Wind Solar Industries in Limbo

Wind, Solar Industries in Limbo as Congress Set to Adjourn

No word yet on the future of a pair of key clean energy subsidies. America's first offshore wind farm is shelved, and E.V. sales are missing targets

America's wind and solar industries are stuck in limbo, waiting anxiously to hear if Congress will extend a pair of key subsidies. But Washington, which is beginning to empty out for the holidays, is almost certain not to ease their worries soon. The solar industry is fighting to renew the 1603 Treasury grant program, a popular incentive that gives renewable energy developers cash payments worth up to 30 percent of their project costs in lieu of future tax credits. The program is particularly attractive to smaller solar startups and companies that struggled during the recession to raise cash for their capital-intensive projects. The subsidy is slated to sunset at the end of the year. At the same time, the wind industry is scrambling to extend a production tax credit (PTC), which it says is crucial for wind power to compete with coal. The tax credit pays wind farm owners a considerable 2.2 cents for every kilowatt-hour of energy it produces during the first decade of operation.