Two big renewable energy projects in Colorado not moving forward

Even before President Donald Trump signed his tax and spending bill on the Fourth of July Colorado lost two big renewable vitality projects The talk surrounding the budget package caused uncertainty in the sector over how it could impact incentives and financing analysts explained likely leading to the pause in the projects The new law speeds up the phase-out of incentives and tax credits approved in the Biden administration s Inflation Reduction Act which Trump criticized as the green new scam during the presidential campaign Tax credits for rooftop solar will go away at the end of this year and incentives for electric vehicles run out Sept The bill also accelerates portions of the incentives for advanced manufacturing Will Toor executive director of the Colorado Capacity Office noted renewable strength provisions in the budget bill will undercut rise of the advanced manufacturing industry in the U S We ve already seen things like the new announcement about the Amprius battery factory in Brighton where the direct impact of this federal protocol is already causing manufacturers to pull back on their investments and remove economic upsurge and jobs Toor announced Amprius Technologies released in that it would open a -square-foot lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility in Brighton that would employ about people in the first phases But in May the California company advised shareholders that it was pausing the project as it monitors sphere dynamics Amprius CEO Kang Sun revealed in a announcement that while the company has completed the plant s design there are no immediate plans to move forward to the next phase Producing cutting-edge battery technologies at scale in the U S requires a highly capital-intensive process and technical expertise that is still emerging he explained Meanwhile other countries have spent years building mature cost-efficient battery industries giving them a major head start Sun commented The national organization Environmental Entrepreneurs or E maintains that projects were canceled or put on hold leading up to the debate and approval of Trump s budget bill because of the uncertainty around federal procedures on renewable strength incentives and funds A analysis by the group commented billion in new factories and clean potency projects have been canceled across the country since Jan as the incoming administration signaled that changes were ahead E and Clean Business activity Tracker release frequent updates on the renewable potential and advanced manufacturing industries Susan Nedell senior advocate in the West for E believes the targeting of renewable force incentives and programs played into the cancellation of plans to build a million factory in Brighton to make solar panels VSK Ability Inc a joint venture between India-based Vikram Solar and the private equity firm Phalanx Impact Partners and the advancement firm Das Co broadcasted the project in At the time Sriram Das chairman of VSK Potential and managing director of Das Co called the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act a landmark moment for the clean potential future of the United States A spokesperson endorsed Wednesday that the Brighton plant isn t moving forward but didn t give a reason Related Articles Smaller nuclear reactors spark renewed interest in a once-shunned potency source Xcel requirements new air permit for Pueblo s Comanche station even as it plans to shutter the coal-fired plant Elbert County nixes permits short-circuiting part of Xcel Resource s B transmission project Millions of tons of coal ash are buried underground in Colorado seeping toxic chemicals into groundwater Colorado launches examination into Chevron-owned Noble Vigor over Bishop well blowout In Colorado as well as the nation we ll see more cancellations of big projects more jobs lost more layoffs less commitment in solar and wind because of the uncertainty Nedell reported A spokeswoman for Rep Gabe Evans a Republican whose district includes Brighton announced Amprius had been reconsidering the Brighton location since March according to news reports months before the text of the budget bill was issued Evans joined most of of his fellow Republicans in Congress to promotion the budget bill However the congressman s spokeswoman Delanie Bomar and a spokeswoman for Pivot Potential which develops solar and power storage projects in Colorado mentioned Evans worked to ensure that renewable strength tax credits weren t abruptly eliminated as certain longed and a proposed excise tax on wind and solar wasn t imposed As the representative for one of the highest ability producing districts in the country I fought hard to protect the clean ability tax credits in the One Big Beautiful Bill and ensure the tax on clean resource was removed Evans commented in a comment Toor of the Colorado Power Office reported the state remains committed to boosting the use of renewable power and addressing weather change The underlying economics are still there Wind and solar are both still highly competitive Electric vehicles will still cut your fuel bill Get more business news by signing up for our Financial system Now newsletter