- Snapshot of Solyndras activity 2011
Posted on 09/17/2011 12:01:02 PM PDT by tomd2
If you want to find out what happened with Solyndra you have to follow the money. I did. The half billion dollars of taxpayer dough that is probably lost in Sol came from the Federal Financing Bank (“FFB”). It’s worth a look at this bank to see what else is going on.
FFB is a bank that is owned and controlled by the US Treasury. The chairman of the Board is the TSec. (Tim Geithner). With the (big) exception of the Post Office all of the loans at FFB are guaranteed by government agencies. Technically speaking, FFB has no risks on loans guaranteed by an agency like the DOE. But I don’t think that should absolve Tim Geithner of any responsibility regarding the losses the country faces with Solyndra. If he, (or anyone else at Treasury) puts their pen to a ½ billion loan, they better well know where the taxpayers money is going. That didn’t happen.
(Excerpt) Read more at zerohedge.com ...
Thanks - pass it along. I had more on the Clinton Administration but unfortunately a computer glitch erased it. Yes, agree it’s deep and full of incestuous dealings, and probably on both sides, but I’m only interesting in those lefties. heh I grew up in Europe and know they’re standardizing every country globally but don’t have a handle on the systems here. They;re now having a “transparent” committee with Patty Murray (she’s in on a lot of stuff and needs to go) at the helm, along with a few republicans, they’re going to pass a law on our finances etc. It reminds me of Soros’ “Open Democracy” and Obama’ Transparency theme throughout his election. Ellen Miller. who claims to be a watchdog, is spearheading it. Check her out on the mediachecker site. I just don’t know what they’re up to but the UK has done it and I think they’re going to contribute money toward it. It sounds good but they have an ulterior motive...Agenda 21...do they want to control how much money we can have or what...just don’t know. All I know is they are changing this country and leading the Repubs along by the nose via their fancy terminology.
- Snapshot of Solyndras activity 2011
Total Lobbying Spending
1998 $1.44 Billion
1999 $1.44 Billion
2000 $1.56 Billion
2001 $1.64 Billion
2002 $1.82 Billion
2003 $2.04 Billion
2004 $2.17 Billion
2005 $2.43 Billion
2006 $2.62 Billion
2007 $2.85 Billion
2008 $3.30 Billion
2009 $3.49 Billion
2010 $3.51 Billion
2011 $1.67 Billion
I don’t see much cutbacks on lobbyists here. Another Obama lie.
The simplest explanation for all the interlocking relationships and the one I accept is that “birds of a feather flock together”. Many of these people formed relationships in their Ivy League years based on a common ideology and hitched their wagons to the rising stars among them.
There’s no doubt their ideology and ultimate goal entails central government control over all wealth and property. The pesky U.S. Constitution just keeps slowing them down and once in a while, like in 2010, the electorate wakes up enough to see what’s going on and pushes back hard. But then the electorate often tunes out and they are able to take baby steps toward their goal.
They don’t hide what they want or what they are. They just couch it in terms that sound mainstream. “Fair share”, “Living wage”, “For the children”, “Shared sacrifice”, “Human rights”, and so on.
What they can’t manage to take outright, they regulate to death and destroy.
Besides people’s homes and land, another huge repository of wealth in this nation are people’s retirement savings. Every once in a while, a progressive will go on record as saying the government needs to have control over those retirement savings. They’ll propose some kind of “sweetheart” deal like you turn over your retirement savings to the federal government in exchange for a guaranteed return on investment. Of course initially, this will be a voluntary arrangement, but the Pandora’s box will have been opened. The end goal is of course, to make it mandatory.
I’m not into conspiracy theories, but the grand plans of the progressives cannot proceed without lots and lots of money. Either they tax or they confiscate. There’s no other options I can think of that fits their agenda.
So the simple common denominator in all these people is that they desire that the central government (with them as rulers) hold and control all wealth, both personal and corporate. And the end justifies the means.
Something on George Kaiser Family Foundation (GKFF), the name sounds caring but...
Kaiser, G.T. Byrum, and LaFortune (Byrum’s grandfather):
“On the House lobby disclosure search form, selecting Lobbyist Name as search field and Bynum as criteria will bring up G. T. Bynum’s current lobbying work (under the registrant names Capitol Ventures Government Relations LLC, Capitol Ventures Government Relations LLC(AKA GT Bynum Cons), and G.T. Bynum Consulting, LLC) and his WIFE Susan Bynum’s past work for Capitol Hill Consulting Group, headed by former Oklahoma Democrat Congressman Bill Brewster.”
