Bringing the number of tombstones in Heritage’s Green Graveyard to 20 is ReVolt Technology, a Portland-based company, which specialized in developing zinc-air flow battery systems.
ReVolt earned its place in the Graveyard when it declared bankruptcy, despite the fact it had been offered a whopping $10 million in funds from federal, state, and local governments. The Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy offered a $5 million grant in 2010. Oregon matched the federal government’s promise with $5 million worth of loans.
The federal Department of Energy (DOE) promised taxpayers that it had closely examined each applicant, and according to DOE spokesman Damien LeVera, the companies “were rejected, if they looked too rich or too risky.” By the looks of it, ReVolt must have fallen through the cracks.
It appears that DOE failed to adequately scrutinize ReVolt Technology, but the Portland Development Commission (PDC) saw the writing on the wall. A mere two months after the DOE offered ReVolt an ARPA-E grant, the PDC also promised the company a $1.2 million loan. But unlike the DOE, PDC acknowledged from the get-go that “this one [ReVolt] we identified as high risk.”
While the government’s poor discretion and bad policy is to blame for this loss, taxpayers are the ones left with the bill.
Government’s Bad Bet: $10 million
Elinor Renner, part of the Young Leaders Program at Heritage, contributed to this post.
How could anyone who views themselves as fiscally responsible even consider continuing to pour money into the things like the PTC which amounts to nothing more than "corporate welfare" for businesses housed mainly out of this country?
The Volt, which I find ReVolting, was Obama's pet project from his pet company, Government Motors. He owns this turkey. He can't blame Bush for it anymore. Or can he? The Democrats beat the dead horse that was Herbert
Hoover for 51 years___from 1929 to 1980. Future generations of Democrats will beat the dead horse that will be
George W. Bush for another 51 years___from 2008 to 2069. Ain't the politics of hate grand?
Blair, you are totally ignorant of the subject, and spouting your prejudice, with no basis in reality. ReVolt, technologies, has no connection Chevrolet, and did they produce the battery system for the Chevy Volt. Neither the Obama administration , nor the Bush Administration, had any direct dealings with this company.