Silicon Valley business leaders keep eye on Washington energy tax plans - New Mexico Business Weekly:

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Formally known as the American Clean Energuy andSecurity Act, the legislation establishes a new market in the buying, selling and trading of carbo allowances. The current proposal callz forthe U.S. to reduce carbo emissions by 17 perceny from 2005 levelsby 2020. Barrty Cinnamon, president and CEO of Los Gatos-basede Akeena Solar, said cap and tradr won’t make anyone’s stoclk rise immediately, but it has the potential to increase the economiv viability of renewable energy acroswsthe board.
The devil, though, is going to be in the “The reality is whether it’s cap and trade or a carbon tax, it will fundamentally increasew the economic viabilityof non-carbon energy making wind, solar and energy conservation more attractive,” Cinnamobn said. “And the valley is becoming a hub ofthosr industries.” Tom Tansy, vice president of marketing and business developmeny at Fat Spaniel a San Jose-based provider of management services for renewable energy systems, said the company is watching the bill and has been pushinb for this type of legislation for “We’re reinforcing to our elected officials that this makes perfect sense for our worlr and our industry,” Tans y said.
“There is a ton of researcgh about the benefits of cap and and there is enough movement in our governmentg now to makeit happen.” Companiess that reduce their emissions could make moneyy by selling what they don’ t use to those who need more carbohn credits, such as utilities and manufacturers. Opponents fear that such a syste m is a tax in disguise and would result in massive coststo consumers. According to an Environmental ProtectionAgency analysis, the act coul d create a market for carbon creditsz worth at least $4 billion annually in the U.S. througu 2030. New sources of energy are expected to increase inthe U.S.
by 65 percen by 2025, and 92 percentt are expected to below carbon. Opponents of the bill have called it everythinhg froma “cap and tax boondoggle” to a bureaucrat’s dream. Formed U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking at the Silicon Valleu Energy Summit at Stanford University inlate June, said cap and trader is an easily abusedr system and that a carbon tax wouls be a better way to approach reducing greenhousse gas emissions.
While Cinnamon agreed with Rice’s statementy that carbon cap and trade could be abusedor “it’s up to our Legislature to set up a programj to achieve the goals of reducing carbon-baseed emissions with the simplest way and leasft chance of abuse.” Although the bill facews fierce opposition from coal producers and states that rely heavilgy on coal, California’s Pacific Gas and Electric has a cleanet portfolio than many utilities in other parts of the Brian Hertzog, PG&E’s D.C.
-based director of corporats relations, said the framework presented in the bill won’rt have any substantial cost impact on PG&sE customers in the near term because the company is relativelu well-prepared. “When you look at our portfoliko in terms of our carbon intensitu and what the impact will be once we put a price on it will be a much lower impact than you will see Hertzog said.
Important elements for any potentia energy legislation include consumer protection andcost containment, he Peter Nieh, managing director at Lightspeed Venture Partners in Menlo Park and leader of the firm’s cleantech believes cap and trade has the potential to level the energy playing field because it takes away coal’sd competitive price advantage. “Hopefully everybody standds to win, but that’s what the debate is Nieh said. “If you integrate this across it’s the matter of the cost and whobearw it. Alternative forms of energ standto win.
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