Clean energy research and development has become the topic of discussion in recent years. Solar and wind power are two resources that are abundant and emit no greenhouse gases. Companies have been trying to harness the power of the sun and wind for years, but most recently, the United States Government has given clean energy companies an incentive to succeed by providing them with billions of dollars in subsidies.

In California, NRG Energy is building a compound of nearly a million solar panels that will produce enough electricity to power about 100,000 homes. This is an amazing accomplishment, but it comes with a price: The US Government is paying for almost the entire $1.6 billion cost of the project. What does this mean? Taxpayers are essentially providing the subsidies themselves, and this is not the only instance. Since 2009, similar packages have been given to fifteen other solar and wind power companies, the most famous being Solyndra.

In 2009, President Barack Obama’s administration authorized of a $535 million dollar loan guarantee (a promise by one party (in this case the US Government) to assume the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults (Wikipedia.com)) to Solyndra Corporation. The company promised to create almost 4,000 new jobs and spur alternative energy growth. However, in “early September 2011, the company ceased all business activity, filed for Chapter 11,  and laid-off nearly all of its employees” (Wikipedia.com) The government then had to pay back the half a billion dollar loan it had guaranteed.

According to a recent study, between 2007 and 2010, federal subsidies jumped from $5.1 billion to $14.7 billion. Today, this stimulus program is expired, but the US Government is still trying to provide clean energy companies with the funding they need. According to the New York Times, “wind and solar companies are telling Congress that they cannot be truly competitive and keep creating jobs without a few more years of government support”. While the Government is providing tax credits for renewable power, companies are saying it is not enough.

While the cost of wind and solar power has fallen sharply, without the billions of dollars needed to collect that energy, we may still not be able to harness it for a few more years. Although the Government may want to provide these companies with the funding they need, it is hard to imagine another Solyndra incident. We simply cannot afford to have that happen again.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solyndra_loan_controversy