$5 billion return from program that funded Solyndra

Mention Solyndra and every right winger in the room will immediately begin jumping up and down about government failures and crony capitalism, then follow with a complete condemnation of the entire program. What you will not hear, of course, is that the Solyndra loss (and every major investor at one time or another makes a bad call) is dwarfed by the expected returns of that Department of Energy loan program:

The U.S. government expects to earn $5 billion to $6 billion from the renewable-energy loan program that funded flops including Solyndra LLC, supporting President Barack Obama’s decision to back low-carbon technologies.

The Department of Energy has disbursed about half of $32.4 billion allocated to spur innovation, and the expected return will be detailed in a report due to be released as soon as tomorrow, according to an official who helped put together the data.

The results contradict the widely held view that the U.S. has wasted taxpayer money funding failures including Solyndra, which closed its doors in 2011 after receiving $528 million in government backing. That adds to Obama’s credibility as he seeks to make climate change a bigger priority after announcing a historic emissions deal with China.

A $5 billion return to taxpayers exceeds the returns from many venture capital and private equity investments in clean energy, said Michael Morosi, an analyst at Jetstream Capital LLC, which invests in renewable energy.

Now then, is there anybody here who's heard this mentioned on Fox or discussed by Rush or Sean? Naw, didn't think so - it would never get past the censors. Oh, yeah - it also turns out that we do not have an Ebola epidemic in this country at all, meaning that the government docs were right. Anybody hear any apologies from right wing sources about how wrong they were for over-reacting by calling for massive numbers of travel bans and mandated quarantines for 21 days or more? Naw, I never heard that either.

 

The issue for me with Solyndra is that unlike with the government backing loans for companies like Tesla that were already making a go of it, Solyndra was effectively bankrupt when the loan was done and then was just as bankrupt in a very short time frame when they had maxed out most of that loan. We were backing an expansion of Tesla, whereas we were just knowingly dragging out the collapse of Solyndra.

 

A. An expectation is a result---in LibWorld.
B. A government report states only facts---in LibWorld.
C. Who was the company that was recently looking for a government grant...free money...to pay off a government loan?
D. Of course, we all know that Barack Obama and the current administration is the most transparent and ethical ever...in LibWorld.

I do congratulate Grizz on getting the "news" out before the lie.

 

Only the government would be happy giving almost 40 billion dollars to get back 5 billions. Or are you saying it's received all 40 billion back already and is now in the black for 5? So they paid back $37.4 already? How come I doubt that.

 

Well you can blame both Bush and Obama for that (*)(*)(*)(*) up.

 

From the article;

It's not a 5 billion return, it's a government estimate based on potential gains and a report which conveniently didn’t disclose terms for investments in specific companies or estimate how much the rest of its portfolio may earn. In other words, it's an estimate without full disclosure. Big whoop.
Interesting to note, based on the article's winners and losers (failures =$780 million, Tesla paid off a $465 million loan), the taxpayers are in the red by $115mil. But I guess since the DOE has handed out $16.2 billion, they're estimating a much better track record. And who could possibly doubt or question a government agency estimating a $5 billion to $6 billion return based on the average rates and expected returns of funds dispersed so far, paid back over 20 to 25 years, right?

 

The reason you doubt that is because it's not what happened. Now, if you'll go back to the OP, you'll note that of the $32.4 billion allocated (not $40B), only about half has been loaned out. Meaning that the expected return on $16B+ is about $5B which ain't too bad.

 

Considering it was handed out to companies despite the indications of oncoming bankruptcy, and others without indications...




Yes, getting $5 billion back of the $16 billion gifted, is better than anyone expected... if it happens.



Celebrate the possibilities.... because actual reality doesn't leave us much to be joyous of.

 

Does your figure factor in the costs of bailing out the Ivanpah solar energy plant? http://news.investors.com/ibd-edito...s-want-taxpayers-to-pay-for-their-mistake.htm

 

or I could just not blame anybody and suggest that maybe we not always try to throw the baby out with the bath water. Even at the local level, crap happens. My city has done a lot to help business relocate via obtaining grants, etc. to help in economic development. Sometimes that has worked out great and a few times we have been stuck in the lurch because the company took the money and never came or went under before they met the minimum requirements, leaving the city having to repay the state or federal government while trying to recover the money by lawsuit when possible.