“One allegation involves a promissory note for $7,825,000.00 from the City to the GKFF relating to the OSU Medical Center (formerly Oklahoma Osteopathic Hospital and Tulsa Regional Medical Center). The vote occurred on December 3, 2009, about 43 days before Bynum registered as a federal lobbyist for GKFF on January 12, 2010. “Expanded access to and improved health care in Oklahoma through the Oklahoma State University Medical Center” is listed as a lobbying issue in each of the four quarterly reports Bynum filed regarding his work for GKFF. (2010 Q1, 2010 Q2, 2010 Q3, 2010 Q4.”
“The Bynum/GKFF lobbying relationship was terminated on December 1, 2010, according to Bynum’s 2010 Q4 filing.”
“Giving the city’s bond business to the same bank without competition is a disservice to the taxpayer, but it does improve the bank’s bottom line to the financial benefit of shareholders like G. T. Bynum’s grandpa.”
“The City of Tulsa ethics ordinance defines any relative within two degrees of consanguinity or affinity as immediate family for the purposes of determining a conflict of interest. This includes grandparents, parents, siblings, children, and grandchildren of oneself or one’s spouse.”
“The relationship between Bynum and LaFortune is well-known (Kaiser stores millions in the bank). The relationship between LaFortune and BOK (Bank of Ok) Financial is documented in SEC filings. LaFortune is a director of the corporation and a member of the Board of Directors’ Credit Committee, and he owns stock in BOKF worth between $2 million and $3 million.”
“G. T. Bynum should have known to recuse himself on these votes; grandfather falls within the ethics ordinance’s definition of immediate family. More than that, someone with Bynum’s degree of financial savvy should have proposed an ordinance requiring competitive bidding for bond issues over a certain amount. There are plenty of firms in and around Tulsa and Oklahoma capable of handling the work.”
http://www.batesline.com/archives/2011/09/tulsa-district-9-g-t-bynums-conf.html
GT Bynum Consulting
CLIENT: George Kaiser Family Foundation
Registered 01-12-2010
http://disclosures.house.gov/ld/pdfform.aspx?id=300230694
Bill Brewster Capital Hill Consulting Group...
http://www.caphillgrp.com/html/brewster.html
Bynum was a lobbyist from 01-12-2010 - 12-01-2010. One wonders it he lobbied Solyndra for Kaiser. Did Brewster? Don’t have time to look them up as I spent too much time at this terrific site:
http://www.batesline.com/archives/2011/09/tulsa-district-9-g-t-bynums-conf.html
They change names and sites like the weather. Smoke and Mirrors. I can see why Dubka set-up a school for these Aides, there’s money to be made, and there’s a pattern. The whole set-up is an incestuous monopoly and needs a disinfecting.
GK Bynum’ CV (he worked for Don Nickles x 5 yrs: 2000 - 2005 and Tom Coburn x 1yr:
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/g-t-bynum/3/826/194
How does one get an Aides job? They’re all for diversity, but for cronyism, not so much.
“So the simple common denominator in all these people is that they desire that the central government (with them as rulers) hold and control all wealth, both personal and corporate. And the end justifies the means.”
YES!
Old information I had...
The Clintons were caught for IRS shenanigans via their Clinton Home “Charity” in Ak (remember the pantie deduction and one wonders what Shoreline or Pacific whatever is up to these days)...
http://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/human-services/william-j-clinton-foundation-in-little-rock-ar-655
Better Business Bureau (BBB) – Clinton paid the fine and that was it:
http://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/human-services/william-j-clinton-foundation-in-little-rock-ar-655
Bruce Lindsey is the lone caretaker of their Charity and Foundation insofar as I can see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Lindsey
Clinton doesn’t have a board or a treasurer for his Foundation (or Charity for that matter) that I can find - BBB found 3 but one wonders if they didn’t dig deep enough. He has someone taking care of the sites otherwise it’s a SHELL. There’s one annual meeting with Gates et al and that’s it.
Wouldn’t you love to have a giant slush fund (aka the U.S. Treasury) to use to benefit you and your cronies?
