Wind Power Subsidies

In April 2014, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) issued a report evaluating the impacts of extending the federal wind production tax credit (PTC), which expired at the end of 2013.¹ The NREL Report wrongly concludes that extending the PTC indefinitely is the preferred policy, stating that doing so could "provide the best opportunity to sustain the existing wind installation and manufacturing base at its current level."² Thus, despite decades of subsidies, NREL concedes that wind generation is still not competitive and recommends continued subsidies to sustain wind energy's manufacturing base and associated jobs.