The Federal Production Tax Credit (PTC) was introduced in the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to spark investments in wind and has been renewed many times, most recently in 2009. It provides investors with a tax credit equivalent to 2.2 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) produced – or roughly 20-30% of the cost of a wind farm. It is now a budget reduction target for Congress, set to expire on December 31, 2012.

The debate about its extension begs the question: “Can the wind industry survive if the PTC expires?” My answer is: “Yes,” but only if we first get rid of far greater amounts of taxpayer support for more mature energy sectors such as oil, gas and coal. Keep reading →