 

The program is currently operating in the black and has recouped all losses to date. All loans still existing are in up to date repayment status. That is BTW the same way a bank looks at profit vs loss on loans.
http://www.npr.org/2014/11/13/363572151/after-solyndra-loss-u-s-energy-loan-program-turning-a-profit

 

I'd be real careful if I were you posting charts like the one above from a quite questionable source:

The Institute for Energy Research (IER), founded in 1989 from a predecessor non-profit organization registered by Charles G. Koch and Robert L. Bradley Jr., advocates positions on environmental issues including deregulation of utilities, climate change denial, and claims that conventional energy sources are virtually limitless.

It is an estimate that's looking quite good right now; good enough to make Bloomberg News. I suspect that if you were seriously interested, you could find out the specific terms of the loan and get back to us. However, to say that the payoff might not be achieved and is therefore not credible, is simply not credible.

 

Well, thanks for the link, but let's put some of it right here for all to read:

In 2011, solar panel company Solyndra defaulted on a $535 million loan guaranteed by the Department of Energy. The agency had a few other high-profile bankruptcies, too — electric car company Fisker and solar company Abound among them. But now that loan program has started turning a profit.

Overall, the agency has loaned $34.2 billion to a variety of businesses, under a program designed to speed up development of clean-energy technology. Companies have defaulted on $780 million of that — a loss rate of 2.28 percent. The agency also has collected $810 million in interest payments, putting the program $30 million in the black.

When Congress created the loan program under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, it was never designed to be a moneymaker. In fact, Congress imagined there would be losses and set aside $10 billion to cover them.

 

Losses from legitimate ventures are one thing. Making politically motivated loans to cronies with terrible track records is another (Solyndra).
I guess that doesn't matter to you, however.

 

Their heads are exploding!

- - - Updated - - -

Sort of like the no bid contracts that Dick Cheney arranged for his cronies?

Solyndara had far closer ties to the Bush adminstration, then they ever did to the Obama team.

 

When do we get the $9 Billion back that was just stolen off the plane in Iraq, under Dubya???

 

Dems like corporate welfare now?

 

..as would be the case with an industry that is not being solely created for the profits it can make for private companies. Right wingers do not understand and are unwilling to accept the scientific and ecological reasons behind why we are pursuing green and alternative energies. There is closed and single-mindedness which explains much of the way they relate to the world and others around them.

 

I wonder why right wingers here are responding with false claims.

Solyndara was not going broke when the loan closed.

What happened in the following months was the China flooded the market with cheap silicon based panels. They were dumping in order to keep newer technology from maturing and coming to market.

The Chinese drove the market price below Solyndra's break even and drove them out of business.

Amazingly, the right wing blamed Obama, and gave the Chinese a pass.

Just as the right wing has given Wall Street a pass over the financial panic of 2008.

 

Your head, perhaps. Mine, not so much. Honestly, if I could even figure out what the outrage in this thread is about, I most likely wouldn't care.

Clue? We're laughing, not exploding.

 

You might want to see how Obama is still handing out no bid contracts to Haliburton and KBR. Another Obama lie

 

Possibly not, but then it probably doesn't include the cost of the clean coal plant in Mississippi either.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-14/coal-s-best-hope-rising-with-costliest-u-s-power-plant.html

 

Knowing how the Obama administration lies through its teeth, color me HIGHLY dubious.

 

Fact repellant!

All you have to do is make that claim and you can ignore any fact you want and just babble the right wing code words!!!!!!

It's easy, quick and simple! You don't have to read a newspaper. You don't have to know what is going on, You don't have to understand anything about government.

Just repeat the catch phrases, code words, and dog whistles!

So much easier than thinking!

 

You also want to run the virus scan on your machine.