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  Hydrokinetic News

Senate Bill seeks to extend clean energy manufacturing credits

Senator Sherrod Brown believes supporting alternative energy manufacturers means creating thousands of well-paid jobs

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown has introduced legislation into Congress seeking to expand the federal tax credit program for clean energy manufacturers.

Co-sponsored by his fellow Democrat Senators Charles E Schumer of New York, Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Robert P Casey of Pennsylvania and Kay Hagan of North Carolina, the Security in Energy and Manufacturing (SEAM) Act would open up the Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit (48C) program to those who cannot access tax credits.

The Act proposes to allow the option of payment in the form of grants, rather than just as tax credits.

This move would help brand new alternative energy companies, which do not yet have tax liabilities against which to claim tax credits, or those struggling to find credit.

If successful, the legislation would still limit funding to 30% of the cost of a project.

“The future”

Senator Brown said yesterday that the bill, a companion to Congressman Phil Hare’s (D-IL) bill introduced into the House on April 16, could turn his home state of Ohio into “the Silicon Valley of Clean Energy Manufacturing”.

He said: “Manufacturing is critical to the strength of our nation and the future of our middle class, and clean energy represents the future of American manufacturing.”

First authorized by last year’s Recovery Act, the 48C program has seen $2.3 billion in federal funds levering in more than $5.4 billion of private investment to support new, expanded or re-equipped clean energy manufacturing projects.

As many as 17,000 jobs have been directly created by the tax credits, along with 41,000 from the accompanying private investment, according to those seeking to expand the program.

Qualifying technologies include wind turbines, solar panels, hybrid vehicle systems, carbon capture and sequestration systems, and biofuel refinery components, among others.

Manufacturing priority

A further measure within the SEAM Act is to prioritize companies that manufacture goods and components in the US above those that merely assemble goods from components made abroad.

This would ensure that the US manufacturing base produces all parts in the clean energy supply chain, the bill’s supporters said, adding that the predicted $2 trillion in annual revenues on offer in the global clean energy sector would provide a “significant opportunities” for the US to restore its manufacturing base.

The Department of Energy (DOE) said the 48C program was more than three times oversubscribed, with 418 eligible projects nationwide that left $5.8 billion in applications that could not secure tax credits.

If there was ever a market tailor-made for U.S. heavy industry, wind would be it” - Ed Weston, Great Lakes WIND Network

Support

Senator Brown’s bill drew ringing endorsements from US manufacturers yesterday.

United Steelworkers (USW), the nation’s largest labor union, said the 48C program supported the “kinds of good-paying, permanent jobs we need if we are to reinvigorate our manufacturing base”.

USW International President Leo W Gerard said: “The USW supports Senator’s Brown’s efforts to expand and improve this energy manufacturing tax incentive by providing an additional $5 billion in credit or grants to expand and create green manufacturing and good jobs right here in the US.”

Ed Weston, Director of The Great Lakes WIND Network (GLWN), a network of clean energy manufacturers, said: “If there was ever a market tailor-made for U.S. heavy industry, wind would be it. The parts match our manufacturing infrastructure and capabilities. The applications are here, and logistics favors local sources. However, our manufacturers must have the latest technology and equipment to successfully compete against already-established wind suppliers from other continents.”