Hey, imagine what could be done with $450 million dollars if given to Americans. 90 million $5 meals at a fast food joint. 15 million coats for those in need during this cold winter. Every citizen in the US could buy two candy bars. Or, we could just give it away to China
Top Democratic fundraisers and lobbyists with links to the White House are behind a proposed wind farm in Texas that stands to get $450 million in stimulus money, even though a Chinese company would operate the farm and its turbines would be built in China.
This begs the question, will the profits go back to China? How many Americans will work there, particularly in the executive offices? Not to mention the question “why in the hell are we giving Stimulus money to a non-US company?”
The farm’s backers also have close ties with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who, at the height of his hard-fought re-election bid this fall, helped blunt congressional criticism over stimulus dollars possibly going to create jobs in China by endorsing a proposal by the Chinese company to build a factory in his home state. Although his campaign received thousands of dollars in donations from the wind farm’s backers and Reid stood on stage with them at a campaign event they hosted, his office declined to answer any questions about the wind farm’s organizers or their plans for Nevada.
Guess it won’t be in Nevada.
The wind farm, first announced more than a year ago, would consist of 300 2-megawatt wind turbines, each perched atop a 26-story-tall steel tower and spinning three blades — each half the length of a football field. The farm would span three counties and 36,000 acres in West Texas land best known for its oil. Dubbed the Spinning Star wind farm, the project’s 600-megawatt capacity is, theoretically, enough to power 180,000 American homes and would be the sixth-largest wind farm in the country.
And should probably be completed in a decade, once the enviroweenies get done suing, counter suing, protesting, chaining themselves together around the front gate, because a bird or two may get hurt. But, it gets better!
The clock is ticking for Spinning Star: To claim the stimulus grant it must arrange its financing and begin work on the wind farm by Dec. 31. Besides the $450 million stimulus grant, A-Power’s SEC filings indicate the joint-venture also will pursue a Department of Energy-backed loan guarantee. According to the SEC filings, the project is waiting to hear if it will receive the loan guarantee before financing will follow to build the turbines.
So, they could get more money from the US government for this boondoggle. Great.
This whole thing could end up costing the same as a nuclear power plant, which has a much smaller land footprint, and, shocker!!! can provide power when the air is still. They generally put out almost double the megawatts of what this windfarm will provide. Granted, they’re operating costs are about a fourth that of nuclear power plants: doesn’t cost that much to hire people with GED’s to go oil the turbines and pick up the dead birds, while people at nuclear power plants are, well, nuclear scientists.
Don’t get me wrong, I support wind power. But not projects like this which are costly, won’t provide power during the non-windy times, and send our money overseas.
Crossed at Right Wing News and Stop The ACLU. sit back and Relax. we’ll dRive!
ooops looks to me like you “SNAPPED” a bit prematurely. In Aprol of 2008 the Georgia power company signed a contract for 2 nukes for 14 BILLION or about 14 times as much as this wind farm Moody’s now estimates the final cost of a nuke plant to be 7000 kwh. this is about 2 times as high as s the solar cost. Duke Usays that nukes are not the cheapest that renewables are and that those prices will continue to drop Nuke prices keep going UP
And China is putting up 49% of ther money, they know that this wind farm is good business The Nasdaq listed A-Power shot up 15% and A-Power is the American company that will be making the profits
so is it a loan guarantee? is that all that it is?
Let’s see, we are comparing a windmill structure the size of 3 TEXAS COUNTIES that only produces 600-megawatts to a nuclear facility that can produce 600 to 1600 megawatts!!
And all with a footprint of a major car manufacturer. NOT 3 counties!!!
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-03/u-s-nuclear-output-hits-2-month-high-as-iowa-reactor-starts-up.html
so is it a loan guarantee? is that all that it is?
No Ryan. Once again you demonstrate a remarkable inability to comprehend basic ideas.
From the article: Besides the $450 million stimulus grant, A-Power’s SEC filings indicate the joint-venture also will pursue a Department of Energy-backed loan guarantee.
The $450 million is a grant. The Chinese are also coming after more money in a loan.
Two separate funding provisions.
As previously discussed, the Duke study takes into account only grants, and not subsidies. Your conclusion is flawed.