March 8, 2022

How US-made heat pumps could help weaken Russian power over Europe

https://electrek.co/2022/03/08/how-us-made-heat-pumps-could-help-weaken-russian-power-over-europe/

President [Joe] Biden should immediately invoke the Defense Production Act to get American manufacturers to start producing electric heat pumps in quantity, so we can ship them to Europe where they can be installed in time to dramatically lessen [Vladimir] Putin’s power.

White House aides… have studied plans to dramatically scale up US production of energy-efficient heat pumps that they hoped could be used in Europe if European leaders decided to cut its imports of Russian oil, said three people with knowledge of the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. Biden officials have weighed whether these heat pumps could be produced through the Defense Production Act, an emergency national defense law, or through procurement programs at the Department of Defense, the people said. Some advocates close to the effort have compared the idea to the “Lend-Lease Act” program through which the US sent critical supplies to the Allied nations that had been invaded by Germany in World War II.

Heat pumps are WAY more efficient than gas furnaces, though more expensive to buy initially. However, a massive increase in manufacturing will drive down the cost. This could be a win/win scenario for the US and the EU.