies of tomorrow to be invented in America by American innovators, made by American workers and sold around the world, or do we want to concede those jobs to our competitors? We can and must compete for those jobs. This budget request includes responsible investments in an American economy that is built to last."

In a White House blog, Ginny Simmons summarises what the budget means for DoE:

• Investing in cross-cutting research to lead in the research, development, deployment and production of clean energy technologies;
• Promoting efforts to make solar power affordable for all Americans by reducing the cost of solar energy by 75% and making it cost competitive without subsidies by the end of the decade;
• Continuing the Obama Administration’s efforts to reduce the dependence on oil by one-third by 2025;
• Supporting ground-breaking basic science, research and innovation to solve energy challenges and ensure that the United States remains at the forefront of science and technology;
• Strengthening national security by reducing nuclear dangers and maintaining a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent; and
• Advancing responsible environmental management by cleaning up the legacy from the Manhattan Project and the Cold War.

Highlights in the FY 2013 budget include:

• US$60 million to perform critical research on energy storage systems and devise new approaches for battery storage;
• US$350m for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to continue support for promising early-stage research projects that could deliver game-changing clean energy technologies;
• US$120m to support the Energy Frontier Research Centers and US$140m for the five existing Energy Innovation Hubs and to establish a new hub to focus on grid systems and the tie between transmission and distribution systems;
• US$770m for nuclear energy; and
• US$276m for research and development of advanced fossil fuel power systems and carbon capture, utilisation and storage technologies.