After a tumultuous ride during the last days of the congressional session, electric cooperatives received $267 million in bonding authority to fund renewable energy projects, including wind, closed-loop biomass, open-loop biomass, geothermal, small irrigation, hydropower, landfill gas, marine renewable, trash combustion and solar projects. 

After a disagreement between the House and Senate stalled passage of a proposed renewable energy tax package, the Production Tax Credit and Clean Renewable Energy Bond program were both wrapped into the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008” (also known as the federal bailout package).

The bill also provides $1.5 billion in tax credits for efficient electric generation or gasification projects, while adding a requirement that these projects capture and sequester at least 65% of CO2 emissions (for electric generation projects) or 75% of CO2 emissions (for gasification projects).  

In addition to extending the CREB program for another year, the bill modifies the original structure of the program, giving cooperatives greater flexibility.

For more details on the impact of the new CREB program, see “Provisions of Interest to Electric Cooperatives in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008”.