Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz gave a speech at Columbia University yesterday, in which he highlighted the multiple facets of President Obama’s Climate Action Plan. And he stressed the progress on one of the plan’s main priorities – lowering the cost of alternative forms of energy – has made tremendous strides in the past few years.

“A harbinger of what is coming is when incumbents start to seriously examine their business models in the face of what’s happening,” Moniz said.

“There are some, shall we call them ‘discussions’, going on between the solar industry and utilities in terms of how are distributed PV systems paid for electricity back to the grid? How are things like distribution system costs shared?

“It was only a few years ago when nobody cared,” he said.

And additional emphasis on reducing carbon dioxide emissions will likely accelerate progress towards incorporating more and more renewables into the US energy mix.

“A lot of these technologies are beginning to establish their positions, and certainly with policy actions on the climate front, will only be helped further,” Moniz said.