"My expectation is that the energy committees or other relevant committees in both the House and the Senate are going to be moving forward a strong energy package," Obama said during a prime time news conference, his second since taking office.

"It will be authorized. We will get it done, and I will sign it," Obama added.

The president made tackling carbon emissions one of the centerpieces of his campaign, contrasting sharply with the administration of George W. Bush which repeatedly cast doubts on the existence of global warning.

Following though on that pledge, Obama included a cap-and-trade proposal in his 3.55-trillion-dollar budget plan presented to Congress in February, which is now the subject to intense political wrangling.

Obama's proposal would limit emissions of greenhouse gases for manufacturers, and permit companies to trade the right to pollute to other firms.

The program would also force heavy polluters to buy credits from companies that pollute less, creating financial incentives to fight global warming.

But many Republicans in Congress remain deeply skeptical about adopting a market-based mechanism to cut carbon emissions, fearing it may hit the competitiveness of US firms and products on global markets, particularly while China and India refuse to make concessions in tandem.

Speaking after Obama's first address to a joint session to Congress in February, House Minority Leader John Boehner described the cap-and-trade proposals as a stealth tax.

"Let's just be honest and call it a carbon tax that will increase taxes on all Americans who drive a car, who have a job, who turn on a light switch, pure and simple," he said.

On Tuesday, Obama indicated a cap-and-trade system would introduce monetary incentives for firms to moderate their carbon output, but indicated some concessions to market principles would be needed.

"The way it's structured has to take into account regional differences. It has to protect consumers from huge spikes in electricity prices. So, there are a lot of technical issues that are going to have to be sorted through," he said.

Obama has pledged to set aside as much a 15 billion dollars each year for the development of "clean energy" technologies like wind power and solar energy -- doubling America's supply of renewable energy in the next three years.

Meanwhile, Americans would receive some 63 billion dollars in tax breaks and other assistance from the sale of polluting rights in the form of tax breaks for individuals and businesses converting to clean energy technology.

Obama heralded the plan as a way of helping the US out of its current economic morass.

"The broader principle is that we have got to move to a new energy era. And that means moving away from polluting energy sources, towards cleaner energy sources. That is a potential engine for economic growth."

A recent study funded by the environmental group Greenpeace claimed the United States could reduce carbon emissions by 83 percent from 1990 levels by 2050 while sharply expanding employment, through dramatic increases in wind, solar and other green energies.

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