I believe the taxpayers are all just be played for a bunch of fools.
You pinged to a duplicate thread that got pulled. This thread prevailed and has much research of interest.
Solyndra's Whorehouse Lender (Follow the Money)
The duplicate thread was pulled; here is a better one, anyway.
Thanks for the help, thouworm.
Nancy Pelosi Proposes Alternative to Axed Page Program
More than a month after announcing that the House page program would end after nearly 200 years, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi unveiled a new initiative aimed at filling the gaps it left behind.
In a letter distributed today to House Democrats, the California Democrat laid out a plan that would put college-age interns to work in the Democratic Cloakroom for six-week rotations. Set to launch in October, the program would draw from a small pool of current interns at the recommendations of the Members for whom they are already working.
Pelosi said the concept for the initiative grew out of a desire to keep young people involved with the Capitol.
It would also fill a manpower gap created by the pages’ departure. Assisting in the Cloakroom was a core part of the program, which brought in high school juniors from around the country to assist with the chamber’s day-to-day operations.
“I know these placements will offer a valuable learning experience for the interns while providing valuable assistance to our Members consistent with the needs of the Cloakroom’s staff,” Pelosi wrote.
It would also, she wrote, “be a way to let young people see how floor operations are run without the cost and complex responsibilities of the page program.”
Aides for Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said they were unaware of the Democratic initiative before today and did not have a similar program to announce.
Pelosi and Boehner announced Aug. 8 that they would shutter the page program to save about $5 million per year, and this month marked the first time that the House convened without them.
Veteran pages on and off Capitol Hill have been pushing to either reinstate the program or to create a similar entity.
Former pages and current Reps. Dan Boren (D-Okla.) and John Dingell (D-Mich.) introduced legislation that would direct the House Administration Committee to assemble a nine-member advisory panel to recommend ways to restore the page program with fewer costs and greater efficiency.
Alumni of the page program plan to gather in the halls of Congress on Friday to lobby House lawmakers to support the measure.
http://www.rollcall.com/news/nancy_pelosi_proposes_alternative_to_axed_page_program-208886-1.html
This was all pre-arranged, and Boehmer is in cohoots or stupid. I believe most of these Repubs are being led around by this bi-partisan “third way”. Even his Aides didn’t know about it. Nancy must have told him to keep it quiet and he obeyed because she knew it would bring angst to a few of his smarter Aides.
Yes, they use our money to gain power for themselves, they get to feel like the own the money and the place, so much so, they feel they can rearrange 200 yrs of Tradition. The objective is to “change” the whole structure. Ludwig changed the whole Treasury Dept when he was there under Clinton without a peep from the repubs. They must be stopped.
RE: your link on Rattner from the WaPo. Rattner reported that 25 billion of the 50 bil was missing at GM. Andrew Cuomo, not long encounced, sued Rattner and Jamie Gorelick was his lawyer (this clintonista always manages to stay under the radar). Was it done to shut him up about the money...
http://news.muckety.com/2010/04/16/quadrangle-disavows-steve-rattner-company-founder/25631
We haven’t heard much about the 25 bil since. Where did it go...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2368496/posts
GW Bush didn’t know where the TARP money went either...no one apparently keeps track of it. Yeah, right!
From post #7:
“Over three terms in office, Mr. Perry’s administration has doled out grants, tax breaks, contracts and appointments to hundreds of his most generous supporters and their businesses. And they have helped Mr. Perry raise more money than any politician in Texas history, donations that have periodically raised eyebrows but, thanks to loose campaign finance laws and a business-friendly political culture dominated in recent years by Republicans, have only fueled Mr. Perry’s ascent. … helped get off the ground. McHale gave Perry $100,000 and in May 2010 an economic development fund administered by the governor’s office handed $3 million to G-Con, a pharmaceutical start-up that Mr. McHale.”
“And Mr. Perry has been much more aggressive than any past governor in soliciting money from them. According to a study last year by Texans for Public Justice (lefties), a watchdog organization, Mr. Perry has raised at least $17 million from more than 900 appointees or their spouses, roughly one dollar out of every five that he has raised as governor.”
