House and Senate Members Seek Wind PTC Extension

on April 01, 2014 at 10:00 AM

HUSUM 2012 Wind Energy Trade Fair

A bipartisan coalition of 144 House and Senate members have written to the House Speaker and Senate Finance Committee urging extension of the wind energy production tax credit.

On March 21, 2014, a group of 118 House members led by Reps. Steve King (R-IA) and Dave Loebsack (D-IA) wrote to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) seeking extension of the wind energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) and Investment Tax Credit (ITC) which expired at the end of 2013.  A group of 26 senators led by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Mark Udall (D-CO) sent a similar letter to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) urging inclusion of PTC and ITC extension in an upcoming tax-extenders package.

The letters emphasized the need for policy certainty and predictability to support long-term decisions and investments.  They also called for prompt action to avoid layoffs and divestment, highlighting the role of PTC and ITC in driving wind industry growth.  Notably, the wind industry contributed to $105B investment from 2005-2012 and has reduced wind power costs by 43 percent over the last four years.  Originally enacted in 1992, PTC has been renewed several times, most recently by the 2012 American Taxpayer Relief Act on January 1, 2013.  In 2013, PTC provided a tax credit of $0.023 per kWh for electricity generated from utility-scale wind projects over 10 years of their operating life.

Wind-PTC-Expiration-Historical-Impact

Historical Impact of PTC Expiration on Annual Wind Capacity Installation (awea)

According to the American Wind Energy Association, wind industry jobs currently total 80,000 including 30,000 manufacturing jobs, and uncertainty over the PTC extension at the end of 2012 caused private investment to decline from $25B in 2012 to $2B in 2013.  At least 559 U.S. factories that manufacture wind turbine parts are vulnerable to PTC and ITC expiration.

March 24, 2014 via Energy Solutions Forum.

Energy Solutions Forum is an energy policy research and data company based in New York City. Follow @EnergySolForum for policy research and stay plugged in with ESF Calendar, the industry’s go-to resource for energy business events in and around NYC.