At the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC) in Washington, D.C., leaders from the renewable energy sector, including venture capital, banking and industry, called on Congress and the administration to work together to quickly approve the investment tax credit (ITC) and the production tax credit (PTC) extensions.
The leaders called for leveling the playing field for the U.S. to compete globally in the renewable energy sector, preventing interruption in project development and stemming the loss of manufacturing and high-skilled jobs.
The economic plea came at a news conference in the nation's capital sponsored by the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), TechNet and the National Venture Capital Association. The event was moderated by John Geesman, former California energy commissioner and ACORE co-chair at the WIREC.
‘We believe we are at the dawn of a green energy revolution potentially as powerful as the Internet revolution,’ said Dan Reicher, director of climate change and energy initiatives at Google.org and former U.S. assistant secretary of energy for energy efficiency and renewable energy. ‘Policy-makers can make or break this revolution.’
Nancy Floyd, founder and managing director of venture capital firm Nth Power, stressed the importance of ITC/PTC extensions to venture capitalists.
‘The venture capital community invests 85 percent of our capital in U.S.-based companies,’ she said. ‘Those same companies are making tough decisions about moving their production overseas because of the lack of certainty in our renewable energy policy. The urgency of this issue is immediate.’
In an ACORE letter sent to Congress in February, over 350 industry leaders emphasized the global competitiveness issue and warned that without the immediate passage of ITC/PTC extensions Congress will jeopardize U.S. job creation and over 42,000 MW of planned renewable energy projects currently in development in 45 states.