“Among the state boards that have generated the most campaign contributions for Mr. Perry, the study found, were the State Parks and Wildlife Commission and the board of regents of Texas A&M, Mr. Perry’s alma mater. Those appointees have donated more than $4 million to his campaigns for governor.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/21/us/politics/21donate.html?_r=3&pagewanted=all&src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB
http://www.alternet.org/story/152433/rick_perry:_selling_sixth-grade_girls’_health_to_the_highest_bidder?page=entire
The NYSlimes and leftist Alternet have done their research on Perry in TP readiness for next year, the HPV vaccine aside, it looks like they don’t have much as it’s the usual cronyism done on both sides - don’t see any incestuousness as in Obama’s Admin. And, at least, Perry was successful - he privatized when possible, put his people in commissions, anathema to the left. I don’t see much that one couldn’t rebutt or counter with an Obama scheme. Romney is another “third way” story but I still don’t see Perry as someone who’d clean up the cronyism and incestuousness in government. That would take a Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann. Women are sharper than men when it comes to the wiliness of the Pelosi’ and Patty Murrays but theregain a strong female VP could keep a close watch. Perry and Michele wouldn’t be a bad team, ie, if Sarah doesn’t run. Snowe et al are blinded by their own stupidity and remind one of Boemher - there’s no room for naivety or stupidy at this critical point in time nor those who have come to believe the money is theirs to share with their cronies. It will take an inner strength which can only come from God who will weed out the corruption.
RE: post #2:
“It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to wonder if US taxpayer money is being funnelled to solar promoters through Greece, at the direction of the IMF, which is at the direction of Christine Lagarde, who was tutored by David Lipton, who is a former Obama “advisor.” Mr. Lipton, who wrote The Lagarde Dictum which was unleashed at Jackson Hole recently, serves as Miss Lagarde’s “first deputy” at the IMF. According to Bloomberg, he also “held various positions” at Clinton’s Treasury in the 1990’s.”
Veterans of ’90s Bailout Hope for Profit in New One
December 28, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/29/us/29bank.html?pagewanted=2
Office Name Term
President Bill Clinton 1993–2001
Vice President Al Gore 1993–2001
Secretary of State Warren Christopher 1993–1997
Madeleine Albright 1997–2001
Secretary of Treasury Lloyd Bentsen 1993–1994
Robert Rubin 1995–1999
Lawrence Summers 1999–2001
Secretary of Defense Les Aspin 1993–1994
William Perry 1994–1997
William Cohen 1997–2001
Attorney General Janet Reno 1993–2001
Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt 1993–2001
Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy 1993–1994
Daniel Glickman 1995–2001
Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown 1993–1996
Mickey Kantor 1996–1997
William Daley 1997–2000
Norman Mineta 2000–2001
Secretary of Labor Robert Reich 1993–1997
Alexis Herman 1997–2001
Secretary of Health and
Human Services Donna Shalala 1993–2001
Secretary of Education Richard Riley 1993–2001
Secretary of Housing and
Urban Development Henry Cisneros 1993–1997
Andrew Cuomo 1997–2001
Secretary of Transportation Federico Peña 1993–1997
Rodney Slater 1997–2001
Secretary of Energy Hazel O’Leary 1993–1997
Federico Peña 1997–1998
Bill Richardson 1998–2001
Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jesse Brown 1993–1997
Togo West 1998–2000
Hershel W. Gober, act. 2000–2001
Chief of Staff Mack McLarty 1993–1994
Leon Panetta 1994–1997
Erskine Bowles 1997–1998
John Podesta 1998–2001
Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency Carol Browner 1993–2001
Director of the Office of
Management and Budget Leon Panetta 1993–1994
Alice Rivlin 1994–1996
Franklin Raines 1996–1998
Jacob Lew 1998–2001
Director of the Office of
National Drug Control Policy Lee Brown 1993–1995
Barry McCaffrey 1996–2001
United States Trade Representative Mickey Kantor 1993–1997
Charlene Barshefsky 1997–2001
Example: Charlene Barshefsky:
http://www.nndb.com/people/557/000119200/
Remember Johnny Deutch (see Bretton Woods links - post 30):
http://www.nndb.com/people/216/000029129/
Sandy Berger (merged his Stonebridge Group w/ Albright’s Group):
http://www.nndb.com/crime/142/000137728/
They’re not all here but one finds them on every global board one visits, so much so, they’ve become old friends.
IMO, the Clintons are running the government behind the scenes and believe Solyndra is just one of many Clintons-Gore type scheme not unlike Enron...
