Public Release: 28-Sep-2017
Case Western Reserve University
IMAGE: This is Anurag Gupta. view more
Credit: CWRU
With a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), researchers at Case Western Reserve University will develop a new financial product to attract a broader pool of long-term private investors to new technologies offered by energy startup companies.
The goal is to help bridge the so-called “valley of death”–the gap between a startup’s initial seed investment and later rounds of financing when the new company has already scaled up and is profitable. That gap can leave a promising startup struggling with cash-flow, as additional private investment can be difficult to secure until a new technology advances from an idea to proven success.
“There is an immense challenge in the new energy sector, with venture capitalists drifting away from clean technology investments in recent years, making it tougher for startups in this sector to prove their viability,” said Anurag Gupta, the H. Clark Ford Professor of Banking and Finance at the Weatherhead School of Management and principal investigator on the grant.
Joonki Noh, an assistant professor of banking and finance at the Weatherhead School, will serve as co-investigator.
A new financial product, tailored for a specific risk-return appetite
With the two-year, $600,000 DOE grant, the two researchers will design the new financial product with unique risk reduction strategies to pool investments from large capital providers–pension funds, insurance companies, and foundations, for instance; these investors currently shy away from this sector due to lack of suitable investment products tailored to their risk-return-payout preferences.
“We hope this facilitates billions of dollars to flow to new energy projects at the critical scale-up stage,” said Gupta. “This could help address a global problem by advancing efforts to finance sustainable energy.”
Most of these new technologies targeted for private investment aim to generate renewable energy and lower emissions of carbon and other gases that contribute to climate change, as well as reduce levels of particulate matters emitted from burning fossil fuels associated with a host of health issues–while at a lower unit cost.
“The participation of large capital providers like pension funds is critical to generating sufficient capital to finance widespread scale-up of these new technologies,” said Gupta, “since the traditional venture capital model has proved to be unsuitable for this sector.”
Commercializing a new energy technology often requires investing tens of millions of dollars–a significant risk to venture capitalists intrigued by an idea, but wary of its uncertain market performance. Energy investments also often takes much longer than the seven- to ten-year “exit” timeline that venture capitalists are known to prefer.
Grouping together steady and significant sources of long-term funds can allow for the investment in multiple energy projects at once, spreading out the inherent risk that can scare away support for individual companies.
“Right now, there is not much incentive for venture capitalists to experiment with investments in energy companies that may take 10 to 20 years to turn a profit, if ever,” said Gupta. “We are outside the venture capital world, which allows us to try out innovative new ideas.”
At the end of the two-year project, the goal is to obtain actual investments using the financing mechanism developed in this study to fund new technologies in energy.
“This is about as real as research can get,” Gupta said.
The project is one of 11 supported by $7.8 million in new DOE grants; Gupta will lead the only team from a university awarded one of the grants; the rest are investor and industry groups.
“What we’re trying to create could potentially be replicated in other sectors–such as biotech and pharmaceuticals–that share high investment risks and long periods of gestation before potential payoff,” said Gupta.
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Major FAIL by Trump administration (via their D.O.E.), here.
Such companies should just have to go about marketing their product the same way everyone else has to: FINANCE IT THEMSELVES ……
and build a product
that people will buy
WITHOUT
public assistance.
***************************************
If “renewables” need public assistance, they are not ready to be funded — by anyone. It is that simple.
The Trump administration is giving them the rope to hang themselves, and being able to say that they gave them the chance to succeed. It’s a win for Trump. Whatever “financial instrument” they craft HAS to have the inherent risk that they are trying to hide. Any knowledgeable investor will see it and not invest.
Maybe you should read harder.
Heh. And if I had any doubt (which I didn’t) about the accuracy of my comment, I am now quite sure my assessment was correct. Thank. You. Steven. M o s h e r. 🙂
“Right now, there is not much incentive for venture capitalists to experiment with investments in energy companies that may take 10 to 20 years to turn a profit, if ever,” said Gupta.
