Future of federal solar programs in doubt

Re: Future of federal solar programs in doubt

That would be fine if they get rid of all the other energy subsidies too, like the billions in military spending necessary to protect our access to foreign oil. Only then will alternative sources of energy be able to compete head to head with traditional sources.

Re: Future of federal solar programs in doubt

How about doing the logical thing like the France. We could reduce our need for oil, reduce CO2 emissions and still have a stable base generation capacity for RE to supplement.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/nuclearpower/8601594/France-to-invest-one-billion-euros-in-nuclear-power.html

Sarkozy said a moratorium on new nuclear reactors, as some countries have declared since the Fukushima Dai-ichi accident, "makes no sense."

He said Monday, "there is no alternative to nuclear energy today."

Sarkozy, at a news conference about government investments in the economy, said France will stick to a plan to invest €1 billion in future nuclear reactors. He also promised €1.35 billion in investment in renewable energy

Re: Future of federal solar programs in doubt

Nuclear energy is also heavily subsidized by the tax payer, direct subsidies, subsidized research, loan guarantees, deferred expense of waste storage, and taxpayer endemnification of major disasters, when all that is factored, nuclear is a very expensive source of energ

Exactly. Right now, any new nuclear plants that get built would receive, among other things, a federal loan guarantee program to encourage investments in nuclear (otherwise, bond issuance for construction would be highly expensive given all the failed nuke construction projects), a federally subsidized liability cap limiting disaster liability to $10 billion (otherwise plant insurance would be prohibitive), and a production tax credit good for $18/MWh, which is huge when you consider wholesale prices are often in the $50 range.