A123 - Easy as ABC!

This in from the 'Say it isn't So' Department in the MoosRoom:

A123 Systems becomes America's latest EV battery maker to file for bankruptcy
 

A123, based in Waltham, Massachusetts, received a $249.1 million grant from Obama’s economic stimulus package in 2009 to build a factory in Michigan and had used $132 million of that amount, according to the Energy Department.

Under Obama, the government has invested about $5 billion in the U.S. electric car industry through loans to automakers including Fisker and Tesla, grants to companies such as A123, and tax credits of as much as $7,500 for customers who buy plug- in cars.
 
...

Having been riddled with setbacks, including a major recall of faulty batteries supplied to Fisker Automotive, Michigan's favorite EV battery maker A123 Systems has filed for bankruptcy. It has also announced the sale of its main business units to rival Johnson Controls in a deal pegged at $125 million -- a sad fraction of the billion dollars it raised since it launched in 2001 (not least from government grants).
 
It seems that neither fresh lithium ion innovations nor a potential deal with Chinese investors were able to keep the company out of the red, which leaves A123 on the road to nowhere -- right behind that other DoE-sponsored hopeful, Ener1.

[Sigh]

I heard that other 'Green Companies' given money by the Obama Administration had gone 'bust' also. 

What I didn't hear was how MANY 'Busts' we've had in the past several years.

So I wondered, I 'Googled', and I gawked in disbelief... 

All things considered, I should have gone for a walk with the dogs.

October 18, 2012, The Heritage Foundation:  President Obama’s Taxpayer-Backed Green Energy Failures

So far, 36 companies that have received federal support from taxpayers have either gone bankrupt or are laying off workers and are heading for bankruptcy.

This list includes only those companies that received federal money from the Obama Administration’s Department of Energy. The amount of money indicated does not reflect how much was actually received or spent but how much was offered.

The amount also does not include other state, local, and federal tax credits and subsidies, which push the amount of money these companies have received from taxpayers even higher.
 
The complete list of faltering or bankrupt green-energy companies:

 1.  Evergreen Solar ($24 million)*
 2.  SpectraWatt ($500,000)*
 3.  Solyndra ($535 million)*
 4.  Beacon Power ($69 million)*
 5.  AES’s subsidiary Eastern Energy ($17.1 million)
 6.  Nevada Geothermal ($98.5 million)
 7.  SunPower ($1.5 billion)
 8.  First Solar ($1.46 billion)
 9.  Babcock and Brown ($178 million)
 10.EnerDel’s subsidiary Ener1 ($118.5 million)*
 11.Amonix ($5.9 million)
 12.National Renewable Energy Lab ($200 million)
 13.Fisker Automotive ($528 million)
 14.Abound Solar ($374 million)*
 15.A123 Systems ($279 million)*
 16.Willard and Kelsey Solar Group ($6 million)
 17.Johnson Controls ($299 million)
 18.Schneider Electric ($86 million)
 19.Brightsource ($1.6 billion)
 20.ECOtality ($126.2 million)
 21.Raser Technologies ($33 million)*
 22.Energy Conversion Devices ($13.3 million)*
 23.Mountain Plaza, Inc. ($2 million)*
 24.Olsen’s Crop Service and Olsen’s Mills Acquisition Company ($10 million)*
 25.Range Fuels ($80 million)*
 26.Thompson River Power ($6.4 million)*
 27.Stirling Energy Systems ($7 million)*
 28.LSP Energy ($2.1 billion)*
 29.UniSolar ($100 million)*
 30.Azure Dynamics ($120 million)*
 31.GreenVolts ($500,000)
 32.Vestas ($50 million)
 33.LG Chem’s subsidiary Compact Power ($150 million)
 34.Nordic Windpower ($16 million)*
 35.Navistar ($10 million)
 36.Satcon ($3 million)*

*Denotes companies that have filed for bankruptcy.
 
The problem begins with the issue of government picking winners and losers in the first place. Venture capitalist firms exist for this very reason, and they choose what to invest in by looking at companies’ business models and deciding if they are worthy.

When the government plays venture capitalist, it tends to reward companies that are connected to the policymakers themselves or because it sounds nice to “invest” in green energy.

Hey!
Looking for easy cash?

Looking for a pre-approved business plan?

Looking for a hand-out?

Well look no further than your Federal Government!!!

It's fun!  It's easy!  Unfortunately, it's a very-limited time offer!

[Free green money giveaways expire November 6, 2012.  No warrantees express or implied.  All funding delivered 'as is' in small, unmarked bills by a guy named "Lloyd" driving a Chevy Volt.  Call in now, operators are standing by!  Republicans need not apply...]

How easy is it?

Easy as A123!

Take us away Michael J.! 

Have a nice weekend folks... 

Let's be careful out there.