There, did it for you Mosher.
“Maybe you should read harder.”
What on earth are you talking about?
so much for Mosh the libertarian.
As if reading harder would change an already accurate take on the article.
Unfortunately there are some who call themselves Libertarian, who believe that the government should allow them to do whatever they want to do.
Others, only get to do what the so called Libertarian is willing to let them do.
All of this sort of nonsense must be terminated.
You mean there is a reason that “there is an immense challenge in the new energy sector, with venture capitalists drifting away from clean technology investments in recent years?” According to the hype we have all be fed, it should only take a few years for any renewable energy startup to become profitable. Why wouldn’t any investor just jump at the chance to make a killing?
U.S. Senate, April 27, 2017
Re: “100 by ’50 Act” which lays out a road map for a transition to 100% clean and renewable energy by 2050.
Road map is just another way of saying it’s a legal framework for 100% renewables.
Once a legal framework is enacted, then financial institutions will be much more willing to lend money for renewable energy projects?
https://www.merkley.senate.gov/news/press-releases/merkley-sanders-markey-booker-introduce-landmark-legislation-to-transition-united-states-to-100-clean-and-renewable-energy
Bernie
‘Invest in Clean, Sustainable Energy;
As President, Bernie will:
“Work toward a 100 percent clean energy system and create millions of jobs.
https://berniesanders.com/people-before-pollution/invest-in-clean-sustainable-energy
And:
The Sanders Institute, Vermont, August, 2017
Re: Bill McKibben and 100% renewables.
‘The Unimaginable Is Now Possible: 100% Renewable Energy. We Can’t Settle for Less’
https://www.sandersinstitute.com/blog/the-unimaginable-is-now-possible-100-renewable-energy-we-cant-settle-for-less
Sanders Institute, Vermont
Jane O’Meara Sanders, Founder/Fellow and w/o Bernie Sanders.
Climate Change, c. 2015-2016
Re: Hillary Clinton and Clean Energy Economy
At:
https://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/climate
VTDigger, May 17,2017
Interview with Howard Dean
“Howard Dean to help lead Hillary Clinton’s new organization’
New organization: ‘Onward Together’
http://vtdigger.org/2017/05/17/howard-dean-help-lead-hillary-clintons-new-organization
And
Howard Dean Statement on the Energy Apollo Project, Jan.14, 2004
Nashua, NH, Jan.14, 2004
‘Developing A Clean Energy Economy’
http://www.crocuta.net/Dean/Dean_Statement-EnergyApollo_Jan14_2004.htm
More on this topic on the internet.
U.S. Senate: Vermont Sen. Leahy
Alternative Energy & Related Information – Energy
Hydropower:
Vermont hydropower production and additional hydropower supply from Hydro Quebec.
And: Other Energy Related posts on right sidebar.
https://www.leahy.senate.gov/issues/alternative-energy?tag=&latest=23
Having been misled about the causes of climate change, all proposed ‘solutions’ will have no effect on climate.
Well at least the effectiveness of any current solution.
We can see from the experience of Germany, that an extensive roll out of wind and solar does not reduce CO2 in the electricity generation market. Germany came up against the buffer in 2008/9, and has been unable to reduce CO2 emissions, in that sector, since then. In fact, the last 2 or 3 years have seen an increase in the amount of CO2 emissions from this sector.
It would therefore appear that whatever view one takes on the desirability of reducing CO2, and/or on Climate sensitivity to CO2, new technologies (and wind is not really new) are not in practice delivering on their prime objective, namely the reduction of CO2.
The raison d’etre for these new technologies is the reduction in CO2 emissions, not that they are more reliable or cheaper than fossil fuels, so if these new technologies do not effectively reduce CO2 emissions (and they do not) they ought to be binned.
