TITLE: How a Green Tech Startup With No Climate Experience Secured Millions of Dollars in Government Contracts
https://www.propublica.org/article/nevada-nzero-carbon-emissions-tracking-project
EXCERPT: The summer heat collected inside a fire station in Reno, the nation’s fastest-warming city, where Nevada’s governor and key local government leaders had gathered in July 2021. They were there to announce what they called a “groundbreaking” step to address climate change through a “landmark partnership” with a little-known green tech company.
“We get to be the city, the county and the state that lead the way into a new day and a new era,” Bob Lucey, then-Washoe County Commission chairperson, told the small crowd of reporters, lobbyists and government officials.
“This is how we fight climate change and protect our state,” proclaimed then-Gov. Steve Sisolak, who’d set a goal of nearly halving the state’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
The governments they led had each given the company, then called Ledger8760 and now known as NZero, contracts on the promise it could provide real-time tracking of carbon emissions from scores of buildings, hundreds of vehicles and the travel of thousands of employees. Such information would allow hour-by-hour decision making to reduce their carbon footprints and move toward their climate goals, according to NZero’s pitch.
It was a bold claim for a company with no track record working with governments and without a scientist or climate expert among its founders or lead employees.
But what NZero’s executive team did have — and what gave it an edge in convincing a state, county and city to bet taxpayer dollars on the company — was a history of helping powerful people get what they want. As lobbyists, well-liked in political circles for their jovial personalities and straightforward deal-making, they had helped Uber battle an intractable taxi lobby and gain entrance to the Nevada market; Tesla win what was at the time the largest tax incentive package in state history; and the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders secure $750 million in public financing to build a stadium. They’ve represented clients before the Reno City Council and Washoe County Commission and lobbied the Legislature on behalf of the city.
Now, Josh Griffin, NZero co-founder, decided to use those skills to grow his own business.
Beginning in late 2020, Griffin leaned on relationships with government officials to pitch them his new company, according to emails obtained by ProPublica. Over the next three years, he won contracts worth $5.7 million — funds that critics say would have been better used to make actual efficiency upgrades or invest in green power generation. In fact, Griffin convinced government officials, including the administrations of two governors from different political parties, to pay his company more and more money despite NZero’s struggles to deliver on its promise to provide real-time emissions data to make real-time decisions.
Washoe County went months without receiving data tracking electricity usage. A state of Nevada pilot project never delivered real-time data, and a larger project with the state encountered repeated delays. Only the city of Reno realized a working platform with uninterrupted and usable data.
“Their software didn’t do what they said it was going to do,” said Robin Yochum, a former programs manager at the Governor’s Office of Energy, who questioned the contract from the beginning. The statistics that NZero provided to the state during the pilot project were months old because of issues getting data in regular intervals from utilities, she said. The historic data had to be input by hand and wasn’t much better than information the state already had.
“They figured out how to get money from the government and put it into their company, and what did we get for it? Nothing,” Yochum said.
NZero’s head of marketing, Kevin Nabipour, said in a written statement that ProPublica’s reporting “portrays a customer experience that is a stark contrast from the one we know and experience routinely with a satisfied group of engaged public sector professionals.”
In an interview with ProPublica, Griffin acknowledged NZero didn’t deliver what it initially promised. Rather than real-time data, the governments got delayed data. But it still benefited his customers, he argued.
“I know we delivered real value,” Griffin said, “even though it was incongruent with when we said we would deliver information and when they received it. It doesn’t mean at all it wasn’t valuable.”
TITLE: 18 Republicans Ask Mike Johnson To Save Biden’s Green Energy Subsidy Deluge
https://dailycaller.com/2024/08/07/18-republicans-mike-johnson-inflation-reduction-act-subsidies-repeal/
EXCERPT: The lawmakers wrote to Johnson to urge him to not repeal energy sector-wide tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), especially those that have already spurred ongoing development across the country. The IRA became law in 2022 without a single Republican vote, and while the lawmakers said they believe the law is “deeply flawed,” they do not want to see the repeal of all tax credits because “we would have spent billions of taxpayer dollars and received next to nothing in return” for that spending.
“Today, many U.S. companies are already using sector-wide energy tax credits – many of which have enjoyed bipartisan support historically – to make major investments in new U.S. energy infrastructure. We hear from industry and our constituents who fear the energy tax regime will once again be turned on its head due to Republican repeal efforts,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter to Johnson. “Prematurely repealing energy tax credits, particularly those which were used to justify investments that already broke ground, would undermine private investments and stop development that is already ongoing.”
“We must reverse the policies which harm American families while protecting and refining those that are making our country more energy independent and Americans more energy secure,” the letter says. “As Republicans, we support an all-of-the-above approach to energy development and tax credits that incentivize domestic production, innovation, and delivery from all sources.”
Republican Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa, Buddy Carter of Georgia and John Curtis of Utah — who is running for the Senate — signed the letter. Other signatories of the letter include Republican Reps. Andrew Garbarino of New York, David Valadao of California, Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon, Marc Molinaro of New York, Young Kim of California, Jen Kiggans of Virginia, Don Bacon of Nebraska and Erin Houchin of Indiana.
“The IRA was a bad bill that needs to be reformed, but let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater. The energy tax credits have led to immense investment in American energy production, created good-paying jobs, and spurred innovation,” Garbarino said in a statement shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation. “We need to be engaging in discussions around this and give it due consideration, rather than prematurely jumping to a wholesale repeal.”
TITLE: How China’s subsidies are reshaping the global photovoltaic (PV) industry
https://www.evwind.es/2024/08/05/how-chinas-subsidies-are-reshaping-the-global-photovoltaic-pv-industry/100079
EXCERPT: Currently, the production capacity of solar panels exceeds demand by 2 terawatts (TW), causing a sharp drop in product prices. The main reason for this situation is the state support provided to Chinese manufacturers, which has allowed them to dominate the market and create serious challenges for companies in Europe and the United States. While this has resulted in lower prices for consumers, manufacturers are facing financial difficulties and are forced to find ways to adapt.
Solarwatt, a Dresden-based company that emerged in the early 1990s as a symbol of Europe’s renewable energy ambitions, has also come under pressure. Although the opening of a new plant in late 2021 was considered a victory in the battle against Chinese competitors, Solarwatt is now preparing to move its production to China to remain competitive.
This problem has not only affected European companies. Oversupply on the global market over the past two years has caused solar panel prices to collapse, leaving many European companies unprofitable and threatening US President Joe Biden’s ambitions to make the United States a leader in renewable energy. Even the Chinese companies that dominate the market have felt the consequences of this situation.
However, falling solar panel prices have led to an increase in installations among consumers and businesses. According to forecasts by the International Energy Agency (IEA), in 2028 the electricity generated by solar installations will exceed that generated by wind and nuclear plants.
According to SolarPower Europe, at the end of last year more than 800,000 people were working in the solar energy sector in Europe. In the United States, about 265,000 people work in this industry, according to the Interstate Renewable Energy Council. BloombergNEF reports that panel prices have fallen more than 60% since July 2022.
The significant impact of overproduction has led to calls for protectionist measures. The magnitude of the damage is causing concern and is prompting Brussels to protect European companies from subsidized Chinese products. The United States has already introduced new tariffs on Chinese solar panels, ranging from 25% to 50%, and Europe is considering similar measures.
However, some US companies believe the protective measures may be insufficient. With industries in Europe and the United States under pressure, the question arises whether Chinese companies will be able to maintain current price levels or will have to reduce production to stabilize their finances. In March, China’s Longi, the world’s largest solar panel manufacturer, reduced its workforce by 5%, affecting 4,000 employees.