Chu's Legacy: Parting Words for Next Energy Czar to Consider

I understood that the Chevy Volt has sold 24,000 since 2011 and the Nissan LEAF has remarkable price reductions that we're very, very excited about. With the current subsidies, this actually puts it under $20,000.

But, as I said before, we need $20,000 with no subsidies by 2022. This would be very exciting. When you get close to that, even $25,000, the market will speak for itself and so that's why we're so focused on improving the technology.”

Some people say, 'unless you get every single feature of an internal combustion engine car, the customers won't accept that. Every single feature? Let's talk about features you could not get with an internal combustion car or a normal hybrid. I look forward to the day when I have a smart phone of some kind and, two minutes before I get into the car, I push a little button and say, 'make my car cool' or 'make my car warm,' because most of the trips are 5-10 minutes and you're either freezing or you're sweating for the first couple minutes. With an EV, even a mild plug-in, you can condition the thing before you get in.

For those of you that actually pour gasoline into your cars, you might, at some time, have spilled gasoline on your hands or clothes, and when I do that, my hands stink of gasoline. So, look at all the other features.

We used to be the undisputed leader in the auto industry. We were not at the beginning. We didn't invent the internal combustion engine, we didn't invent the automobile. That was done in Europe. But very shortly after that, we took the lead and held it for roughly a half century. So, that program is an important program and if we can use it to actually have sustainable businesses that succeed as something to bring back and retain our leadership in the future, we will look at all applications.

Just as today's boom in shale gas production was made possible by Department of Energy research from 1978 to 1991, some of the most significant work may not be known for decades. What matters is that our country will reap the benefits of what we have started.