I would note that “promising” better not include solar and wind. Other types I am in favor of supporting throughout the “risk reduction” aspect (which means government-backing or guarantees of course) because we just need another energy technology to get out of the renewable mess that seems to have no end in sight without other options.
so they are giving these guys $1/2 million to figure out a way to make it look like less risk…so they can get pension investments money
Didn’t Enron do that already?
Not just pensions, I’d recommend going after the bond holdings and CDs of elderly couples. I’m certain there’s a lot of pockets for the picking there too.
If the idea is economically viable, there is never a problem with finding investors.
You are correct Mark, which is the reason Madoff was able to always find investors.
Madoff found investors for the same reason wind and solar do—people WANT to believe.
You are correct Sheri, and your response proves that MarkW is wrong when he says: “an economically viable idea will find investors”……Madoff proves investors are stupid.
+100 Sheri. MS Johnson is going to find the water too deep here,but he’ll take the usual amount of time to figure that out.
Pearse has no clue how deep the water is. Most investors are ignorant.
Those were not investors, those were victims. Those and others like them do not remain investors, because all their money has been stolen. I was tempted to use the word suckers, but that would be unkind.
As always, the left wing troll demonstrates that he has no idea how anything works.
Lets see, according to our Mensa candidate here, the fact that people can get fooled by fraudsters proves that everything connected with renewable energy is economically viable.
Some investors got fooled by Madoff, therefore all investors are stupid.
As always, the elitism of the left rears it’s ugly head.
Not to mention stupidity.
MarkW says: “Some investors got fooled by Madoff, therefore all investors are stupid.”
…
That is not what I said. I said investors are easy to find…..which is why Madoff found the stupid ones. I suggest you try improving your reading comprehension, and stop projecting your bias into other peoples comments.
If investors are easy to find, why do renewable companies need to suck of the taxpayer teat?
Nope. The problem they raise is a valid one. There are projects/ideas that are economically viable, but
They fall in a zone that it is hard to find investment for.
Take a VC. A VC is going to do fund raising to collect money for high risk , short term, big payoff investments. Say a 3-5 year window and more than 5X return. they will also have certain funding targets.
They actively seek this profile out and dont put money in unless you fit their profile.
If your project takes longer, say 5-10 years, and has a lower return, say 2-3X, its STILL viable, but just
not within the parameters that speculative investors play in.
A company might consider such an investment, especially if it was core to their business. Pharma is an example.
The Government, in Funding defense R&D, has much longer time windows say 10-20 years. They invest in projects that can take decades to complete.
This is nothing new. If you ever spent any time raising money or investing you would know.
here, educate urself
https://thebreakthrough.org/blog/Valleys_of_Death.pdf
every conservative should be familiar with Breakthough.. Roger Pielke was there
Everyone here is just dying to see the Great Mosher invest his life savings in this fund.
Snake oil sales; a classic Enron story.
From Mosher’s bafflegab explanatory link:
As with all supply demand commodities, the price of fossil fuels are direct results from cost of supply and willingness of customers to pay.
Competition in this market keeps the price low as any move to raise prices just opens the door for another vendor to step in and supply product.
This statement attempts to vilify fossil fuels and capitalism’s supply demand pricing without facts or truth.
• Subsidies in conventional “fossil fuels” are a bald lie.
• “favorable tax rules” is another bald lie.
What they are really stating is that even with massive subsidies and direct favorable tax rules, renewables are still bad investments.
Another snake oil series of lines:
Energy is not steel or copper. There is very little, if any, secondary value for energy’s qualities.
“new energy technologies must routinely compete on cost alone.“; a perfect example of sophistry.
All technologies compete on cost, reliability, product and product quality.
i.e. “new energy technology cost” must demonstrate commensurate value for cost.
“Commercialization” means developing product that delivers value for the costs causing demand for that product.
Venture capitalists are reluctant to invest in any “early stage research”. That is a direct result caused by so much research into dead end products that fail to deliver sufficient value.
These “valley of death” discussions are smoke screens trying to:
A) cause commercialization of products that do not demonstrate sufficient value
B) cause governments to fund “early stage research” via populace taxation. Via a forced pretense that a product is more mature and viable than is actually the case.
