WASHINGTON, DC — Cree Inc., Dow Chemical Company, GE, CalStar Products and Serious Materials are among the more than 100 firms receiving $2.3 billion in tax credits for cleantech manufacturing that's expected to create thousands of U.S. jobs while producing advanced technology and equipment to generate, efficiently use and manage energy.
The award of Recovery Act Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits, announced this month, covers 183 projects in 43 states.
In the area of developing energy efficiency in buildings, which are responsible for 40 percent of energy consumption in the U.S., and building materials, tax credit recipients include:
- Cree, which is receiving $39 million in tax credits. The firm plans to purchase new equipment to add capacity and capability at its facility in Durham, N.C., that will enable the company to lower production costs of chips, fixtures and other materials for its high-efficiency lighting.
- Dow Chemical, which is receiving more than $20 million in tax credits for manufacturing advanced solar cell materials and technology. The company will get $17.8 million for its making of roofing, siding and other materials embedded with solar cells for commercial and residential buildings. Dow announced the product in October and plans to market it on a limited basis starting mid-year in 2010 with broad availability expected in 2011. Dow also is receiving $2.2 million for its production of special coatings that are used in the manufacturing of solar cells.
- General Electric Lighting Inc., which is to receive $19.8 million in tax credits. The company is re-equipping a lamp factory in Bucyrus, Ohio, to make energy-saving T8 and T5 linear fluorescent lamps. General Electric companies in lines of business ranging from consumer appliances to industrial turbines and aviation equipment are to receive $89.8 million in tax credits.
- CalStar Products, which is to receive $2.4 million in tax credits for its manufacture of bricks and pavers from coal power plant fly ash. The firm's process uses 88 percent less energy than traditional fired clay products and avoids the CO2 emission associated with concrete.
- Serious Materials, the maker of several green building products, is to receive $548,100 for its SeriousWindows facility in Chicago, where the firm revived a bankrupt plant that had made traditional windows and turned it into a factory for high-performance windows.
Corporate applicants to the tax credit program were reviewed on the basis of their projects. The most competitive applications were those for projects that would result in or involve:
- The greatest amount of direct and indirect domestic job creation.
- The greatest net impact in avoiding or reducing air pollutants or emissions of greenhouse gases; and the lowest levelized cost of energy.
- The greatest potential for technological innovation and commercial deployment.
- The shortest project time from certification to completion.
A list of the tax credit recipients (xls) is available from the Department of Energy.
Image courtesy of Cree.
