August 7, 2009—With the goal of expanding development of renewable energy projects throughout the United States and creating new jobs, the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that they are now accepting applications for a program that will make direct payments in lieu of tax credits to companies that create and place in service renewable energy facilities.
The two departments foresee distributing at least $3 billion in financial support to approximately 5,000 biomass, solar, wind, and other types of renewable energy production facilities. The funding for this effort is made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The departments believe that the funding will encourage private sector capital to invest in clean energy development, creating new jobs that can’t be outsourced. They note that too many renewable energy projects have stalled due to a lack of financing, which the Recovery Act program aims to rectify.
