Last week, Representative Ed Markey (D–CA) sent a letter to Secretary of Energy Stephen Chu questioning whether exporting natural gas would benefit American businesses and consumers. He wrote, “I am worried that exporting America’s natural gas would raise energy costs for American consumers, reduce the global competitiveness of U.S. businesses, make us more dependent on foreign sources of energy, and slow our transition away from fossil fuels.” Natural gas prices have been consistently low in the United States for the past two years but much higher abroad. If the price …
The Washington Post put together a handy infographic examining the distribution of $36 billion in Energy Department financing for renewable energy companies. Solar power generation companies were the largest beneficiaries of DOE’s “investments,” with twelve companies having received a third of the financing under the program.
Industry analysts are predicting a massive bout of bankruptcies for hundreds of American solar firms as the market for solar panels, inflated by zealous government backing, begins to cool down. The fallout could be dramatic, CNN reported Wednesday. “Of the few hundred or so solar panel makers worldwide, just 20 to 40 are expected to remain standing in a few years time, said Mark Bachman, a renewables analyst at Avian Securities.” “A combination of slack demand and massive oversupply” is leading to rapidly declining prices for solar panels, CNN reports. …
As environmentalism has become more trendy, the value of appearing green is now more important than helping the environment, argues Todd Myers in a new book called “Eco-Fads.” He spoke at Heritage this week and joined us for Scribecast. Myers cited the Obama administration’s $535 million Solyndra scandal as a high-profile example of how environmentalism is actually harming the environment. Myers noted that solar panels are among the worst performing as far as reducing carbon dioxide emissions. “Waste of money is waste of resources,” Myers said. “And anybody who believes …
ABC’s political blog The Note included a comment from yours truly in a recent piece on the Solyndra scandal. We appreciate the folks at ABC reaching out, of course, but I’d just like to provide some context for my remarks. Here’s what ABC’s Amy Bingham wrote: “What Solyndra really speaks to is the large issue of how government intervention can sort of hide the normal profit-and-loss signals that direct private investors,” said Lachlan Markay, an investigative reporter with the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. He said the public nature …
A top congressional investigator said on Tuesday that he believes more companies that benefitted from the stimulus bill’s renewable energy loan guarantee program will go bankrupt before all allotted funds are spent. The program, which guaranteed a $535 million loan to Solyndra before the company declared bankruptcy last week, still has $8-10 billion in authorized funding that has yet to be spent. Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, said he had called on the administration to hold off on awarding …
The House of Representatives’ lead investigator into federal loans given to bankrupt solar company Solyndra will preview his hearing on the issue in a discussion at the Heritage Foundation on Tuesday at noon. Speaking at the weekly Bloggers Briefing, Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), who chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee’s oversight panel, will discuss Solyndra, the loan programs that propped it up at taxpayers’ expense, and the larger issue of federal intervention in private industry. You can watch the Bloggers Briefing live here. Stearns and full committee chairman Fred Upton …
One day after solar company Solyndra closed its doors, two U.S. congressman are asking the White House for all documents related to the federal government’s $535 million loan guarantee. The probe also seeks correspondence between administration officials and the company’s investors, seeking to uncover if the White House engaged in cronyism to reward a major campaign donor. Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) was pursuing an investigation of the Department of Energy’s $535 million loan long before Solyndra announced plans to file for bankruptcy. Now, using his perch as chairman of the House …
Catching you up on clips, commentary and news of the day. Sign up for the daily email update from Scribe. The Movie Obama Won’t Want You to See – James Jay Carafano, FoxNews.com Why Tea Party should resist gutting defense – John R. Bolton, The Washington Times Big Brother Goes Green – Audrey Hudson Solar, we have a problem – Nicolas Loris, Washington Times Taxes and Business, There We Go Again – Mark Green Gov’t May Be Lowballing Medicare Shortfall By $6 Trillion – David Hogberg, Investor’s Business Daily Police grants …
In the early morning of August 9, the sun released a massive solar flare—the largest in four years—sending huge blasts of radiation out into space. Thankfully, the solar eruption was facing away from the earth. Yet, if the site of the solar eruption had been slightly different, the outcome could have been very different. In 1859, British scientist Richard Carrington recorded the effects of a geomagnetic storm as it played out on earth in an event that is called the “Carrington Effect”—intense solar activity that can disrupt modern life dramatically. …
