QUICK NEWS, February 21: THE FIGHT FOR WIND GOES ON; THE LITHIUM-ION SHAKEOUT; YET ANOTHER SOLYNDRA INVESTIGATION

THE FIGHT FOR WIND GOES ON
Senators File Amendment That Includes Wind Power PTC Extension
17 February 2012 (North American Windpower)

"U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., are making a bipartisan push to extend the production tax credit (PTC) for wind energy.

"The senators have filed an amendment to a bill currently under debate in the Senate, and they say the measure is fully paid for. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., is a co-sponsor of the amendment…"

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"According to the American Wind Energy Association, the expiration of the wind PTC could lead to the elimination of as many as 37,000 U.S. jobs."

[Senator Jerry Moran, R-Kan.:] “If we expect the wind energy industry to make long-term investments in their businesses and provide for our country’s future energy needs, Congress must quickly work to reauthorize the wind production tax credit…Our failure to extend this tax credit would destabilize this growing manufacturing industry and cost thousands of American jobs…[W]e cannot afford to miss this opportunity to invest in our energy future.”


THE LITHIUM-ION SHAKEOUT
Assessment of Strategy and Execution for 10 Leading Lithium Ion Battery Vendors
1Q 2012 (Pike Research)

"Lithium ion batteries currently dominate the nascent market for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and are slowly becoming selected for use in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and stop-start vehicles (SSVs). As these vehicle segments grow to hundreds of thousands and then millions of vehicles sold per year, Li-ion production will enter volume production, lowering their cost and making the technology cost-competitive with alternative technologies such as Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries."

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"The Li-ion automotive market is currently led by Japanese and Korean companies that originally produced cells for the consumer electronics and computing markets. These veteran companies are being challenged by companies mostly from China and North America that are slowly gaining customers, mostly in their domestic markets. The Li-ion automotive market is entering a mature phase that will see some smaller companies fail or be acquired due to an inability to reach volume production. The market will likely see volatility during 2012 as some supplier agreements change hands…"


YET ANOTHER SOLYNDRA INVESTIGATION
White House Allegedly 'Shielding' Key Personnel From Solyndra Probe
Jessica Lillian, 16 February 2012 (Solar Industry)

"As the investigation into failed PV module manufacturer Solyndra hits its one-year anniversary, the lawmakers…House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Stearns…[plan to issue] subpoenas to five requested witnesses who are believed to have key information on Solyndra's $535 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

"The five individuals are Kevin Carroll, energy branch chief at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB); Kelly Colyar, branch chief at the OMB; Aditya Kumar, deputy assistant to the vice president and senior advisor to then-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel; Fouad Saad, program examiner at the OMB; and Heather Zichal, deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change."

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"Upton and Stearns insist that President Obama's administration has repeatedly hindered their committee's investigatory efforts...necessitating the issuance of the subpoenas…[They also claim] the Solyndra-related documents supplied so far have proven to be inadequate...[ Last week, the White House sent the Energy and Commerce Committee 313 pages of new internal documents and emails…Upton and Stearns believe certain crucial documents are still being withheld…[T]he committee has set a new deadline - Feb. 21 - for the Obama administration to provide all of the documents that they deem necessary]…

"…[S]pecific Solyndra-related questions that allegedly remain unanswered include…- What was the extent of the White House's involvement in the restructuring of Solyndra's DOE loan guarantee?...Who gave a directive to Solyndra to hold off on announcing job cuts until after the 2010 elections?...Why did the White House give Solyndra "so much attention," in comparison to other loan-guarantee recipients?...[and] Why did President Obama visit Solyndra's fab in May 2010, after the company's "worsening financial condition" had been made apparent?"