WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- The U.S. Senate did not pass a federal renewable portfolio standard, and there is none in the House energy bill.
Still, the American Wind Energy Association is optimistic there will be an amendment to the House bill later this month, possibly by Reps. Tom Udall, D-N.M., and Todd Platts, R-Pa.
AWEA is encouraging its members to write their legislators to support the bill, H.R. 969, that the amendment will likely be based on. The RPS bill has 120 co-sponsors and it needs more.
The five-year extension on the federal production tax credit was also rejected in the Senate energy bill -- only 57 of the necessary 60 senators voted for it.
An extension of the PTC would ensure the stability of the industry for an additional five years and help projects gain investment.
A four year PTC extension was approved in a bill from the House Ways and Means Committee. The bill, however, implements a 35 percent cost cap, cutting around $10 million on average for each project.
The AWEA opposes such a cap, claiming full PTCs must be available in order to continue building new wind projects in the United States.
