Stimulus bill

utyziluz.wordpress.com
That was followed by other solar energy companies askint him whatit means. “I’ve got every majod plumbing company and general contractor in town asking me that said Ruch, a partner in the Portland-bases company. “I don’t think there’x anybody out there that really understandas what the stimulus will do nextand they’rde holding their breath waiting for the next guy to give an The $787 billion American Recoveryu and Reinvestment Act signed last week by President Barack Obama is loaded with benefits for the renewabl energy sector, from investments in smart-grifd technologies and transmission to a concerted effor t to reinvigorate clean energy financing.
And it could be the lifeline the state’s threadbars economy desperately needs. Experts say Oregon, with its existin array of state and local incentives forrenewablee energy, could be positioned to get the biggest benefi t from increased federal incentives. The money couldn’t come soon Lawmakers learned this week thatthe state’s next two-yeatr budget, which begins on July 1, coulxd be $3 billion short because of drastically reduced income taxes. The current two-year budget could be $855 millio short. But for the moment, companiea find themselves trying to understan dthe stimulus.
Iberdrola the Portland-based division of Spanis energydeveloper , has organized an internal “stimulus bill implementationm team,” said spokeswoman Jan “Part of its trying to figure out what all this she said. “We have a team that is figuringh outwhen rule-making will happen, how we appl y for a loan, how we receive these (investment tax credits).” is compiling a matrix of solaer projects that could qualify as “shovel-ready” and thereford be eligible for stimulus funds, said Desari Strader, the group’sw executive director.
“I had a few board members that said part of the problemj with the stimulus package is nobody reallgyunderstands it,” Strader said. There is, however, near unanimou s agreement over thestimulus package’zs potential for opening up credit markets that have been frozeb since last fall. Wind and solad projects in particular have relied heavily on tax credits as a meansa ofgetting financing. Wall Streef banks with ample taxable income were often the most willingvfinancing partners. But as those investmengt banks enduredsteep losses, the well of available investment partners for renewabls energy development dried up.
Analysts and industry experts say the stimuluzscould jump-start the stalled marketplace by offering new and amendes incentives programs that will either attract new investors or make previousx investors feel more secure. For example, a production tax credit for wind facilities that was set to expire this year after several yearsof one-year extensionxs or lapses — was extended to giving stability to the industry. It also allowes projects that were eligible for production taxcredits — a benefit that pays out over time as a facility producews energy — to instead opt for an investment tax which pays out the year the projec t is put in service.
Perhaps most the bill offers an alternative to tax creditsx by including grants worth up to 30 percentf of the cost ofeligibl projects, as well as a program authorizinfg the Secretary of Energgy to make $6 billionh in loan guarantees. “That was really the holy grail of thestimulusd package,” said David Petersen, a renewable energy attorney in Portland with Tonkoh Torp. Mark Bachman, an analyst covering the clean technologyg sector in Portlandwith , said the stimulue bill’s grant program will likely attract investors who can’t make use of tax credits.