US president Barack Obama maintained his commitment to renewable energy in his State of the Union address on Tuesday night.

"Last year, wind energy added nearly half of all new power capacity in America. So let's generate even more. Solar energy gets cheaper by the year -- so let's drive costs down even further. As long as countries like China keep going all-in on clean energy, so must we."

To backbone America's green energy ambitions the president announced three new manufacturing hubs and has asked the US Congress to create a network of 15 more to "guarantee that the next revolution in manufacturing is made in America".

Obama's speech also emphasised the environmental imperatives driving his administration's focus on renewable power generation.

"I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy."