Biden administration to work with Entergy Arkansas to meet climate goals

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) signed a memorandum of understanding with Entergy Arkansas to help federal agencies in Arkansas meet the goals the climate goals of the Biden administration.

Specifically, the administration has set a goal of sourcing 100 percent of the federal government’s electricity from carbon pollution-free (CFE) sources by 2030, including 50 percent 24/7 CFE, meaning delivered to the same grid region as the consuming facilities.

The agreement between the GSA — the primary agency that procures electricity for the federal government — and Entergy Arkansas was announced this week at the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference. This is the first MOU the administration has signed with a utility for this reason.

“This MOU marks a historic step forward and demonstrates how the federal government is partnering in initiatives to spur demand for carbon pollution-free electricity – when and where people need it,” GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan said. “GSA looks forward to working with our agency partners and utilities across the country to replicate this MOU model – helping to promote local, clean energy sources and catalyze utility-scale energy storage, and create a more resilient grid.”

Entergy Arkansas is one of the top 10 suppliers of electricity to the federal government. This agreement will allow Entergy Arkansas’s public and private sector customers to utilize regionally sourced nuclear and renewables, including solar, hydro, or wind. Also, this program is one of the world’s first electricity utility tariffs that supports 24/7 hourly matching of CFE with consumers’ electricity needs. Once fully developed and approved, Entergy Arkansas customers will have a cost-competitive and reliable option for CFE that matches their electricity consumption for all hours of the day.

“Today’s MOU shows how innovative, customer-centric clean energy can help Federal agencies in Arkansas cost-effectively meet the clean energy goals of President Biden’s Federal Sustainability Plan. By building upon existing nuclear power generation with new carbon-free renewable resources, this approach helps reach net-zero emissions while keeping costs low for consumers. We hope this partnership between GSA and Entergy Arkansas will serve as a model for other Federal agencies and suppliers to accelerate the transition to clean energy,” Andrew Mayock, the federal government’s chief sustainability officer at the White House, said.