QUICK NEWS, 5-3: TED TURNER ON THE URGENCY OF NEW ENERGY; WELLS FARGO PUTS $120 MIL IN SUN; TAX BREAK BOOSTS WIND; U.S. EMISSIONS DOWN

TED TURNER ON THE URGENCY OF NEW ENERGY
Ted Turner puts his money to work tackling global issues
Henry Unger, April 23, 2011 (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

"…[Ted Turner is tackling] some of the planet’s biggest messes with his money — a running total of $1.5 billion to the U.N. and a variety of environmental and anti-nuclear causes — and his mouth…"

[Turner:] “My top priority is nuclear weapons because they can end it all in an afternoon…There’s going to be a nuclear-weapons accident [like the nuclear power plant disaster in Japan]…We need to get rid of all nuclear weapons immediately…”

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"That same style takes hold when he talks about our reliance on oil and coal."

[Turner:] “The days of fossil fuels are over…The trouble is we’re going to run out of atmosphere first…[And who] wants to have a nuclear power plant in their backyard today?…I think clean, reliable energy should be our top priority…”

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"Turner is involved with promoting clean energy, favoring solar, wind and geothermal projects. He has reservations about natural gas and opposes the resurgence of nuclear power…[In the Turner Enterprises parking lot in downtown Atlanta] he has installed solar panels to help power the building…

"….The federal government should phase out subsidies for the fossil fuel industry, he believes, and transfer that money to beefing up alternative energy sources…He recently teamed up with Atlanta-based Southern Co. and the local power cooperative serving Cimarron, N.M., on a big solar project there…"


WELLS FARGO PUTS $120 MIL IN SUN
Wells Fargo Enters Funding Agreement With SunEdison
26 April 2011 (Solar Industry)

"Wells Fargo & Co. and SunEdison LLC, a subsidiary of MEMC Electronic Materials, have signed an agreement by which Wells Fargo subsidiaries will invest up to $120 million to fund U.S. solar photovoltaic distributed-generation power projects developed by SunEdison over the next year."

This SunEdison built commercial rooftop solar installation is a perfect example of the distributed generation Wells Fargo will help fund. (click to enlarge)

"…[T]he program builds on a SunEdison solar investment fund established in 2007, in which Wells Fargo invested more than $200 million in approximately 150 solar projects developed by SunEdison in eight states…"


TAX BREAK BOOSTS WIND
Bonus Depreciation Rules Increase Optimism For Wind Developers
John Marciano, 5 April 2011 (North American Windpower)

"…[T]he 100% depreciation bonus Congress passed at the end of 2010…permits the owner of certain property, including wind turbines and certain transmission assets, to write off the entire cost of the property in the year it goes in service…[It] is an expansion of an existing 50% bonus…[that applies to property placed in service after 2007 and before 2013…[with which] half of the project cost [can] be written off immediately…

"The new rules relieve some uncertainty and have increased optimism…The 100% bonus can be worth as much as $0.0445 per dollar of capital cost for wind turbines and $0.18 per dollar of capital cost for certain transmission assets…[It] applies to property acquired and placed in service between Sept. 8, 2010, and Jan. 1, 2012. Certain long-lived properties have until Jan. 1, 2013…"

Though wind developers are happy to have the depreciation opportunity, it seems to fall short of what investors consider the best of incentives. (click to enlarge)

"…A property is considered acquired when the owner pays or accrues the cost of the property, depending on its accounting method…Any taxpayer that enters into a written binding contract…for the acquisition or construction of the property meets the acquisition requirement…[T]he project will meet the acquisition requirement if the owner starts real physical work on the property during the eligibility window…[P]hysical work…[is when] more than 10% of the total cost of the bonus-eligible property is accrued…

" A taxpayer must also place the property into service during the eligibility window. In addition, the original owner/user generally is the only one eligible for the bonus. A disposition of the property during the first year will cause that property owner to lose the bonus…[with] two exceptions [involving sale-leasebacks]…"

Other incentives are vital until tax equity investment, which is better than during the depths of the recession, returns to previous levels. (click to enlarge)

"Project owners who claim a 30% cash grant from the U.S. Department of the Treasury are required to reduce their depreciable basis in the related property by 50% of the grant or credit…In certain situations, the owner of the grant-eligible property may lease the property to a third party and elect to pass the incentive to the lessee…

"The new rules make clear that the recovery period under general rules is not altered by the fact that the 100% depreciation bonus permits a complete write-off in one year…[I]ncome related to wind or solar equipment would be taken into account over five years, even where the 100% bonus is claimed…[A] taxpayer may opt out of the 100% bonus and instead claim the 50% bonus for property placed in service in the tax year that includes Sept. 9, 2010. However, if equipment qualifies for the 100% bonus in 2011 or 2012, then the taxpayer may claim only the 100% bonus or nothing."


U.S. EMISSIONS DOWN
EPA Publishes National U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory
April 18, 2011 (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released the 16th annual U.S. greenhouse gas inventory. The final report shows overall emissions during 2009 decreased by 6.1 percent from the previous year. This downward trend was attributed to a decrease in fuel and electricity consumption across all U.S. economic sectors.

"Total emissions of the six main greenhouse gases in 2009 [using the most up to date data] were equivalent to 6,633 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. These gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. The report indicates that overall emissions have grown by more than 7.3 percent from 1990 to 2009. Emissions in 2009 represent the lowest total U.S. annual GHG emissions since 1995…"

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"The Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2009 tracks annual greenhouse gas emissions at the national level and presents historical emissions from 1990 to 2009. The inventory also calculates carbon dioxide emissions that are removed from the atmosphere by “sinks,” e.g., through the uptake of carbon by forests, vegetation and soils.

"This inventory, prepared in collaboration with federal agencies, is the latest submitted by the United States to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC sets an overall global framework for nations to address climate change…"