Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 10/31/2011 10:55:40 AM PDT by martosko
Two “clean energy companies” which Barack Obama and Harry Reid have touted as creators of “green energy jobs” have joined Solyndra on the growing list of federal loan recipients facing financial turmoil and default. And a new poll indicates that voters don’t support the idea of agenda-driven federal loans to chosen corporations.
Beacon Power Corp., a Massachusetts based energy storage company, filed for bankruptcy on Sunday, just one year after the company received a $43 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy.
And The New York Times reports that Nevada Geothermal Power, another recipient of millions in DOE loan guarantees, is struggling financially: Its auditor reported last week that he has “significant doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.”
Nevada Geothermal received a DOE loan guarantee of $79 million, plus at least $66 million in grants.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedc.com ...
This is criminal. Congress should be aggressively investigating the DOE and Treasury.
geothermal power is well understood and long used technology.
The only reason a company would fail would be bad management or it was a scam from the get-go.
Agreed. The key is to look for initiatives/companies that have private investors. The government shouldn’t be giving out loans until the private sector has done due diligence. And those loans should only occur if the tech is good, but the capital markets are poor due to current OBAMA economic conditions.
This is what we get for believing government can give us new energy sources by redistributing our wealth and getting us buried in debt. That isn’t how progress works. When something comes along to replace the horse and buggy, it will, and it doesn’t matter how hard the horse and buggy establishment fights to prevent it. When new energy sources evolve to replace carbon fuels, they will. It isn’t going to happen by making carbon fuels too expensive, by social engineering, climate frauds, or supply fears. All that is needed to make carbon fuels obsolete is a better, cheaper, and more abundant fuel, something that will make life better, factories more efficient, transportation faster, more reliable, and more comfortable, houses warmer, cooler, safer and cheaper. If such a fuel comes along tomorrow, an infrastructure that accommodates it will spring up like magic. People who know how to make money and jobs will be all over it. All we are going to get from government meddling is fraud and disappointment.
Another thing that hacks me off is the company that got the loan is in CANADA.
It is a big outfit
http://www.nevadageothermal.com/s/Home.asp
with a lot of propterty
NGP holds leasehold interests in eight geothermal projects located in Western United States:Blue Mountain,Pumpernickel, North Valley , and Edna Mountain - in Nevada, New Truckhaven, East Brawley, and South Brawley - in California and Crump Geyser- in Oregon.
They got a grant, not a loan in the beginning.
One example of the new wave in geothermal power generation is the recently completed 50-MW Blue Mountain Faulkner 1 Geothermal Power Plant. To help finance its project, in November 2009, Nevada Geothermal Power Inc. (NGP) applied for and received a $57.9 million cash grant from the U.S. Department of the Treasury in lieu of tax credits for its geothermal power plant. This cash grant was funded by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. The total construction cost for the Blue Mountain power plant was $180 million, and debt financing was handled by Trust Company of the West.
They are not alone
The companies, based in the West, have received $195 million in partial federal loan guarantees and grants aimed at promoting clean energy. Although the companies have agreements with utilities to buy their energy, they have not operated at a profit. They face questions similar to those of Solyndra, the now-bankrupt solar manufacturer that received a $535million federal loan in 2009.
Raser Technologies, a Utah company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this year after burning through hundreds of millions of investor financing and a $33million Treasury Department grant that was awarded to the company in 2010.
Nevada Geothermal Power (NGP) said in its financial filings that it has never operated profitably and that the company is at risk of failing.
A third company, U.S. Geothermal, received a $97million Energy Department loan in February. Its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission show that it has not made a profit in the past four years.
Oddly, I wrote a book where, in part, failing geothermal power plays a part in the plot. Who knew?
There have been ‘geothermal energy ‘holes dug all over the desert north of where I live. They were all supposed to be linked together to a plant for distribution.
What happens to all these wells now????
DO you live in Midas?
If the wells are not used, they should be filled in/capped. Are they still open?
Ping
The good thing about Solazyme is that they are using their facilities to produce products that don’t depend on “green” initiatives. Cosmetics and food...
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