Poor Economy Effecting Solar And Wind Power

It would appear that even mother nature is not immune to the ravishes of this economic recession. The current recession we find ourselves mired in has had a deleterious effect on the development and implementation of alternative energy sources as well.

Solar and wind power has seen exponential growth in the past few years and it looks as if under President Obama and the Democratic controlled Congress it is poised to grow even more rapidly. However, there is a decided speed bump in the road in the form of  the U.S. credit market.

With banks turning off the spigot of credit across all sectors of the economy, the growth that the solar and wind power industry has seen of late has also been effected as well. Unemployment has hit the alternative energy industry just as hard as others. 30% – 50% lay-offs have been reported by factories that manufacture solar panels and wind powered generators.

At the same time the prices of these very same solar panel systems and wind turbines have declined due to deflationary pressures. It’s a wicked economic cocktail. Once thought of as recession-proof, the alternate energy industry has proven to be anything but.

The problem is a lack of capital. Banks and financial institutions were clamoring to hop on board and ride the wave of green energy. But it seems as if that wave has crashed on the shores of Wall Street. Wall Street is the chief economic engine that fuels all industries and the lack of credit extended now has hurt solar and wind power  manufacturers and installers.

Not even the tax incentives for alternative energy is helping at this point. As we pull out of this recession I think the green energy industry will not only recover but thrive. With commitments from the White House and Congress the solar and wind energy industries are poised to take off. But for now they will have to spend a bit of time on the launch pad.