How committed to energy reform is Obama?

Barack ObamaBarack Obama made a strong commitment to weaning the United States off its oil addiction as part of a commitment to a stable economy and national security. But it seems much of his plans may be disrupted by economic and regulatory barriers.

At the core of the green infrastructure plan is the need to deploy a national smart grid that would allow the transmission of wind and tidal power developed in strategic locations to be disseminated around the country. But billions of dollars spent on laying the lines need to be preceded by millions of dollars laying out the designs and it's not clear where such funding would arise in the current economic environment.

Then there is the concern over how to complete the stringing required for the national energy grid. Turns out that the country isn't that cooperative in layout out power lines at a regional level and there would be plenty of red tape ahead.

What's likely is that green energy will still get a shot in the arm from the Obama government but the adoption rate might be much slower than anticipated.