C) Keep renewables well funded via subsidies, tax benefits, and government forced purchases.
AKA A very Socialist process for selecting immature technologies then forcing the populace to use unreliable product.
“New research” developers have always battled with this concept. Ideas and technologies that are not sufficiently viable will always fail to produce profits.
“New research” developers, venture investors, governments and activists certainly do not need artificial investment structures to package unsalable technology or impractical product.
Those “artificial investment structures” only serve to significantly deepen long term debt burdens upon citizenry who ultimately bear the true financial burdens dumped upon citizens by greedy developers, VC, government and activists.
In a genuine business capitalist process, renewables must prove themselves sufficiently viable to be sold directly without subsidies, reversed taxation products, government grants or forced civilian purchases.
Renewable energy generation systems must also proves themselves safe to all people, wildlife and land.
As with all energy producing systems today, renewable industry must reclaim all land, returning it back to natural status when that land is removed from production. Even if a company declares bankruptcy.
Investors, VC and others seeking quick return for long term investments can keep buying government or municipal bonds.
The problem remaining is that nobody can appreciate if a project will or not be successful, whatever the economic sector to which it pertains.
But if these guys find the holy grail of venture and mezzanine financing, than we’ll have look.
However the most probable outcome will be quite quiet; and will surely have cost a lot of tax payer’s money for the benefit of few subsidy-suckers.
Steve
If you and all the other recognize the “problem” why don’t all of you get together and invest your money. That of course will never happen even with advocates that are billionaires, because they know the only way to make money on these projects is to take money from the government. In fact the only reason they are advocates is to generate a problem that requires government investment so they can make their billions with out risk. You proclaim yourself a libertarian but you have no clue what that is.
If it takes a long time to pay off, then by definition, it isn’t economically viable.
Bob, leftists never invest their own money. That’s what taxpayers are for.
Graemethecat.
I am never closed minded about different ideas.
So I would wait and see what they come up.
Life savings?
I have no money.
Steve: The Breakthrough Institute postulates – doesn’t demonstrate – the existence of a Technological Valley of Death (demonstrating feasibility) and a Commercialization Valley of Death (converting a new product into a successful business).
Judging what ideas and people are capable of crossing the Technological Valley of Death is what venture capital is all about. It is the reason for their existence. There are dozens of VC organizations with no shortage of capital for entrepreneurs to approach. Entrepreneurs present their projects to several dozen VC firms. The Breakthrough Institute is claiming that this highly competitive marketplace isn’t funding the right projects, but how do we know if the BI has any expertise in this area. You say:
“If your project takes longer, say 5-10 years, and has a lower return, say 2-3X, its STILL viable, but just not within the parameters that speculative investors play in.”
If 3 out of 4 investments fail to earn any return, a 2-3X return doesn’t make economic sense, but a 5X return or greater does. If a project takes 5-10 years to reach the market rather than 3-5 years, the risk of failure (due to technological or market change) is much higher. Given a longer period, 7 out of 8 might fail. I’ll agree that venture capitalists generally projects that fit the parameters you suggest, but those parameters are the result of hard won experience working in a field ordinary finance wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole. If there really were a lot of money to be made in long-term projects, many will take a chance, but not for a 2-3X return.
The existence of a Commercialization Valley of Death makes even less sense. Why would VC abandon an investment in a company with a good chance winning in the marketplace? The owners of Solyndra knew the marketplace and the business better than the DOE that made a loan to them and they had far more to gain interest on a loan. Their failure to invest more made this a horrible loan. This article suggests that large capital investors should be entering businesses that VC is abandoning before IPO. Good luck.
“With the two-year, $600,000 DOE grant, the two researchers will design the new financial product with unique risk reduction strategies to pool investments from large capital providers–pension funds, insurance companies, and foundations, for instance; these investors currently shy away from this sector due to lack of suitable investment products tailored to their risk-return-payout preferences.”
