Today’s front page of Investor’s Business Daily reports that the firm SolarCity — whose chairman is the fabulously wealthy head of of Tesla Motors, Elon Musk — expects to install between 71 percent and 89 percent more megawatts of solar panels next year than it did this year, which was a banner year. The share price of the company’s stock shot up 23 percent on the news. The price is up 490 percent since December 2012.
The story pointed out that businesses and homeowners who install solar panels, which is SolarCity’s primary function, shift the cost of the grid to those without such panels. “A California Public Utilities Commission study found that net metering will, by 2020, shift $359 million in annual costs from customers with solar panels to other ratepayers in the state,” IBD reports, though that study is disputed by others.
In Nevada those who install solar panels get a rebate from the power company and can apply for federal income tax deductions.
So, tell me again why the Governor’s Office of Economic Development gave SolarCity $1.2 million to open an office in Las Vegas, even though SolarCity already operated in 13 states and more than a dozen Nevada taxpaying companies were already doing the same function and SolarCity would be in competition with them.
Dignitaries celebrate giving your money to SolarCity. (R-J video screen grab)
4TH ST8 
Easy to explain, see a smiling Harry Reid in the photograph and figure that a federal grant is in the mix, do not wait to see a smiling Harry Reid in a photograph where natural gas, coal, or oil are involved.
Follow the money. Whenever I see our Governor smiling with Harry Reid, or doing photo ops with our Democrat state legislators, I understand that it is all political, and complete cronyism.
Brian Sandoval is a climber–hey, nothing wrong with ambition. But to what degree is he willing to sell out the people of Nevada? He hand-picks a candidate for Lt. Governor, and wants me to send him campaign contributions, make phone calls, walk precincts, to reelect him. So that he will “maybe” run against Harry Reid for US Senator, depending upon who becomes the Lt. Governor?
There are not enough hours in my day, week, month, or year, to attend “public meetings,” or follow the activities of our state legislature. How does spending taxpayer dollars to get Solar City (as one example) to set up shop here? Taxpayers and rate payers are the ones who pay the price.
http://alternativeenergy.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=001792
Why is it that proponents of solar, wind, etc. believe (believe, as in “have faith,” rather than consider other viewpoints), that so-called renewable energy industries are what is best for our economy and well-being? Follow the money.
An incomplete sentence above, here is what I meant to say: “How can spending taxpayer dollars to get Solar City (as one example) to set up shop here be justified?”
It can’t Wendy. Unfortunately, states often pay to attract companies. In this case, the solar cachet, or maybe a few well placed bribes may have something to do with it.