FOXNews.com: Battle grows over extending tax breaks for wind energy producers

FOXNews.com FOX News Network - We Report. You Decide. // via fulltextrssfeed.com

Battle grows over extending tax breaks for wind energy producers May 1st 2012, 22:48 States like Colorado stand to lose wind industry jobs if legislation fails to extend the federal tax break for wind energy producers.  The production tax credit (PTC) is due to expire at the end of this year, unless lawmakers intervene to keep it alive.  "We're just not doing our job,' says U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D) of Colorado, "We need to get after it." Sen. Bennet and his colleague Sen. Mark Udall are both concerned that their state alone could lose 6,000 jobs.  And according to the American Wind Energy Association as many as 37,000 manufacturing jobs could be at risk nationwide. The producer credit helps offset the cost of electricity production during a wind farm's first ten years.  It came about in 1992 when the industry was still finding its legs.  It's also something that must be renewed periodically by Congress. Proponents say if lawmakers wait until the end of 2012  to get this done, the industry risks losing out on potential wind development projects. The thinking being that if a company is considering a new contract, it may hold back.  If that happens, then it sets off a domino effect where wind turbine manufacturers and others in the supply chain lose work. Bennet has co-sponsored a bill in the Senate that would give the credit a two year extension. The House version calls for 4 years. Both are moving slowly. In an effort to get it done sooner rather than later, Bennet has also put forward an amendment with a plan to pay for the program, with the help of some Republicans. "I think that in the overall scheme of things in Washington where the place... (has) really become, I call it 'the land of flickering lights', because  the standard of the success there is where we kept the lights on for another 2 months, and kept the government running for another two months."   Not everyone thinks wind is worth the effort, or the estimated $2-to-$4-billion it could cost next year. U.S. Representative Doug Lamborn (R) of Colorado opposes the PTC. He says he doesn't want tax payers to be forced to fork over money to prop up the industry. "At some point wind needs to stand on its own two feet," says Lamborn. "And when it comes to receiving tax payer subsidies…it doesn't seem to get to the point where it can stand on its own." He adds that his hope is this alternate energy source finds its way, to give consumers more options. Over the last twenty years, the wind industry has grown to provide on average, about 3 percent of power grid electricity nationwide.  In some states, it makes up almost a quarter. Lamborn says "Washington does not do a good job of picking winners and losers.  In fact, it usually picks losers." In response Senator Bennet's office says, "Many opponents of the wind tax, support federal subsidies for other energy industries, including some for the largest oil companies." The PTC helps developers of wind farms, which power the businesses of companies like Vestas; a wind turbine manufacturer with production and research located in Colorado.  The company has indicated layoffs could be become a reality without the extension. Tony Knopp, the General Manager for Vestas Towers, recently made a rare media appearance and explained the value of America's investment in this renewable.  "We don't use water in our process, we don't have to worry about anything to do with water, and water shortages."  That, an apparent reference to hydraulic fracturing, which is used in to extract oil and gas from the ground. Bennet says this is still an emerging industry and provides jobs manufacturing jobs his and other states can't afford to lose.

You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed, or manage all your subscriptions