Note the contradictory logic between the bolded and underlined sections highlighted.
"The convenient truth is that wind power shines as a stimulus solution for our economy, as well as a climate change and energy security solution,” said AWEA Director of Membership Services Britt Theismann. “Businesses are literally lining up in order to learn about wind power and secure contracts in the wind energy industry supply chain. It will be critical now for the new Administration and for states to put in place effective incentives and a long-term policy for renewable energy to sustain this tremendously promising momentum."
awea.org
Denise Bode, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association, had the following statement on the economic stimulus speech delivered today by President-elect Obama:
The U.S. wind energy industry welcomes and applauds President-elect Obama’s vision of a clean energy future and his understanding of the vital role that renewable energy can play in the recovery of our economy today. The wind energy industry looks forward to delivering on the President-elect’s call to double renewable energy production over three years – but we can do so only if Congress makes an immediate, temporary change to the existing federal incentive for wind to make it effective in the current economic and financial context. The industry also looks forward to working with the President-elect on the ambitious new energy policy agenda that he has outlined, including an early-action national renewable electricity standard, and investment in clean energy transmission “superhighways” to cost-effectively bring renewable energy to consumers.
awea.org
But you really want to know the heart of the problem with wind power? It's the tax credits that attracted investors looking to defer capital gains on other investments. Now that they don't have any capital gains, they don't need the tax credits. Thus, we can infer that few of them would want to invest in Wind Power without those tax credits because they don't make economic sense, let alone a sound ROI:
A vehicle for funding clean energy projects in the US has stopped functioning, jeopardising the continued development of large-scale wind and solar projects.
The so-called "tax equity markets", in which banks and others invest in renewable energy projects in exchange for tax credits, are struggling because the investors no longer have profits that will be taxed.........
........Tax equity investments accounted for 39 per cent of the $13.5bn financial institutions invested in wind energy projects in 2007. A freeze on such deals is likely to hamper the flourishing wind business next year.
"Tax equity is a fundamental part of the way all these projects are financed," Mr Swisher said. "While the entire market may not come to a halt, there will be a very significant negative impact on the industry in 2009."
The freeze comes in the wake of a victory for the renewable energy industry. In October, the US Congress extended tax credits for solar and wind producers for another eight years.
ft.com
Now you know why wind projects can't get financing.. The only thing that was attractive about them were the tax credits..
THOSE ARE THE ECONOMIC FACTS!!
Hawk |
