In the years before the United States aging network of electrical grids began heaving under the pressure of record-breaking storms and heat waves, demand for transformers the connective tissue of the power system kept pace with the construction of new housing.

Those days are over. Now extreme weather regularly destroys hundreds of transformers at a time and drives up demand for more electricity on scorching or smoky days when cooling or purifying the air indoors saves lives. Preventing that crisis from getting worse means using electricity instead of fossil fuels for cars and heating while also generating a lot more of that power from sources such as solar panels and wind turbines. Those renewables, in turn, require a much larger and more expansive grid system and a lot more transformers.

Manufacturers were in a bind. Building new assembly lines to churn out more of the transformers in current use would cost millions. The Biden administration , meanwhile, had proposed a new rule raising the energy-efficiency standards for transformers sold after 2027, requiring factories to start using a different kind of steel and invest in equipment that could not produce whats currently in demand.

Facing backlash, the Department of Energy dialed back the regulation, unveiling a finalized proposal Thursday that almost completely reversed one of U.S. manufacturers biggest sticking points and gave companies five years to comply.

The regulatory process can work, and this final rule shows just that by reflecting feedback from a broad spectrum of stakeholders, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement. Ultimately, it will be a piece of the solution, rather than a barrier, to help resolve the ongoing distribution transformer shortage and keep Americas businesses and workers competitive.