Charting the Path: An Energy Earthshots Initiative Report

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Earthshots™ Initiative targets the most difficult-to-solve technology barriers for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and sets technical and cost performance goals for key next-generation clean energy technologies. In just over three years, since the Energy Earthshots Initiative was announced, DOE has extensively scoped, developed, and launched the portfolio of eight Energy Earthshots that drive integrated program execution to accomplish these goals. 

The Charting the Path: An Energy Earthshots Initiative Report highlights the diversity of the Energy Earthshots portfolio and that it is inclusive of many different technologies, pathways, and assessment methods with a common goal of improving lives through American innovation. The report lays out five distinct elements to assess progress for each of the Energy Earthshots, defining their goals, setting baselines for these goals, measuring progress against the baselines, tracking actions and accomplishments toward their goals, and roadmapping their paths to success. In addition to reporting across the eight individual Energy Earthshots, the report discusses efforts across the Energy Earthshots to ensure that DOE is enlisting the full innovative ecosystem in pursuit of these goals, with strong connections to deployment and commercialization efforts and international collaborations. 

Through this initiative, DOE set highly ambitious technical and cost-reduction targets to pave the way for a revolutionary surge in decarbonization and clean energy production. With billions of dollars at work in support of the goals, the Energy Earthshots Initiative is ensuring that scientific discoveries and R&D advancements lead to industry-ready technologies and tools that drive climate and economic progress. Progress toward these Energy Earthshots will continue through DOE’s fundamental mission in supporting groundbreaking scientific discoveries, technical advancements through RD&D investments, and tangible impacts on economic growth and job creation.