Governors press Obama on wind policy

A bipartisan group of governors is pressing President Obama to take several administrative actions to boost wind power at a time when legislation to extend vital tax credits faces uncertain prospects.

A letter to Obama from the Governors’ Wind Energy Coalition urges creation of a federal-state task force charged with expediting deployment, and complains that Energy Department programs emphasize next-generation wind technologies “at the expense of aiding states in their deployment initiatives.”

The group of 24 governors sent the letter in July and made it public last week. It also urges improved collaboration on facility siting and several other steps.

The letter also calls for a seven-year extension of production tax credits that are key to project financing and are slated to expire next year.

However, energy sector tax credits of various stripes are facing increasing scrutiny on Capitol Hill.

The American Wind Energy Association, a trade group, reported earlier in August that wind energy deployment picked up speed this year, noting that the 2,151 megawatts of new generating capacity installed in the first half of 2011 is 72 percent higher than the same period in 2010.

But the group warned that uncertainty on tax policy is bringing major storm clouds.

While the country has been adding wind capacity for years, AWEA warned Aug. 4 that “Project activity and orders for 2013 and beyond are scant because of the lack of a predictable business environment, causing layoffs and even bankruptcies in American manufacturing plants and the supply chain.”