May 9 (Bloomberg) — U.S. President Barack Obama chose a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. location for his attempt to gain public support for an energy and environment initiative that's been met with skepticism from business groups and Republicans, who say it will kill jobs.

With employees protesting Wal-Mart's anti-union stance, Obama is scheduled to announce today a suite of plans to promote energy efficiency and solar power use.

"One of the big success stories is that the solar industry is booming," Dan Utech, special assistant to the president for energy and climate change, told reporters yesterday. "In the last six years, solar installations in this country have increased around elevenfold, from 1.2 gigawatts to an estimated 13 gigawatts today, enough to power more than 2 million American homes."

Obama is seeking to make addressing climate change part of his legacy in office. This week the administration released a National Climate Assessment that supporters and critics say lays the groundwork for new efforts to curb emissions blamed for global warming.

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