Sheldon Kimber is the CEO of Intersect Power.
Costs for solar and wind energy are the lowest they’ve ever been in the United States, and there’s been a dramatic surge in renewable projects in development. While that’s great news, there’s an enormous backlog of solar and wind projects across the country that are stalled out because of the inefficient way that Washington provides tax credits to our industry. We desperately need a legislative solution.
The costs of wind and solar projects are all upfront, so renewable energy companies have never owed enough taxes to take advantage of the tax credits they’ve been given by the federal government to incentivize wind and solar development. To make use of these credits, companies like mine have to partner with banks to exchange our tax credits for financing. Banks get to reduce their tax liability, and renewable energy companies get to build solar and wind farms. This may sound like a win-win, but it’s not.
When my team calls a bank to get financing, they’re usually told that the bank has already committed to the few customers with whom it has long-standing relationships. In order ... Read more