Clinton, Gore, William Daley, and Enron:
During the 1990s, Enron CEO Ken Lay personally contributed $11,000 to former President Bill Clinton for his two campaigns. In addition, Lay gave Vice President Al Gore $13,750 for his 2000 election campaign.
During Clinton’s eight years in office, the company and Lay contributed about $900,000 to the Democratic Party. Former Enron officials said an important part of their strategy to win favor with the Gore campaign was a significant increase in the company’s donations to Democrats. In 1999 and 2000, the company gave $362,000 in soft-money donations to Democrats.
[...]Most Americans were not aware of Enron’s dealings with a Chinese army oil company engaged in oil-for-blood in Sudan. The mass media neglected to inform the U.S. public about the cruel use of humanitarian aid by the Clinton administration that greased an Enron deal in Africa. The fiction writers who spin your news never mentioned the Enron donations to the DNC.
If you paid attention to any of the mainstream media outlets, you can be certain that Enron never existed during the Clinton years.
http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/5/14/124745.shtml
http://www.softwar.net/enron.html
William Daley: Obama names Daley his new chief of staff
January 6, 2011
William Daley takes over for Pete Rouse, the interim White House chief of staff, who takes on the new role of counselor to the president. In announcing the appointment, President Obama cites Daley’s ‘deep understanding of how jobs are created.’
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jan/06/news/sc-dc-daley-chief-of-staff-20110107
Peter Rouse was replaced by Enron-Paley most likely selected (by Clinton) to “fix” things when they realized Solyndra had become a Solyndra-gate.
“What I find particularly nefarious is the high level — and still rising — control of the private sector by the public sector.
That’s why one of my areas of focus is this emerging Solandra scandal.
If government capital (lifted in the night by politicians extolling insincere platitudes) is the fuel of government-approved lines of business, then we have some monster that is neither private (under its own control) nor public (under the voters’ control).
All of infrastructure is at risk of becoming just another category under which the government hands out special favors to special people.”
http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2011/09/solar-gate-scandal-and-connection-to.html
Interesting comment(s) from the last link:
September 9, 2011 9:15 AM
“Capn Mike said...
My son’s step-dad ran a shift at Solyndra. He caught on last year that there was a scam going down.
It seems that all those panels being “shipped to customers” were actually shipping to a warehouse where they sat. I picture the Lost Ark nestled among them.
Impressive buildings, though.
Great speech last night. I laughed, I puked.”
http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2011/09/solar-gate-scandal-and-connection-to.html?showComment=1315574131204#c2490944238939278953
I recognize it as Nationalized Socialism. The left goes ape when one says it but it harkens back to their French Revolution, aside from, Hitler’s Regime...
Abound Solar: Gov. guaranteed loan approved December 2010 for $400 million – 1200 jobs projected (they didn’t say where):
https://lpo.energy.gov/?page_id=45
ABOUND SOLAR: A Colorado-based solar panel manufacturer for which the NEPHEW of U.S. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-11, Nanticoke, is vice president of marketing has received a $400 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy. (This is Kanjorski’ second grant – watch the video below.)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2779466/posts
http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/solar-panel-producer-tied-to-kanjorski-receives-400m-federal-loan-1.885355#axzz1YkvFN1Tv
Congressman Kanjorski Scandal – a MUST watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77zYUEHIHIo
Comment from a freeper:
“Abound is probably the next Solyndra. They’re up the street from me and the last thing I heard, they were trying to talk the city council of their home town, Fort Collins, into buying and installing a whole bunch of their uneconomical panels and then UPPING THE ELECTRICITY RATES for all Fort Collins utility users by 1% to pay for this boondoggle.”
