Hot on the heels of President Barack Obama’s $2.3 billion Recovery Act Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits for spurring renewable energy development and clean-energy jobs arrives news, courtesy of the Arizona Republic, detailing how Arizona will be among the many states to benefit from the initiative.
Six solar power equipment companies in Arizona’s Phoenix metro area, for example, are earmarked to receive $30 million in federal tax credits should they be built. Not only more solar power resources, but also higher-paying manufacturing jobs would ensue. A further $45 million in tax breaks is on the table for five Arizona companies, should they expand solar equipment or wind turbine facilities in other states. Details are forthcoming, however, as locations for the projects—and even the projects themselves—have yet to be confirmed. Still, it’s a great jolt of energy (if you’ll excuse the pun) to the Arizona renewable energy sector, which is still in the aggressive stages of growth.
Of course, Arizona isn’t the only state poised to benefit. Over 500 applications for $8 billion in federal tax credits poured into the U.S. Department of Energy, which ended up selecting 183 projects, spread across 43 states. The Obama Administration announced the tax credit yesterday, with President Obama stating, “building a robust clean energy sector is how we will create the jobs of the future, jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced.”
From the White House press release:
This effort, along with other Recovery Act investments, will drive significant growth in the renewable energy and clean technology manufacturing sectors and give the United States the ability to lead globally in these markets. The investment tax credits, worth up to thirty percent of each planned project, will leverage private capital for a total investment of nearly $7.7 billion in high-tech manufacturing in the United States.
While the tax credit figures for Arizona businesses are nothing to scoff at, they are eclipsed by the amount of federal tax support Michigan will be receiving: $224 million, to boost solar panel and wind turbine production. The company positioned to benefit the most in the state is perhaps Hemlock Semiconductor, which successfully cinched a $141.9 million tax break to grow its solar panel plant.
Why shouldn’t the White House use $2.3 billion to promote job growth while greening the nation’s economy? These new clean-energy manufacturing tax credits can create immediate jobs and help promote clean, alternative energies for the long term.
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