The government can do some things to help, but it shouldn’t be done in the form of loans or capital. The contests that were sponsored demonstrate self-driving vehicles more than a decade ago are beginning to put products on our roads. (Self-driving vehicles funded because they might have been important to the military.) The internet is another example. Not all projects can move from research grant-funded academic projects or company-sponsored research projects to commercialization. For example, the inability to cheaply store energy is a major barrier to renewable source. The government can offer above market price contracts to purchase stored energy to promote expansion of new technologies and then re-sell that electricity to the grid. Done judiciously on a modest scale, this could move projects out of the lab that wouldn’t normally be funded by VC
This is why God invented hedge funds.
The hedge fund structure or philosophy could work.
Requires tweaking
It’s the slice-and-dice subprime mortgage debacle with a research grant.
WOW! SO much wrong with the whole thing, where to start!?!?
I thought Trump was going to STOP this type of thing? Hard to root out them climate swamp creatures like Gupta.
John – Absolutely. This kind of nonsense can’t be whipped up in a few months, so it’s likely an artifact of the previous administration.
By providing the illusion of “unique risk reduction strategies”, they hope to force pension funds, insurance companies, and foundations to pump money into a risky green slush fund that would not otherwise meet their fiduciary requirements. It’s a scam.
Indeed. And the “valley of death” label is just an inverse of what it was called in the ’80s and ’90s: “crossing the chasm.” The key difference in the ’80s and ’90s vs. the article is that the focus was on the crossing, not on the dangers of the chasm, since there were strategies that worked then for being successful – strategies that did not rely on government funding. I’ll also note that rehashes like that in the article that are presented as brainstorms, all of which rely on government financial support, seem to come primarily from grad students and PhDs who come from 3rd-world countries, countries that are notorious for economies that rely heavily on central management of their economies and heavy subsidies.
When the people awarding the grants are not risking their own money (i.e., government employees), it’s relatively easy to get the money for even the lamest proposals, especially those that have political value. So, there is little wonder that the failure rate is high.
Its more than Crossing the chasm, though related.
As stated, an utterly useless comment providing zero information. A typical distraction comment pretending value without supplying requisite detail.
Wordplay does not change intent or the sleight of hand involved to provide:
A) Provide quick returns to large investors.
B) Provide long term returns to large investors.
Any scheme that robs Peter to pay Paul simply increases the overall long term debt burden or uses government force to drain civilian purses to support early returns.
Inherent in this effort is government preselecting technology for this investment. Long before viability, capability, reliability and cost effectiveness are proven.
Known in industry as “throw money at the problem”, without solution or resolution.
Unless they have some “unique” ideas for financing, there is nothing new here. Surely the industry giants are working on innovations in energy. All they are doing is establishing a mechanism for the next round of crony capitalism for members of government. The premise of using monies from pension funds is both dangerous and unethical. If risk is high losses would be decimating to those whose pensions are involved. It is great, however, politically, as all those whose pensions are at risk will have to be “supportive” of “sustainable” energy (whatever that is). Basically a waste of tax dollars.
Atheok.
I doubt you have been through chasm training
And doubt if you’ve ever taken a product through the chas m or the tornado.
The valley of death is different. See the breakthrough paper.
We all try to cross the chasm. It looks doable.
The valley of death is impossible on its face.
Companies seem to have astonishingly little difficulty extracting money from gullible investors, and multi-million dollar grants from the DOE.
I remember how my jaw dropped when I discovered how much money flo-design had received to develop it’s tediously stupid ducted-fan wind turbine concept. It was not even an original idea.
They eventually ploughed their way through about $100 million, and took the whole lot down the toilet.