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2779466/posts
Barack Obama: “Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.” (January 2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlTxGHn4sH4
Obama Keeps a Promise! Electricity Rates “Necessarily Skyrocketing”
by Tammy on June 14, 2011
Consumers’ electric bills likely to spike as coal plants close
“So if somebody wants to BUILD A COAL-POWERED PLANT, they can; it’s just that IT WILL BANKRUPT THEM because they’re going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that’s being emitted.”
http://tammybruce.com/2011/06/obama-keeps-a-promise-electricity-rates-necessarily-skyrocketing.html
Abound Solar was derived from a University of Colorado experiment and they work closely together. No surprise that they and other Universities are in the greenie pocket. They all get a slice of the pie. The “third way” Big Business plus Big Government can charge us what they want, and the government will control who gets it, and how much, obey us or else! Let’s pray the rest of them belly-up. These bogus solar and windmill stuff aka socialist ventures, as we all know, is a total con-game played by big governments/big business’ globally. It’s been played for years in Europe, made them broke, their beautiful country-side littered with grotesque, useless windmills whose only usefulness belongs to the owner of the land, and the rich resources these windmills are protecting. How many people had to leave their homes for these monstrosities one might wonder - never mind the illness’ to those who live closeby nor the birds they kill. The priority is greed and power.
There’s likely some cronyism with the Real Estate Tycoons (probably fund-raiser friends) but don’t have time to investigate:
Tipton facility to be the largest thin-film manufacturing plant in U.S.
http://www.cleanenergyauthority.com/solar-energy-news/abound-opens-new-facility-121610/
Abound Solar facility sells to W.W. Reynolds for $10M
http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/blog/real_deals/2010/01/abound_solar_facility_sells_to_ww_reynolds_for_10m.html
USDA grants Range Fuels $80M Loan Guarantee
Jonathan on May 27th, 2009
Range Fuels have received an $80 million Loan Guarantee grant from the US Department of Agriculture. A commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol company, Range fuels is the first to have received such an assistance from a government department.
The loan guarantee grant is said to help the construction of the company’s plant in the state of Georgia. Range Fuels said that the construction of the plant is expected to start in early 2010...
The guarantees given to SELECTED COMPANIES may be used to assist and support the development or construction of their own biofuel refineries. The bill limit grants to a large $250 million for every project.
According to sources, the loan guarantee were a result of the joint labor of the Rural Development Office of the US Department of Agriculture, Range Fuels and AgSouth Farm Credit.
The Range Fuels’ plant is reported to use the populat two-step thermochemical conversion process. The said procedure is designed to gasify biomass waste to be able to create syngas. The end-product would eventually be catalyzed to ethanol.
The new ethanol plant is expected to manufacture an approcimate of 20 million gallons of ethanol per annum.
http://alternativecarfuels.org/blog/usda-grants-range-fuels-80m-loan-guarantee/
Report: Range Fuels to Shut Down Plant
By Ucilia Wang Jan. 14, 2011,
...The story quoted Bud Klepper, who’s not only Range Fuels’ technical advisor but also the original founder of the company that became Range Fuels (previously called Kergy). Klepper told the publication that Range Fuels is laying off most of its employees at its plant near Soperton, Ga, after it makes a single batch of ethanol, and the company will shut down the plant while it tackles technical problems and raises more money.
We guess that when the company told us earlier this week that it expected to start producing ethanol this week, it really meant it would produce just a single batch...
Range Fuels company spokesman Patrick Wright told us earlier this week that the company was letting go “a handful of people in Colorado and Georgia,” but he declined to disclose the number or reasons. Wright also said the company plans to meet a 2011 production goal set by the U.S. Environmental Agency.
Range Fuels, which is backed by investors including Khosla Ventures, has gotten quite a bit of public money to get its first commercial plant up and running.
The U.S. Department of Energy awarded the company a grant of $76 MILLION in 2007 to finance the Georgia plant.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a loan guarantee of $80 million, and that allowed the company to secure an $80 MILLION bond in 2010 to fund the plant’s construction as well.
In between, the company raised a private B round of over $100 million from investors including Khosla, Passport Capital, BlueMountain, Leaf Clean Energy Company and Pacific Capital Group (WITH PARTICIPATION BY THE CALIFORNIA EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT SYSTEM).
Range Fuels is one of five companies that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has projected will be able to contribute to a total of 6.6 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel in 2011. A 2007 law required that the EPA set mandates for different types of fuels that can be blended into gasoline and diesel. Those mandates are supposed to lead the country to produce 36 billion gallons in 2022.
Lawmakers nurtured ambitious goals to wean the country off the use of fossil fuels for transportation.
However, meeting those goals has proven clearly proven to be extremely difficult, mainly because many biofuel companies with promising technologies ran into technical problems or were unable to raise the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to build a commercial plant. Or both.
