Wind power industry warns that tax credit lapse will hurt jobs

Apr 26 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Dave DeWitte The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

The wind power industry says that uncertainty due to Congressional inaction on the extension of a key tax credit set to expire at the end of the year is beginning to cause layoffs.

The Production Tax Credit for renewable energy is set to expire onunless it is renewed by Congress. Wind power producers typically need at least 18 months of certainty on the credit availability before they'll launch a project, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

Association officials Wednesday said the industry is beginning to see layoffs because of market uncertainty. More than 10,000 jobs will be gone by the end of the second quarter, the group said, a number it forecast could increase to over 20,000 at the end of the third quarter and over 30,000 by the end of the fourth quarter.

The association cited a report from Navigant Consulting claiming 37,000 jobs could be lost within a year without an extension.

Conversely, the report said, the wind industry could create 100,000 jobs over the next four years if the production tax credit is extended.

U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, joined Steve Lockard, the CEO of TPI Composites in Newton, and two other congressmen at an industry news conference Wednesday to discuss the tax credit renewal. TPI Composites makes wind turbine blades.

"Our company has created more than 700 new jobs in Newton, and a second wind energy company there now employs over 100 people," Lockard said. "Our industry can do the same in hard-hit towns all across the U.S., if Congress will let us and doesn't increase taxes on wind power next year."