A New Zealand pension fund took the biggest hit and wrote down it’s $55 million investment to zero, just this last year. Utterly predictable. Who is to answer for the waste and the squandering of US tax payer bucks:
“FloDesign has raised $40 million of venture capital financing in two rounds after winning the MIT Clean Energy Entrepreneurship Prize as well as the Ignite Clean Energy Competition in 2008. The company was awarded an $8.3 million grant in 2009 also, as part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s highly competitive Advanced Research Projects Agency”
http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/flodesign-wind-turbine-business/
The full story was covered here over several years. I possibly misremembered some figures- the total loss may have been in the region of $150. But the NZ pension fund loss in the region of $50 million NZ dollars.
Intelligent observers were predicting the inevitable failure right from the beginning, with a high degree of confidence. As documented by the frustration expressed in some of these windworks blogs.
http://www.wind-works.org/cms/index.php?id=665
There are a lot of bad ideas out there to choose from. http://www.biofuelsdigest.com/
Hilarious, bet their “innovation” is subprime mortgage style risk tranches, to disguise insane risks as acceptable.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/07/subprime-overview.asp
Subprime Energy Investing protected by Subprime Energy Investment Default Swaps.
“With a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE),”
Well, that’s a fail…….
I see stupid people all around and they don’t know they’re stupid.
A lot of them are in the Cabinet of the President……the old saying “birds of a feather” applies in the case of our executive branch of government.
As always, the leftist troll defines stupid as “doesn’t agree with me”.
You have to put them all in a bag and shake the bag vigorously to spread the stupidity around. Then, you invest in the bag as a whole.
The average person is stupid and 50% of people are below average.
JimG1 – They walk around like everyone else.
And vote.
I believe they are trying to create the financial equivalent of perpetual motion.
” financial equivalent of perpetual motion” = printing presses at the Federal Reserve.
Which leftists always run at max speed.
The Fed has been printing irrespective of left or right.
FIrst off, there aren’t a lot of right wingers in congress.
Secondly, it’s the programs pushed by leftists that force the printing presses to run over time.
Lipstick + perfume + pig = pig
More snake oil.
The “Valley of Death 💀 “ for energy technology companies has a name: Reality.
Otherwise known as the “Valley of Tears”.
Or “Death Cab for Cutie”?
Either way, we can be sure that it’s caused by global warming so there should be a grant to be had out of it.
The “Valley of Death 💀 “ for energy technology companies has a name: Reality.
Otherwise known as the “Valley of Tears”.
Energy capital is a strategic issue when it typically takes 40 years for a new energy technology to penetrate the market while patents only protect for 20 years. Bill Gates et al. are developing a billion dollar Breakthrough Energy. http://www.b-t.energy/
ARPA-E is working on: Enhancing Capital Flow into Early Stage Energy Technologies
January 31 – February 1, 2017 Denver, CO
Breakthrough institute did a paper on this in 2011.
Thanks Steven BRIDGING THE CLEAN ENERGY VALLEYS OF DEATH https://thebreakthrough.org/blog/Valleys_of_Death.pdf
Scam
“There is an immense challenge in the new energy sector, with venture capitalists drifting away from clean technology investments in recent years, making it tougher for startups in this sector to prove their viability,” said Anurag Gupta, the H. Clark Ford Professor of Banking and Finance at the Weatherhead School of Management and principal investigator on the grant.”
Bull.
Venture capitalists aren’t preventing anyone from proving “their viability” in this sector. The sector itself disproves its viability.
Is there any a person can short funds like this?
Oops, is there any *way* a person can short funds like this?
Look up ‘Cool Futures’ if you have enough to invest. I donated some research money but have lost track since then. I don’t have enough to invest.
If its quoted you might try a spread bet or Cfd on it.
But I dont think you will find a counter-party prepared to give good odds..
Smart money has left the building already.
Its become obvious to financiers that they only way to make money is with cast iron government guarantees and Trump is not a man to give them those.
So its the end basically for renewable energy ..
Thank Clapton.
This grant should be rescinded immediately.
The DOE officials responsible for awarding this grant should be removed from duty immediately while all of their activities for the past several years are reviewed by the responsible Inspector General.
New inventions are always welcome of course, but better tested with informed and voluntary contributions.