CONGRESS initially set 100 million gallons as the 2010 target for cellulosic biofuel, but the EPA cut that to 6.5 million gallons. It appears that the industry might have PRODUCED LESS THAN 1 million gallons last year, reported ClimateWire on Tuesday, citing an estimate by a government analyst.
The EPA expects Range Fuels to produce 100,000 gallons of cellulosic ethanol and 2.9 million gallons of methanol at its Georgia plant in 2011. Although methanol doesn’t meet the current definition of cellulosic biofuel, the EPA said it’s considering changing that. The agency already counted Range Fuels’ projected methanol production in its 2011 goal.
Range Fuels began producing methanol last summer. At the time, Aldous said the plant had “less than 10 million gallons” of annual production capacity, but the plan was to expand it to 60 million gallons. Construction was to start this summer.
Aldous told the Colorado newspaper the Daily Camera this week that the recession and what he called a “public apathy toward green fuels” have hampered the company’s progress. The newspaper also said there was a “problem with the feed system at its plant.”
Aside from Range Fuels, the other four producers that could contribute to the 2011 pool are DuPont Danisco, Fiberight, KL Energy and KiOR.
http://gigaom.com/cleantech/report-range-fuels-to-shut-down-plant/
They produced a single batch?! This scam reminds me of the Bridges (or Airports) to nowhere. The non-Airport in Tulsa is a prime example - see last link in post #65.
The U.S. Department of Energy awarded the company a grant of $76 MILLION in 2007 to finance the Georgia plant.”
Not a guaranteed loan = No investors.
“The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a loan guarantee of $80 million, and that allowed the company to secure an $80 MILLION bond in 2010 to fund the plant’s construction as well.”
Guaranteed loan = Investors.
One of the investors - Khosla Ventures:
“In May 2010 it was announced that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was to join Khosla Ventures to provide strategic advice regarding investments in technologies focused on the environment.[10]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinod_Khosla
With Obama in office and the WH under their control, the Dems made plans to become even more wealthy while rewarding their rich fundraisers, on our money. What they didn’t forsee, was the tsuami by the Tea Party in 2010, which left them totally screwed. It’s only a matter of time before the whole enchalada is exposed.
Report: Range Fuels to Shut Down Plant
By Ucilia Wang Jan. 14, 2011,
...The story quoted Bud Klepper, who’s not only Range Fuels’ technical advisor but also the original founder of the company that became Range Fuels (previously called Kergy). Klepper told the publication that Range Fuels is laying off most of its employees at its plant near Soperton, Ga, after it makes a single batch of ethanol, and the company will shut down the plant while it tackles technical problems and raises more money...see post #79
http://gigaom.com/cleantech/report-range-fuels-to-shut-down-plant/
VINOD KHOSLA:
Vinod Khosla founded Range Fuels through his firm, Khosla Ventures. Vinod is widely recognized as an influential advocate for the increased use of ethanol. His outspoken advocacy of ethanol production as a means to achieve greater political and economic security has secured increasing coverage from major media sources. Political instability in oil-producing countries and high prices for petroleum have garnered new attention for his message. He is perennially appointed to prestigious lists of entrepreneurs by various business publications, including Forbes, and featured in interviews by major television networks and newspapers. A consistent theme of his interviews is the advantage ethanol provides through continued utilization of existing infrastructure and vehicles, as well as the benefit accruing from redirecting petrodollars currently heading overseas to domestic producers. Vinod founded Khosla Ventures in 2004 and was joined in 2006 by general partners David Weiden and Samir Kaul, as well as chief scientific officer Doug Cameron.
http://www.rangefuels.com/founders-directors.html
Khosla didn’t just invest in Range Fuels he was its founder. It’s confusing, similar to Dubko Worldwide, as described above. It was a well-known and respected company, taken-over by Huntsman at the end of 2008 due to a lack of referrals from the Dems, it leaves one under the impression it’s still a Republican Lobbyist Company yet it’s a “third way” group with Terry McAuliffe and Tom Daschle on the board.
Khosler obviously bought out Bud Klepper and Kergy but since it didn’t have a “growth” name in the industry Khosler changed it to Range Fuels. It’s difficult to keep track of them especially if one isn’t in the business.
Khosler was a Republican during the Bush years and now he’s an Obama fan - he believes Obama has a better handle of climate change. Yeah, whatever lines the pocket.
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