The idea that wind, solar, and batteries are temporary tools until gas “shows up” is the most backward energy logic since “clean coal”
In recent remarks, John Ketchum, CEO of NextEra Energy, laid out a curious and somewhat baffling narrative: renewables should serve as a transition solution toward expanding natural gas generation. Yes, you read that correctly. After decades of framing gas as a so-called “bridge fuel” to a renewable future, the argument has seemingly flipped on its head. We are now being asked to consider the most rapidly deployable, clean, cost-effective energy sources — wind, solar, and storage — as nothing more than a stopgap solution until we can build more expensive, slower-to-deploy fossil-fuel infrastructure. This logic would be amusing if it weren’t deeply troubling.
“We need a bridge to get ourselves to 2032 when that gas shows up,” Ketchum said. “And when that gas shows up, it’s going to be three times more expensive than it’s ever been.
In his defence, Ketchum’s comments came during the Politico Energy Summit in Washington, D.C., in June 2025, where he was responding to mounting political pressure from Republican-led efforts to roll back clean energy incentives and reinstate…