They are drifting away because they are fed up with losing money and being lied to. Because in general green energy is not viable. Its a fashionable way to virtue signal, but in practice it doesn’t work, because its driven by perception, not by watt hours per dollar.
Typical cause and effect reversal. ‘Green’ energy is only profitable with subsidy, and that may simply evaporate.
because its driven by perception, not by watt hours per dollar.
because its driven by perception, not by reliably deliverable watt hours per dollar.
FIFY
There hasn’t been anything “new” in energy since the first nuclear reactor went critical in the ’40’s. And, there won’t be, until fusion is feasible.
Engineers have a word for this: “Availability.” It means energy that is available to do work.
What was the last energy start-up to become a commercial success without government subsidy? I’m sorry, what was that again???
Polywell Fusion – a most likely contender – gets no funding. So what could we do with this technology (if it works)?
Fusion Rockets
Polywell, read the Wikipedia on this. Attempts began in 1955, should give a clue about how this is going. Fusion requires recreating conditions inside a star, but isolating plasma at millions of degrees without losing the heat, not so easy.
“With the two-year, $600,000 DOE grant”
So they can’t even design the financial product without a government grant?
More egghead nonsense that will turn a bunch of taxpayer money into nothing.
Watch for it to call for “government investment” — code for subsidies.
Let the market do its thing — if there’s a real opportunity there, someone will find a way to make money from it without the need for government-funded “research” or involuntary “investment” from the taxpayers.
This is Obamacare for renewables. It is like the real estate mortgage crisis. You just have to hide these unhealthy companies in a package with a bunch of healthy companies, drawing unwitting investors. The climate crisis paradigm is certain to fudge the ratings and spin a wonderful story about the amazing opportunity to save the planet and make money at the same time! What could go wrong?
Jclarke341:
“Obamacare for renewables”
Of course. Jonathan Gruber carefully evaluated the intelligence of the necessary audience, and pitched the scheme accordingly.
Sufficient devotion to that taxpayer money pit by certain congress people still exists to prevent killing it. The “facts” that were used to support the idea are not easily removed from one’s shoes, even employing the farmer’s shuffle.
Michael Milken with hair.
So, in basic terms, the government is funding research into how to develop a tax-payer funded government sponsored ponzi scheme. Get new investors to pay off initial investors.
http://www.acfe.com/ponzi-schemes.aspx
Okey dokey!!
“There is an immense challenge in the new energy sector, with venture capitalists drifting away from clean technology investments in recent years, making it tougher for startups in this sector to prove their viability,”
You don’t say? Perhaps it’s all down to those pesky hockey sticks-
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs/tim-blair/from-subsidies-to-landfill/news-story/7e5c2cb555f79a8467208e5cc02dd747
Well. As we learned here in South Africa. Don’t trust the Guptas with anything….
You got that right, Henry!
https://www.accountancyage.com/2017/09/27/kpmg-rocked-south-african-corruption-scandal/
Aren’t I always….
Humanity benefits more from engineering science than political hyperbole.
Without the energy provided by other sources renewables could not exist.
“….investments in energy companies that may take 10 to 20 years to turn a profit, if ever.” Ideas that are sound and represent a breakthrough in energy production will attract investors and gain rapid acceptance. Ideas that are still 10 – 20 years from profitability are in reality areas of research, not products requiring investment.
The Federal government has lots of research dollars to invest in basic research and development. Research is important for society — and should be supported. But asking private investors to waste money on iffy only-politically-correct ideas is foolish.
Sorry KIp, but the Federal Government has no wealth, other than what it forcible acquires from the people. The only thing it manufactures is more government. If some research promotes the general welfare of the nation, who gets to decide what research does that?
Every ‘financial product’ I have ever seen is a thinly veiled device for siphoning off cash resources from investors into the accounts of those who already have far more money than they need.
I wonder if they will encourage investment in small-scale nuclear reactors?
(a rhetorical question)