Worse than Solyndra!! Meet SunPower and their $1.2 billion federal loan...

Wow! I've been following the Solyndra saga very closely since the story first broke and I never imagined that our govt could actually sink lower in this realm. I was wrong!! This story even involves a Congressman's son who lobbied for the failing Sun Power. Hmmm...

How did a failing California solar company, buffeted by short sellers and shareholder lawsuits, receive a $1.2 billion federal loan guarantee for a photovoltaic electricity ranch project—three weeks after it announced it was building new manufacturing plant in Mexicali, Mexico, to build the panels for the project.

The company, SunPower (SPWR-NASDAQ), now carries $820 million in debt, an amount $20 million greater than its market capitalization. If SunPower was a bank, the feds would shut it down. Instead, it received a lifeline twice the size of the money sent down the Solyndra drain.

Sounds like start up money to invest in MEXICO to me. This company was originally hailed for refitting a former Ford plant to manufacture its products in California..

The two men in the spotlight here are Rep. George Miller III (D) and his son George Miller IV a lobbyist for Sun Power. Rep. Miller is the senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee and the co-chair of the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee. Rep. Miller actively stumped for and praised Solar Power along the way.

Miller said this during a publicized tour of SunPower's plant

“We’ve worked hard to make renewable energy a priority because it represents America’s future economic growth. Today, businesses like SunPower are moving forward, hiring 200 people for good clean energy jobs in the East Bay,” he said.

“By fostering a business climate that encourages companies like SunPower, even more good jobs will be created locally, we’ll reduce demand for dirty energy sources, and we’ll cut customers’ utility bills. That’s the right direction,” he said.

So, why the new plant in Mexico???

Here is where the numbers boggle the mind

The loan guarantee is earmarked for the job numbers for the California Valley Solar Ranch (CVSR) in San Luis Obispo County, which it has already sold to NRG Solar, but will continue to maintain.

According to the Department of Energy (DOE) website, the CVSR project will create 350 construction jobs during the two-year build and 15 permanent jobs—presumably those are the squeegee men for keeping the panels clean.

If $80 million per permanent job seems a little high, even for the current Obama administration, you are correct. In addition to the 350 construction jobs and the 15 squeegee men, there will an as-yet-undetermined number of jobs created building the panels for the CVSR—in Mexicali, Mexico.

Here's the kicker. With full knowledge that this company had planned to expand and invest in Mexico, DOE (department of energy) granted them the $1.2 Billion loan just Hours before the loan program was set to EXPIRE. HOURS!! Score one for Mexico and Mexican Job Seekers!! 0 for US job seekers.

Two weeks after the federally guaranteed loan was announced SunPower was bought out/taken over by a French Company (Total Oil). I highly doubt that this deal just happened overnight. Score for SunPower's CEO

The deal, made public April 28, was in effect a 60% buyout at $23.25, then a 60% premium over the stock's current trading price, which allowed insiders to get liquid.

SunPower CEO Werner is typical of the insiders. On May 24 he exercised his right to purchase 428,343 shares at $3.30 per share, a $18 discount from the day’s trading range. He sold 478,084 shares June 15, the day the Total Oil takeover closed, at $23.25 for proceeds of $11,115,453.

The company is now Valued at $800 million, down from $13 Billion, and has a debt of $820 million and multiple lawsuits have been filed against them from some rather high profile shareholders.

Time to crack this one wide open..

It is a fair question to ask how a company with such serious charges lodged against its management team could receive a $1.2 billion loan guarantee from the taxpayers, so it could built a new manufacturing plant in Mexico to build the solar panels it will install at a photovoltaic ranch that will create a total of 15 permanent jobs.

Certainly, the time is right for Miller and Miller to clarify their roles in this mess.

Please share this information because you won't hear it on the evening news!!

www.humanevents.com...

Democracy has failed.
Looks like the politicians no longer represent the best interests of the people.
Time to reform things.

reply to post by grey580


The simplest way to reform Capital Hill is to enact strict Term Limits. End the career politician mindset and the corruption and absolute power that accompany it. No more than two terms for any elected official on The Hill.

That would be the fastest way to get the ball rolling....get some fresh faces and new ideas flowing again.

Loans to banks that are proven failures:
Two Thousand Billion Dollars

Bigger fish to fry.

What was the DOE thinking.

Photovoltaic cells are not the proper system for large solar power plants.1 MW or bigger

For large solar plants ether mirror and tower or solar trough type plants are way more cost effective and longer lasting.

Photovoltaic panels have a limited live span of 20 to 25 years.
info.cat.org.uk...

With proper maintenance both mirror and tower or solar trough type plants have a life span of 100+ years

Originally posted by pirhanna
Loans to banks that are proven failures:
Two Thousand Billion Dollars

Bigger fish to fry.

edit on 11-10-2011 by pirhanna because: (no reason given)

Those fish have already been fried, burned and overcooked. As of today, they are still sizzling. This is the stuff that has been swept under the rug and kept out of the limelight. I was not aware of any of this until the Solyndra story broke.

Just another open can of worms...

I don't like any of it... The bank bailouts, the GM bailout.... They could have written personal checks to the entire nation for what is adding up so far. It certainly would have been money better spent for a regime so hell bent on spending it.

there have been many loans made out to green companies

there credo is like when you watch the news and you see some dude holding an ak-47 his eyes closed just spraying and praying they hit something well what they are firing is our money and they arent hitting a damn thing and they are locking and loading and more of the same.

the stupidity needs to end and soon before we run out of ammo.

Originally posted by neo96
there have been many loans made out to green companies

there credo is like when you watch the news and you see some dude holding an ak-47 his eyes closed just spraying and praying they hit something well what they are firing is our money and they arent hitting a damn thing and they are locking and loading and more of the same.

the stupidity needs to end and soon before we run out of ammo.

edit on 11-10-2011 by neo96 because: (no reason given)

It's far from closing their eyes and spraying and praying, they are hitting dead on target, that is, loaded with your money and firing it right into their cronies' pockets.

Nothing in politics happens by accident. NOTHING.