Wind energy groups are praising the recently passed tax bill for keeping in place the renewable energy production tax credit.
Advocacy groups such as the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) had been concerned with previous versions of the tax bill that would have eliminated the renewable energy production tax credit. The tax credit is given to companies that construct new wind farms and is calculated based on how much energy the project produces. AWEA officials argued that the production tax credit is already scheduled to be phased out by 2020 and prematurely eliminating it would have killed several planned projects.
Ultimately, Congress decided to leave the credit alone.
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy operates a wind turbine manufacturing plant in Hutchinson. In a statement sent to the Kansas News Service, the company says that they are grateful Congress kept in place the bi-partisan agreement to slowly phase out the tax credit. The statement also thanked Kansas' congressional delegation for their continued support of American manufacturing.
--
Follow Brian Grimmett on Twitter @briangrimmett.
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.