This exchange came in response to a general plea for more nuclear power from a free-market advocate who otherwise is opposed to the same government subsidies to wind, solar, and battery firms. The free-market opportunity is to 1) repeal federal mega-subsidies (Investment Tax Credit, Production Tax Credit, research & development, Price Anderson liability-cap protection); 2) end rate-base treatment under state public utility regulation; and 3) replace the Nuclear Regulatory Commission with the Institute for Nuclear Power Operations.
E. Calvin Beisner of the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation posted (March 20):
Nuclear energy provides stable, 24/7 electricity with capacity factors often above 90%. Advanced Generation IV Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) offer passive safety features, shorter build times, scalability, and lower long-term costs. They can be deployed behind-the-meter for data centers and industrial users, reducing strain on the grid.…
“Why not state your real concern in plain English. ‘The profitability of my company and others in the renewable energy business is being negatively impacted by the refusal of the citizens of Alberta (aka ‘the government’) to financially subsidize transmission.” ( – Bill Mazurek to David Vonesch, below)
David Vonesch of the Canadian Renewable Energy Association, posted on social media:
…A $408M write-down of ATCO’s wind and solar projects and development pipeline! Alarm bells are ringing loudly now but is anyone listening?
While the solar and wind industry has seen our concerns largely fall on deaf ears within government and at the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO), this should be a major wake up call for ALL Albertans that want to see investment of ANY kind in this province. Material, punitive and retroactive – Alberta is writing the book on how to kill investment: “provincially legislated changes … have materially and retroactively altered the economic conditions under which these renewable assets were developed and financed,” the ATCO company said.
“Politics giveth and politics taketh away. May political risk become more of a constraint for those companies (think battery, wind, and solar) that feast off special government favor instead of fundamental consumer demand.”
The domestic EV market–and the battery industry serving it–is in steep decline. The latest? “SK Battery America cuts 958 jobs at Georgia plant amid EV sales slowdown.” Subtitle: The South Korean battery manufacturer reduced its workforce at its Commerce, Georgia, facility by about 37% as EV demand weakens and policy changes reshape the market.
Author Ashby Lincoln explained how shifting market and political winds resulted in the malinvestment.