Senior Counsel and former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Jim Hoecker was quoted in a May 21, 2010, Investment Dealers' Digest article on the challenges that are slowing the growth of renewable energy in the United States. The article summarized industry expert commentary from The Bond Buyer's Conference on Financing Sustainable Energy and Efficiency.
In regard to the intermittent regulatory atmosphere, Hoecker said, "We have tremendous uncertainty. And I know that uncertainty is death for the capital markets. The good news is that Washington is focused on this like a laser. We just have trouble agreeing on whether the sun's going to come up tomorrow."
Additions to the U.S. transmission network are expected to triple between 2009 and 2018, growing at the rate of 3,100 miles per year, Hoecker shared. "Project proposals abound, with 90 planned projects totaling $120 billion," Hoecker said. "Unfortunately, our performance record isn't very good. I suspect that an awful lot of these projects will die of frustration and neglect."